'A stronger hand' - Ex-Wrexham and Nottingham Forest man's transfer hope for old club Preston North End
PNE sit fifth in the Championship table after 18 matches
Ex-Preston North End striker Brett Ormerod believes January will have a huge say for his old club this season.
The Lilywhites sit fifth in the Championship table after 18 games. It’s an extremely tight division, though, with just six points separating fourth placed Stoke and 16th placed Leicester. Ormerod hopes to see PNE keep the pace over Christmas, and manager Paul Heckingbottom then receive proper backing in the transfer window.
"I think if he can stay in that top six over this Christmas period, it gives him a stronger hand to go to the board and say, 'Look, how ambitious are we now?'” said Ormerod, to BBC Lancashire Sport. “Because, Preston have always been a nearly team. They’ve always been in and around the play-offs.
“I really do hope they have a good Christmas period and it gives Paul Heckingbottom something to go to the board and say, ‘Look, are you going to help us out? A couple of signings here and this could give us a real good promotion push.’”
North End’s latest three points came in dramatic fashion, with Mads Frokjaer securing a 3-2 comeback win at Sheffield Wednesday. It was a third away victory of the campaign and Preston not being at their best, but getting the job done, is something Ormerod views as a huge positive.
“It’s sometimes refreshing,” said the ex-PNE man. “Preston fans, last year, would’ve probably gone, ‘As soon as we go behind, away from home, you can kiss it goodbye’. But, there is a resilience in Paul Heckingbottom’s teams, isn’t there? They are in the play-offs, looking good and a big run over Christmas could really propel them into staying up there, going into the final part of the season. At the moment they are on the up.”
North End’s vital number one
The win at Hillsborough saw goalkeeper Daniel Iversen make two priceless saves - keeping out Bailey Cadamarteri at 2-1 and Charlie McNeil, from the penalty spot, at two apiece. Iversen has helped PNE pick up several points already this season and the value of that is not lost on Ormerod.
“Whenever any team gets promoted, you’ve got to have a decent back four, or three, but your ‘keeper... you can go through a season where your ‘keeper has pulled you out when you could’ve been beat,” said Ormerod.
“You need that kind of ‘keeper who has got that in them. Every team who gets promotion you can, pretty much, pinpoint their ‘keeper- he’s kept a clean sheet there, saved a penalty there. You need big ‘keepers and Preston seem to have got one.”
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