It's a Lancashire derby at Deepdale on Sunday afternoon

Preston North End manager Paul Heckingbottom is well aware of the threat Blackburn Rovers will pose on Sunday afternoon.

The Lilywhites are back on home soil, for their first Lancashire derby of the season. Confidence is high at North End after Tuesday’s enthralling Carabao Cup win over Fulham. But, there will be a strut about Rovers at Deepdale too, having picked up 11 points from their first five games of the season - John Eustace’s side are yet to taste defeat. Heckingbottom kept a close eye on Blackburn while out of work in the second half of last season and he knows what to expect from the visitors.

“Yeah, I certainly think they look a different team this season,” said Heckingbottom. “They had some big results last year - away to some big teams. But, then they’d fall back into some bad habits. It was tough going for them to stay up, but they did it and now they look a team who’ve had that pre-season to reset, made some good signings - some good experience to add to the youth they’ve got. So yeah, they have started the season well.

“My experience of them over the years is that they’ve been a dangerous team to play against. They seem to have kept that, but added a bit more defensive stability - and a bit more organisation without the ball. I think one thing we have to be wary of is Blackburn’s threat on the counter... they have scored the most goals from counter attacks in the league. They are probably set up a lot, that way. John has had success doing it before and from his organisation, they’ve got good threat and pace to attack.

“That’s been a big part of their game. (Yuki Ohashi) has looked bright. He has come as a striker and I could imagine him playing off another striker, with the way he plays. But, certainly when he picks the ball up and gets turned, the ball doesn’t seem to slow him down. So, yeah, obviously (Tyrhys) Dolan is quick enough, (Ryan) Hedges, (Andi) Weimann was always a counter attacking player at Bristol (City). So yeah, they’ve added to it.

“But, it’s more the tactical setup as well - that mid-block they like to play in and deny a lot of space, centrally. Then, being aggressive from that position means that, when they win it, there is space in behind the opposition’s backline - but also they are still close enough to goal to be a threat from where they win the ball. So, you can see they do a lot of work on that and you can see it’s had a big influence on a lot of their games.”

For Heckingbottom, it will be his first taste of a derby encounter as PNE boss. Rovers have sold out their away allocation and there will be a 20 thousand plus crowd packed into Deepdale, for the noon kick-off. It is an occasion he’s looking forward to, but in the eyes of North End’s manager those 90 minutes will be no different to any other Championship clash in terms of importance.

“They all are,” said Heckingbottom. “I saw Ange (Postecoglou) getting slaughtered for saying it the other day. You should want to win every game. Unless they give you four points instead of three, then it is the same. I think you have to enjoy the atmosphere. I look forward to it for a full house... I hope the atmosphere is crackling. I hope all I can hear is the fans all game. But, the game is the same and you don’t want to get wrapped up in what the occasion is.

“You just want to win that game in front of you, so that won’t change. I suppose I will learn more about the players in these type of games, as we play them. I would rather every game was huge, because it means you are doing well and then every game gets bigger and bigger. So, if there is an opportunity to build a game up I would always take it - because ultimately we want to play in the biggest of games and win things. So, yeah, I always think the bigger the better.”

In the context of the week, there is certainly a fierce motivation to get the job done on Sunday and make it a hugely positive one for PNE. North End picked up a solid point at Middlesbrough last weekend and then saw off Premier League opponents in the cup. The opportunity to claim the bragging rights is now another moment he’s hoping his team can seize.

“Yeah, 100 per cent,” said Heckingbottom. “Momentum... however you want to see it, the feeling. If it is a full house, we want them back the week after. So, results can always help with that, definitely. But, from my point of view it is just the points and trying to get as many as possible, as quickly as possible. This league is unique in lots of ways - the number of games, the ups and downs of it, regardless of where you are in the league. Riding those out and being pretty level in your approach throughout the season is key, but capitalising on little (bits of) momentum when you can is really helpful.”