‘Rally the troops’ - Andrew Hughes says Preston North End’s senior players must help new signings
He spoke after the defeat on Saturday.
Andrew Hughes says Preston North End must stick together to turn the tide on their results.
Hughes returned to the pitch as a 78th-minute substitute in their 1-0 defeat to Lincoln City on Saturday. He had absent for three weeks through injury.
North End sit 23rd after losing six of their opening seven Championship games. On Sunday, they parted ways with manager Paul Heckingbottom.
Speaking to the media before that decision was made, Hughes said: “It's so early on in the season. When we were winning against Watford, I looked at the table, we were far from the relegation zone.
“So, two wins, or a win and a draw, you're out of it. We all need to dig in.
“I've been here before. We’ve gone through bad patches here, we all need to overcome it again and get back to the good times.”
As one of the more senior players, the 34-year-old - who has been at the club since 2018 - is focusing on rallying around the new signings.
“I think now is a perfect moment for experienced lads to maybe just speak to a few of the other boys who potentially haven’t played football in this country or have just come into this league, and look like we're in it together.
“Everyone needs to be on the same hymn sheet here.”
He added: “It's rallying the troops. We all need to get up for games. We need to create our own atmosphere, especially down at QPR next week. We know it's a tight ground.
“We need to create our own atmosphere, get it going for ourselves. We need to create our own luck.”
Fans were booing and chanting for Heckingbottom to be sacked after the full-time whistle. Less than 24 hours later, his departure from the club was confirmed.
“It's not nice but I understand because, ultimately, it's a winning sport and it's a results-dependent game,” Hughes said on Saturday.
“So, I get it. Myself, as part of the group, and the football club, we need to put it right.”