Preston North End fail miserably on derby night as job done by Blackburn Rovers again

What a feeble thing this was; an encouraging first five minutes, when there was some kind of purpose about Preston, as good as it ever got. It was a dire football match in which both sides had fleeting spells of territory. Undoubtedly, though, the hosts always looked far more threatening with theirs. For PNE, Lewis Dobbin had a solo run and shot in the first half; a crossed free-kick, from Alfie Devine, clipped the post in the second.

It is now three defeats and one draw from the last four meetings with Rovers, with North End scoring just two goals across those 360 minutes. There has been progress this season and collective backing for Heckingbottom and his men. Going into the business end of the season, still in the mix, this felt a great test of their mettle. They let the opportunity pass them by without even landing a punch.

There were no major shocks in the PNE starting XI. Despite some positive signs from summer signing Odel Offiah over recent months, if Heckingbottom had to order his four available centre-backs by trust, you suspect the 23-year-old would still be last at this moment in time. On derby night, he dropped out for the first time in 14 league games. Milutin Osmajic in for Daniel Jebbison was the one other change.

The Montenegrin ran around for 69 minutes but offered very little and with minimal fuss, Blackburn dealt with him. Osmajic had 11 touches in the game. It is little coincidence that as Alfie Devine drifted out of the match, North End appeared weaker and weaker. He and Dobbin have been the bright sparks this season; Rovers knew they were half way there if they kept at least one of those out of the contest.

With ‘wing-backs’ Pol Valentin and Andrija Vukcevic not firing either - evidenced by their double withdrawal on 57 minutes - the threat of PNE was practically non-existent on the night. Jordan Storey, Lewis Gibson, Andrew Hughes, Ben Whiteman and Ali McCann made 313 passes out of the team’s 473. Blackburn denied space and said, ‘Break us down’ - Preston had no answer.

As bad as the evening was there always felt a moment in the air and in the last seconds, it arrived for the team who deserved it more. North End conceded some appalling goals at Middlesbrough recently but this one goes right up there with them. On derby night, PNE died at the death. A throw-in conceded by one Preston player blasting the ball into another, the ball blasted into orbit and an unmarked header for 5ft 11” Yuki Ohashi.

Heckingbottom was out on the pitch with CEO Peter Ridsdale, not long after the final whistle. He had not even gone into the away dressing room and had no plans to speak to the players; the PNE boss couldn’t bring himself to discuss his anger, the occasion or the sucker-punch goal in any detail post-match. He explained what went wrong tactically but anything emotive was off the cards.

North End’s boss hasn’t copped much during his Deepdale tenure and while overall judgement is based on overall performance, these nights do count that bit more. They are a reflection of him that bit more, and bragging rights can be a major feather in your cap. For many, another sorry showing at Ewood Park will not be OK.

This felt a big setback in the season, with Preston looking a million miles away from a side in with any shout at play-offs, never mind promotion. After a strong away showing at Ipswich, gritty home win over Portsmouth and all-action draw with Watford, the Lilywhites took an almighty step backwards here.

It’s now about results over performance but the latter has been a bubbling concern among the Deepdale faithful for a period of time. Over the last couple of months, Bristol City away is the one game where PNE looked the real deal. Of course, there are factors which cannot be ignored: the pitch at Deepdale, loss of Harrison Armstrong, injury to Daniel Iversen and January recruits yet to feature much.

The next few weeks will certainly be interesting, as teams have just been shown how to well and truly shut Preston down. We know it’s unlikely to be pretty at home given the conditions but North End being that passive, sloppy and unimaginative on the road cannot happen again. Personality on the pitch is something Heckingbottom demands and Friday night was emphatically beige.

There is a bigger question, here, around the suitability of PNE’s squad when it comes to breaking opponents down. There is still a clear lack of 1v1 ability, set-pieces are not a significant string to Preston’s bow, nobody carries a great shooting threat from distance. and there isn’t a reliable, direct presence in attack to hit.

But, Heckingbottom wanted his attack bolstering and the current crop could be a lot worse than it is. He needs strikers to fire and Callum Lang, Andrew Moran and Thierry Small to come to the party along with Dobbin and Devine. Whether we see Milos Lukovic play much football at all in a North End shirt, time will tell; right now it looks a puzzling addition. But if the Lilywhites produce any more of what they did at Ewood Park, the top six may as well be kissed goodbye now.