Team: Smithies, Onuoha, Angella, Hill, Perch, Henry, Faurlin, Mackie (Luongo), Chery (Hall), Hoilett (El Khayati), Polter
Subs Not Used: Ingram, Tozser, Petrasso, Washington
Attendance: 11,322 (including 675 R’s fans)
My young lad and I had a great trip on Saturday to Preston (a home game for us!).
We left Dundee at 8.30, and after changing at Edinburgh we arrived in Preston at 12.45. A taxi up to ‘The Sumners’ pub was taken for pre-match drinks and conversation.
Into the ground we went, tied up our flag, took our seats and we didn’t have long to wait before we were off them again!
The R’s got off to a flyer with a goal in 5 minutes from big Polter, and really, with better decision making on a number of counter attacks, we could have won comfortably.
Chery’s one-on-one miss with 5 minutes to go proved a pivotal moment, as minutes later the board went up to show 6 minutes of added time, much to the bemusement of the R’s players, staff and fans!
This gave the hosts a massive lift, and I for one felt that an equaliser was on the cards. The defence had coped superbly well all afternoon with Preston’s balls into the box, via open play and set pieces, but one lapse of concentration cost us the three points.
It was hard to be too critical of the team at that moment, because they had played well from back to front, with everyone contributing. I thought the midfield was excellent on Saturday, the defence looked organised, and some tremendous front-man play from Polter (although he did tire as the second-half went on).
The R’s fans were in superb voice again, backing the lads right from the off. The walk back into town was one that had us thinking that it could have been ‘a win away, a win away, a win away….’
We had a couple of drinks in the bar at the train station after the game as we waited for our train, and who should we meet, Clint Hill and Jamie Mackie! My young lad got his picture taken with them, top men! He was over the moon, and it made up for the disappointment of that late equaliser.
It was a long day, getting back to Dundee at 11pm, both shattered, but well worth it. Here’s to the next one. UR’s!
Alan (Dundee)
Eoin Doyle scored a stoppage-time equaliser as Preston North End salvaged a draw against Queen’s Park Rangers. The on-loan Cardiff striker headed in Greg Cunningham’s cross in the second minute of added time at Deepdale.
QPR had taken a fifth-minute lead as Sebastian Polter headed in Alejandro Faurlin’s cross from close range for his seventh goal of the season.
Preston are 10th in the Championship, nine points from the play-off places with QPR two points behind them.
The hosts dominated after going behind to Polter’s early goal, with Jordan Hugill and Daniel Johnson both going close for Simon Grayson’s side before Adam Reach squandered one of the best opportunities when he scuffed a volley well wide.
Rangers’ top scorer Tjaronn Chery had two opportunities to double the lead in the 83rd minute, curling a 30-yard kick just wide before going clean through on goal only to be denied by keeper Anders Lindegaard.
Preston continued to be profligate in front of goal before Doyle’s late equaliser, and the Irish striker had an opportunity to win it for North End a minute later but his header was straight at Alex Smithies.
Preston manager Simon Grayson: “We’ve got good character and good spirit about us and I thought it was the least we deserved.”
“We played well, passed it well, but just lacked that little bit of quality in the right areas. We kept on asking questions and got a justifiable equaliser.”
“We’ve got some really good results so that breeds confidence. It’s another positive result for us. The players have given everything they’ve got and showed the spirit required to get something out of games.”
QPR boss Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink: “We should have got the three points. In the first-half they put pressure on us but we soaked it up.”
“We passed the ball well and I didn’t see them scoring. You have to take chances to make it 2-0 but it wasn’t meant to be.”
“We take a lot from this performance today. We have to take the result on the chin, decisions went against us, we didn’t take some chances but the performance was good.”
BBC Sport
Thanks Alan for the report and Pics.
I have to confess that although I live locally I did not go…If you saw the recent away match at Bolton like I did I think you may understand.
I heard it was dire at Bolton, lucky us then!