John Smith's PNE Fans' Panel verdict: Atmosphere ended up more like a funeral than a wedding
It was a cold Friday evening at Deepdale for what was our biggest home league game of the season against our ‘friends’ from East Lancashire. To use the words of Marti Pellow, I certainly felt it in my fingers as well as in my toes!
After this disappointing defeat, though, I also felt it in my heart too. For me it certainly wasn't a case of “love being all around me” as along with many others I left the stadium feeling deflated listening to the noises of jubilation coming from the away following on the Bill Shankly Kop.
The 2-1 win for Rovers meant that since regular games with our old foes recommenced 10 years ago following their relegation from the Premier League, it is now seven wins for North End, six for Rovers, with six draws for what is our closest local derby in terms of mileage.
Prior to the game, despite Rovers recent run of rich away form I was reasonably confident that I would see Paul Heckingbottom’s first win in a Lancashire league derby. I based this theory on my belief that this term we seemed to have assembled a better squad than our opponents following some shrewd summer recruitment.
However after a bright start in the opening stages of the match in which we missed chances to open the scoring this optimism soon evaporated. As the game progressed towards the interval it was Rovers who looked the more likely team to score which they duly did on the stroke of half-time.
When we went straight upfield to equalise seconds later it came as a bit of a surprise to me as I had just poured my coffee out of my flask for my half-time drink, but was also pleased that I didn't manage to spill any during the euphoric celebrations which followed.
The goal from man of the match Alfie Devine, who was full of running all night, was the high spot of what turned out to be a miserable evening. After this I thought we would have the psychological advantage to go on and win the game.
Unfortunately for us this wasn't the case as in midfield I felt we badly missed the injured Ali McCann or Harrison Armstrong to break up play, as we were being constantly overrun in that department as our opponents upped the ante in the second half.
It was ironic that it was Andri Gudjohnsen, a player we also looked at in the summer, got their winner from a shockingly defended free-kick.
It irks me to admit that Rovers fully deserved their win but overall we did not show the same stomach for the fight as they did, particularly in the second half.
As the minutes agonisingly ticked down on the clock I began to lose the faith, with my fears that we would never score once again being confirmed in that heart-sinking moment when the referee blew the full-time whistle.
My continued support for the club is similar to the lyrics of the earlier mentioned Marti Pellow song: “You know I love you, I always will, my mind’s made up by the way that I feel, there’ll be no beginning, there’ll be no end, ’cos on my love you can depend.”
However I must urge our team to move on quickly and put this crushing defeat behind us and as Marti says: “If you really love me, come on and let it show” by picking up some points from these next two road trips to Watford and Sheffield Wednesday.