Preston North End in Numbers: Captain’s armband has had SEVEN wearers this season

Ryan Ledson became the seventh player to lead PNE from the start of a game when he was named skipper for the 1-0 victory over Swansea on Easter Monday.

The midfielder had taken the armband in the second half against Norwich last Friday but the Swansea game was the first where he had been down as captain on the teamsheet.

Alan Browne is PNE’s club skipper but he has been serving a three-match ban for his red card against Middlesbrough.

The other players to wear the armband this season are Paul Gallagher, Daniel Johnson, Paul Huntington, Andrew Hughes and Greg Cunningham.

Huntington was skipper once in the 2-1 home defeat to Rotherham, with Hughes captaining the side against Wycombe in the FA Cup.

It was last month’s 2-1 defeat against Millwall at The Den when left-back Cunningham led the team.

Explaining his decision to make Ledson captain on Monday, North End interim head coach Frankie McAvoy said: “Ryan is a leader, he has shown that.

“People before that have had the captaincy. We’ve had Browney, Greg Cunningham, DJ – they were all missing at Swansea.

“Ryan was immense against Norwich and immense at Swansea.

“His commitment, hunger and desire, you can’t question that.”

Browne has completed his suspension and returns to the squad for the Deepdale clash with Brentford.

Whether he goes straight back into the team, bearing in mind the win at Swansea, remains to be seen.