Preston preview

[Sweden Stag]

On this forthcoming Saturday, the Stags will play their first competitive game in a league or cup competition since early March this year, a 2-1 League Two victory at Northampton on March 7. A few days later, the League programme was halted due to well-known off-the-field reasons. While League Two opted to end last season, the Championship, in which Preston play, decided to finish last season, and this was done about a month ago with Preston finishing in ninth spot, just four points below the final play-off spot.

This will definitely be a good test for a new-look Stags, who now face Preston in any competition for the first time in almost sixteen years. Then, it was also in the League Cup (see below).

Some facts on Preston North End:

They were the first team ever to do the Championship and FA Cup double in 1888-89 and have faced the Stags several times in Cup competitions. But had to wait until 1970-71, when the Deepdale club played their first-ever season outside the top two divisions, to face the Stags in league games. Although Preston at the end of the 1970-71 season finished top, their first league visit to Field Mill at the end of that season was one to forget, as the Mighty Stags ran out 3-1 winners (attendance 7185, Stags scorers Dudley Roberts 2, Thompson 1 while the Preston scorer was Ingram). That was also the revenge for the 1-2-defeat at Preston on October 10, 1970, when a 12000ish crowd watch Heppolette strike twice for the Lilywhites and Stenson grab the consolation goal after the interval.

Only on one more occasion have the Stags beaten Preston in a home league fixture, and that was on the opening day of the 1976-77 championship season, August 21, 1976, when Preston were stuffed 3-1 in front of 5688, all goals coming in the first half, Stags strikes Eccles 2, McCaffrey and Elwiss for Preston.

Since then, about half of the league games played at Field Mill have been drawn, compared to none at Preston!

And in fact, have the Stags won every third out of twelve away games there. The first one was early on in the 19-match unbeaten run in 1975-76, when a game on February 28, 1976 was won 2-0 thanks to goals from Ray Clarke and Paul Matthews. The biggest win at Preston was in the very last away game in 1992-93 with the Stags already down. About one-third of all their away goals were notched in a 5-1 win. The Stags scorers on May 1, 1993 were Nicky Clarke (one of several players appearing for both sides, see below), Holland, McLoughlin, Steve Wilkinson and Stringfellow. The Preston scorer in front of 5889 was Ellis. That big defeat was to be fateful for Preston as they were relegated along with the Stags.

Three more points had meant Preston staying up at the expense of Hull or Exeter due to the number of goals scored, 65, only one less than the Stags had two years ago in Division 2 two seasons ago. But the Preston defensive record in 1992-93 was dreadful, 94 goals against, and losing the final five games then also spelled disaster. That was during a time the teams played each other very frequently in the League as well as in cup competions as the team drew each other in the FA Cup on no less than four occasions between 1987-88 and 1993-94.

During this century, Preston have mainly figured at Championship level, being promoted together with Burnley and Gillingham at the end of the 1999-2000 season, then staying for eleven consecutive campaigns in which they figured twice in playoff finals to the PL, losing both, in 2001 to Bolton and to West Ham in 2005. After relegation in 2011, Preston returned four years later by trouncing Swindon to a 4-0 scoreline in the playoff final. And since then, Preston have been a stable top-half Championship side, currently with ex-Stag Alex Neil as manager since 2017. In fact. Neil in his solitary Stags season as a player, played against the Lilywhites in the League cup during the 2004-05 campaign.

On the original date of the league Cup encounter between the sides, the game had to be postponed due to a fire near Field Mill, and is thought to be one of the earliest-ever postponements date-wise within a season of a Stags league or cup game. A few days after the originally scheduled date, Preston had a managerial change, when Craig Brown resigned and was replaced by Billy Davies as caretaker manager. Well-known Preston bosses include Bobby Charlton, Tommy Docherty, David Moyes and their longest-serving player with club record appearances, goalkeeper Alan Kelly (447 games between 1961 and 1975).

Already in 1948-49 did the clubs face each other in the FA Cup. Preston, then at the highest level, won narrowly a 3rd round tie 2-1 with Oscroft as the Stags marksman in that game.

Quite a lot of players have appeared for both sides, spanning from the Stags’ non-league days with Billy Tremelling up to the present day with Alex John-Baptiste and Lee Williamson as more recent ones. Well-known ones are i.e. Bobby Mimms and Steve Wilkinson.

Played for both sides: William Akers, Craig Allardyce, Chris Beardsley, Joe Beresford, Gary Brazil, Joel Byrom, Alfred Calverley, Matthew Carmichael, Nicky Clarke, Richard Cresswell, Craig Davies, George Dexter, Adam Eaton, Des Fawcett, Greg Fee, Steven Harper, Arthur Hetherington, Stuart Hicks, Alf Howe, Nicky Hunt, Jimmy Hunter, Alex John-Baptiste, Tony Lormor, Bobby Mimms, Jeffrey Monakana, Louis Moult, Joe O’Neill, Don O’Riordan, Fred Parnell, Jock Paterson, Nathan Peel, Tommy Pritchard, Barry Richardson, Mark Sale, Jamie Squires, Steve Taylor, Billy Tremelling, Steve Uzelac, Steve Wilkinson, Lee Williamson, Billy Yates.

Home games: P 12, W 2, D 5, L 5, GF 15, GA 18
Away games: P 12, W 4, D 0, L 8, GF 15, GA 25

League games

Season Home Date Away Date

1970-71 3-1 1971-04-17 1-2 1970-10-10 Div 3 (old)
1975-76 0-1 1975-10-25 2-0 1976-02-28 Div 3 (old)
1976-77 3-1 1976-08-21 2-1 1977-01-22 Div 3 (old)
1985-86 2-3 1986-03-29 2-0 1986-01-01 Div 4 (old)
1987-88 0-0 1987-11-07 0-1 1988-04-02 Div 3 (old)
1988-89 0-3 1989-03-11 0-2 1988-11-05 Div 3 (old)
1989-90 2-2 1989-10-31 0-4 1990-04-10 Div 3 (old)
1990-91 0-1 1990-10-13 1-3 1991-03-19 Div 3 (old)
1992-93 2-2 1992-10-24 5-1 1993-01-05 Div 2
1993-94 2-2 1993-09-25 1-3 1994-03-19 Div 3
1994-95 1-2 1994-11-05 1-2 1995-01-21 Div 3
1995-96 0-0 1996-04-08 0-6 1995-10-21 Div 3

Cup games

1948-49 1-2 1949-01-10 (FA Cup 3rd round at Preston)
1987-88 1-1 1987-11-14 (FA Cup 1st round at Preston)
1987-88 4-2 1987-11-17 (FA Cup 1st round replay at Field Mill)
1990-91 1-0 1990-11-17 (FA Cup 1st round at Preston)
1991-92 0-1 1991-11-27 (FA Cup 1st round at Field Mill, game on 1991-11-16 abandoned)
1993-94 1-2 1993-11-13 (FA Cup 1st round at Field Mill)
1997-98 0-1 1998-01-27 (Associate Members Cup /now LDV Vans Trophy/ 3rd round at Preston)
2004-05 0-4 2004-09-21 (League Cup 1st round at Field Mill)

Expect a stern test this weekend. Come on Mansfield!

[Martin Shaw]

Thank you Svante. A welcome return for the previews after the enforced break