Hull City 2-2 Preston North End: Oli McBurnie inspires comeback for Tigers before penalty controversy
It finished 2-2 between PNE and Hull City at the MKM Stadium
The Lilywhites had some magical midweek away trips last season and their first Championship one of 2025/26 couldn’t have started much better. Thierry Small had made a bright start to life at Deepdale but goal number one for the club would’ve been an itch he was keen to scratch. With just three minutes on the clock at the MKM Stadium, he plucked the ball out of the sky - after Hull failed to deal with a corner - and drilled the ball into the bottom left corner, with his right foot.
Manager Paul Heckingbottom had described the Tigers as a ‘really dangerous’ outfit in his pre-match press conference; he also suggested PNE had spotted weaknesses which they felt confident of exploiting. How North End did that here, with full debutant Harrison Armstrong finding space along with the ever impressive Alfie Devine. With 10 minutes on the clock, though, it was Michael Smith - back in the XI - who was found on the edge of the box by captain Ben Whiteman.
Preston’s number 24 took one touch, got his head up and picked out the bottom right corner with a perfectly placed finish; Hull goalkeeper Ivor Pandur left rooted on his goal line and helpless to prevent it from crashing home. Both Smith, Small and the rest of the North End side wheeled away to the corner where 659 away supporters were having the night of their lives. Heckingbottom’s men negotiated the rest of the half professionally and barely gave the hosts a sniff, while always carrying a threat themselves.
Improvement from the Tigers was as good as guaranteed in the second half and Sergej Jakirovic wasted no time in making a triple substitution. Former PNE loan star Liam Millar entered the action and instantly made an impact, along with Joe Gelhardt - who netted twice against Preston last season. North End had scored three minutes into the first half and the second half saw Hull follow suit, with Oli McBurnie taking Ryan Giles’ cross in his stride and slotting home with ease.
After the early adversity, PNE did settle and start to ask questions of their own but a glorious opportunity went begging when Alfie Devine could only slice his half-volley over from close range. At the other end, a deflected Millar strike whistled agonisingly wide of the bottom right corner. With 74 minutes ojn the clock, though, Hull did find their leveller with the same combination - Giles to McBurnie - inflicting pain on the Lilywhites.
There was still space being afforded to North End in the Hull half and openings were there for them to seize upon. As the game entered the latter stages a major penalty appeal waved away by referee Josh Smith, after Jordan Storey appeared to be dragged to the ground by Gelhardt. After processing the disappointment of that decision, Preston kept pushing and Storey forced a smart save out of Pandur late in the day. For the second time in four days, Daniel Iversen was needed in the 95th minute to secure a point - the Dane pushing John Lundstram’s fierce effort from distance behind.
Attendance: 18,624 (659 away) PNE starting XI: Iversen; Storey, Lindsay, Gibson, Small, Whiteman (c), Armstrong (Frokjaer 81’), Vukcevic (Offiah 90’), Devine (McCann 70’), Smith (Jebbison 70’), Osmajic. PNE unused subs: Walton, Thordarson, Carroll, Dobbin, Gryba.