PNE in Numbers: Josh Earl is top of Preston's stats

The left wing-back, who came into the side for the third league game of the season, tops the ratings table compiled by stats website Whoscored.com.

Earl is averaging a mark of 7.02 per game. He scored his first professional goal against Queens Park during the international break, that in his 52nd game in a PNE shirt.

Whoscored.com have Ryan Ledson second in the ratings with an average mark of 6.98.

Then comes Jordan Storey with 6.94 and next is Ben Whiteman who averages 6.92 per game.

It is very much a data driven analysis of the players, perhaps different to marks out of 10 given out by media outlets.

Earl, 22, will be pleased with how his season is progressing. Having not made the bench for the first two Championship games of the campaign, he’s taken the chance given to him and run with it.

As far as another stat is concerned, centre-back Storey has been North End’s best performer when he comes to dealing with the ball in the air.

Storey has won an average of 4.3 aerial duals per game, ahead of Ched Evans (4), Andrew Hughes (3.8) and Liam Lindsay (3.5).

It must be noted that Storey has played every game this season, with striker Evans starting only two matches.

Evans has been out since August with calf and foot injuries.

A re-occurrence of the foot problem he first had during pre-season, is the issue which is keeping him out at the moment.

Support us and become a subscriber today. Enjoy unlimited access to local news, the latest football stories and new puzzles every day. With a digital subscription, you can see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Click here to subscribe.