Preston North End closing in on penalty record thanks to Daniel Johnson and Paul Gallagher

Daniel Johnson and Paul Gallagher have between them netted eight times from the spot this campaign.

North End’s best tally of penalties scored is nine, achieved in 2002/03 and again in 2004/05.

So it is likely that number will be matched – and bettered – at some stage.

PNE have been given a penalty in their last three matches – against Blackburn, Charlton and Huddersfield.

Gallagher has taken the last two with Johnson having gone off injured at Charlton and missing the Huddersfield game with the trapped nerve in his foot.

In the 2002/03 campaign, Graham Alexander scored nine times from the spot.

Two seasons later when PNE scored nine penalties again, Alexander netted six of them, Richard Cresswell got two and Chris Sedgwick notched the other.

Alexander is North End’s penalty king, scoring 52 of the 59 he took in a PNE shirt.

Sir Tom Finney scored 39 penalties, the second highest for the club, George Harrison in third with 28. Johnson’s 12 successful spot-kicks puts him seventh equal with Alex Dawson.

These statistics apply to penalties scored during a game rather than in a penalty shootout.

Over the years, 102 players have scored penalties in PNE colours.

North End being awarded the number of penalties they gave this season, appears to have upset fans of some other clubs in the Championship.

However, none of them have been controversial.

Six of the eight which have been awarded their way have come at home.

The two they got away were at Charlton and Swansea.

Johnson has scored five of Preston’s penalties, the first at Swansea in August, with him then scoring two in the win against Sheffield Wednesday.

The midfielder notched in the 3-3 draw with Bristol City, Gallagher having earlier found the net from the spot.

Johnson’s last penalty came in the 3-2 derby victory over Blackburn.

He is one of 12 North End players to have scored twice from the spot in the same game – Finney, Ian Bryson, Brian Godfrey and George Mutch among the others.

It is likely that Johnson will have recovered from his foot injury when Preston resume after the international break.