Boss Ryan Lowe unhappy that Preston North End must play FA Cup tie in an empty stadium

Sunday afternoon’s clash will take place in an empty Cardiff City Stadium due to restrictions imposed by the Welsh Government.

They put a halt to mass gatherings in Wales from Boxing Day in a bid to curb the spread of Covid.

PNE boss Lowe has built up a good rapport with the North End faithful in his month in charge and is sad that some of them won’t be in South Wales to spur the team on.

He enjoyed celebrating Monday’s win at Stoke with the 1,603 Preston supporters who made the trip.

In among them in the away end was his teenage son who enjoyed the experience of his first PNE away day.

Lowe told the Lancashire Post: “I didn’t like playing behind closed doors home or away when we all had to.

“I don’t like the fact that no fans were inside the grounds, football without fans wasn’t very good as we witnessed for more than 12 months.

“It’s going to be a different situation and scenario on Sunday. We are governed by what their Government want to do.

“We’ll focus on what we do on the pitch and hopefully that will pay off. But in terms of there being no fans, it’s not great is it?

“The players will be able to hear more of what we are saying on the sidelines.

“Myself and Mike Marsh were talking the other day about hand signals and whistles to get our messages to the players when there’s a lot of noise in the grounds.

“That won’t be necessary on Sunday at Cardiff, it will be a lot quieter.”

At Stoke, Lowe didn’t hold back with his celebrations in front of the Lilywhites fans. I’m a passionate manager, whatever club I’m representing I will be passionate about,” said Lowe.

“I will be passionate on the touchline and I want the lads to buy into that with me.

“When your fans are in the grounds and come to support you, it is important that you show your appreciation.

“I was excited the other day after we won, I gave them a fist pump which I’ve been using for a while.

“That is me, I want to show my appreciation when they are following us and paying their hard-earned money.

“My 15-year-old lad and his three mates were in the away end at Stoke.

“They were absolutely made up that we won and were showing me the videos of all the fans singing when we got home. That was fantastic.

“We have to keep the fans entertained, keep them coming through thick and thin. If we do that we will always have a special bond.”