And he told the Deepdale faithful before tomorrow's clash at Watford: "We'll get it right."

Irvine, who will celebrate a year in the Deepdale hotseat next month, said: "I'm proud to be the manager of Preston and I'm glad I made the decision to come to Deepdale. I've loved every minute of it.

"It is a great thing for me because I thrive on responsibility, challenges and hard work.

"It has proved a baptism of fire, but a fantastic experience.

"It was a special moment for all of us last season when we made sure of our Championship status at Plymouth.

"Then for the first six games of this season, I was delighted with how we had performed and worked.

"For the last three games I have been devastated, but you get those massive highs and lows.

"Fortunately, I've had more highs than lows in this job.

"I feel very privileged to be in this position because this is a superb club and we are more determined than ever to get it right at Watford tomorrow."

Tuesday's shock 2-0 defeat by strugglers Swansea saw Preston drop to ninth in the table, eight points behind leaders Wolves.

And, although it is a run which Irvine is keen to see end quickly, the North End boss hasn't let his squad dwell on the midweek reverse.

"I'd sat up until 3.30 on Wednesday morning analysing the tape of the Swansea game, watching it over and over again.

"I was like a bear with a sore head and I had it in the back of my mind about arranging a meeting with the squad and staff on Thursday morning.

"But when I arrived at training yesterday and saw their reaction, I knew they had got the result out of their systems. They were focused
and determined, wanting to get started again.

"One of the things I've learned most of all is that you can't be affected by it, start moping about and feeling sorry for yourself because things change so quickly from one result to the next.

"There are no short cuts in management."

For full story and preview read Friday's Lancashire Evening Post.