Preston Pulse Issue 29

SPORT PULSE Preston Chorley & Leyland Got a sports story for Preston, Chorley & Leyland PULSE? Email us at news@prestonpulse.co.uk Neil’s so proud of Preston North End boss’s praise for his side PRESTON North End boss Alex Neil says players and fans should all be proud of the club’s efforts so far this season. Neil saw his side move into third in the Championship table in the run up to the busy Christmas period with a hard-fought victory over struggling Luton. And speaking after the game he told the club’s official website: “At the end of the day, we are third in the league behind two top teams at this level, so I think the fans and the players should be nothing but proud with what we have managed to do so far.” Two wins on the bounce halted a run of four consecu- tive defeats that had seen PNE drop out of the top six. But wins against Fulham and Luton put them back on track DEFENDER Paul Hunting- ton is pleased to be back in action – though not in the way he would have wished his North End recall to happen. Hunts returned to the Preston defence for WBA’s visit to Deepdale, which saw the visitors take all the points through a controversial last minute penalty. It was his first start in the Championship since Janu- ary and came as a result of injuries to regular centre- half paring Ben Davies and Patrick Bauer. Huntington told iFollow PNE: “It’s not the circum- stances that I wanted to come in. Ben and Patrick have done really well this season and I’m not one to throw the toys out of the pram. “I’m very much a team player and I like to be hon- est with myself and I’ve just got my head down, worked hard and the circumstances weren’t great, but it’s kind of needs must really.” The Cumbrian also thanked the North End faithful for their support after receiving a great re- ception from the Deepdale crowd when the teams emerged for kick-off. He said: “I was really hap- py, obviously they [got right behind me, and the team. I know it wasn’t the great- est of games but I’m really grateful and thankful for their support, as I have for the seven-and-a-half years that I’ve been here. It’s been tough at times, especially going from being a big part of the team to then not, it has been mentally tough as much as physically, keeping myself right on days off, but you can’t always recreate the match first team scenario. “The bounce games are good to get 90 minutes but they’re maybe every two or three weeks.” PRESTON midfielder Ben Pearson says the team needed to stay level head- ed and keep its confidence in the face of a recent run of poor results. Speaking before PNE got back to winning ways with two victories in a row he told its official website: “I think we never get too down when you’re getting beat. I think it’s a long season; you’re going to go through spells where you lose a couple, win a couple, and it’s not to get too confident either. “You can’t make excuses, but we’ve got a lot of play- ers out at the minute, play- ers who have played a lot of games for us since the start of the season, so I think that’s a factor.” He added: “Losing a couple of games, your confidence does dip, subconsciously it does become difficult. I think all those factor into reasons as to why we’ve struggled. “I think we’ve just got to have maybe that little bit of luck, that spark to kick- start us again and get a bit of momentum.” He added: “We’ve all got to stick together, this league is up and down throughout the season and you can win a cou- ple and you can lose a couple on the bounce – it’s just about keeping that confidence and not getting too down about it.” CHARLES Vernam’s hot- shot spell at Chorley FC is over after his parent club recalled him from his successful loan spell. The forward quickly found his feet with the Magpies since joining the National League side in November on a short-term deal but impressed so much he has been recalled early by the Mariners. Grimsby interim manager Anthony Limbrick said he had been impressed with the player’s spell in Lancashire. Limbrick said: “I’m a big Charles Vernam fan. He’s come back into training while he has been at Chorley and he’s looked very sharp.” In five appearances for Chorley, former Derby County youngster Vernam scored three times, helping them to within two points of climbing out of the relegation zone after they took 10 points from four games. Magpies boss Jamie Ver- miglio was delighted to have signed the 23-year-old frontman at the time. He told the club’s official website: “Charlie is a very good footballer with a decent amount of Football League experience. “He’s young, hungry and expressed his desire to come to Chorley and try to improve our circumstances, while get- ting more games under his belt.” Chorley’s four-match un- beaten run came to an end with a 4-2 defeat at Stockport County, which saw Vermiglio’s side back at the bottom of the league on goal difference. Vernam loan spell at an end ‘We’ll stick together’ in their promotion push. Looking back at the Luton win Neil added: “There are a variety of different ways to win the game and as a manager you can’t be too precious about the way your team plays.” The return to form followed the return of some of the players Neil has been missing through injury. He said: “I think I’ve found it difficult to get the balance right with some of the players being missing.” North End striker Jayden Stockley, who came off the bench to net the winner in the 2-1 Luton win at Deep- dale also spoke of the relief that the side had halted its poor run of form. Speaking to iFollow PNE, the 26-year-old said: “To get back-to-back victories in any league is so important and we’re a team that thrives on momentum.” Looking ahead, North End’s Irish international Sean Ma- guire said: “Come January, when all these games are done, we want to be where we are now, in the top six. “It is a very open league; probably the most exciting league in the whole of Eu- rope and that means there is no easy game and you can’t go into any thinking it will be a stroll in the park.” Hunts happy to play his part NORTH End will host ri- vals Blackburn Rovers in the semi-final of the Lancashire Senior Cup. The tie will take place at Springfields on Tuesday January 28, with a 1.30pm kick-off. North End kicked off their cup campaign with a 4-1 win over Chorley, before being drawn against Barrow in the quarter-finals. Barrow were forced to forfeit after being unable to raise a team for the tie, meaning North End received a bye to the semi-final stage. Holders Blackburn were 2-0 winners over Accring- ton Stanley in the first round of the competition before beating Everton in the quarter-finals to secure a place in the semis. As per the previous rounds, clubs must play at least six players with pro- fessional contracts in this competition. In the event of a draw af- ter 90 minutes, there will be no extra-time played, with the tie going straight to a penalty shootout to decide the winner. Rovers in their sights