Preston North End’s owners ‘totally committed’ as Peter Ridsdale explains off the field work

Preston North End director Peter Ridsdale says the club’s owners are ‘totally committed’ following a busy summer transfer window.

The Lilywhites were active right up until transfer deadline day, when the arrivals of Liam Millar and Milutin Osmajic took the club’s tally of signings to eight. On the pitch, things are going well for Preston - who headed into the international break top of the table, having picked up 13 points from the first five games.

Craig Hemmings has always been open regarding his stance on owning PNE, along with the rest of the family. Hemmings has spoken about his pride, but also willingness to step aside should an interested party - capable of taking Preston to the next level - come along. Ridsdale does not see any change on the ownership front at Deepdale.

He said: “It’s a bit like asking whether we’ll sell our star player. The answer is that everything is for sale and has a price. I think the family have been outstanding; Craig loves it and has been very supportive this summer, as we’ve seen. They are totally committed, but if somebody came outside the door at Euxton with an oil well, they would probably talk to them.”

North End had plenty to do in the transfer market this summer, but off-the-field issues were not in short supply either. The club changed its catering provider and kit manufacturer, while fixing the leaky Alan Kelly Town End roof and implementing new advertising boards. The work PNE have managed to do pleases Ridsdale, who felt the need to prioritise the roof at Deepdale.

”I have only got so much money and I got more letters of complaint about the Town End roof leaking than anything else last year - maybe apart from the home form,” said Ridsdale. “So, we said we would do it and we did it. That cost almost £300,000 and then we did the Gentry Bar, put in electronic advertising boards and a new screen - which is similar size but a much newer, latest version.

“So, between the Town End, boards, big screen and transfer window it is very expensive. Therefore, we put the money where the priorities were. We’d had criticism about our catering operation. They were under contract, so we decided to change - hopefully it will be an improvement, without being critical of the past, but you only change to make things better.

“And, despite us having some delivery hiccups - which can always happen when you change supplier - I think the Castore product is outstanding. They are good to deal with as people: very receptive and responsive. And, I think the fact the kits are designed uniquely for us is good - whereas in the past there was criticism of us having Tottenham’s hand-me-downs or whatever. If we were to write down a checklist of things to do, we’ve had a good summer.”