Preston North End loan report 2025/26 as youngster wins award and striker drops hint

Loan stars found their way into the Deepdale faithful’s hearts this year, but how have the Lilywhites’ own fared at temporary clubs?

We take a look at 13 players across the first team, under-21s and under-19s who headed out on month-long, or season-long loans in recent months...

Li-Bau Stowell: The goalkeeper penned a three-year professional contract with PNE in August last year. That news came for Stowell while he was mid-way through a one-month loan at Northern Premier League side Warrington Town, for whom he made three appearances and kept one clean sheet.

More regular football presented itself to Stowell in the second half of the season when he joined fellow NPL Premier Division side, Hyde United, in February. Stowell played 11 games in total, keeping three clean sheets in his final five outings. While out on loan, Stowell still featured for PNE U19s and saved a penalty in victory over Walsall.

Kacper Pasiek: After a taste of National League football with Altrincham and signing his first pro deal, Pasiek spent the final two months of the regular NL North season at Macclesfield. The defender scored on debut in a 2-1 win over Bedford Town and was an unused substitute in their narrow 1-0 FA Cup exit to Brentford.

The left back was in and out of the starting XI as John Rooney’s side secured a place in the top seven. Pasiek returned to PNE before Macclesfield contested those play-off games, having picked up an injury in their penultimate league match. Prior to his move to the Silkmen, he scored two goals in a 5-0 win over Chesterfield.

Ed Nolan: The defender joined Lancaster along with Brindle but extended his stay and proved to be key in the final third of City’s campaign. Nolan played as a left centre back and left wing back for Jimmy Marshall’s side, from whom he was recalled with 24 hours until their final game of the season.

The Dollies missed out on the play-offs as results did not go in their favour. However, Nolan impressed at the Dolly Blues and enjoyed personal and collective achievements. He was a nominee for the Player of the Month award in March and chosen as Player of the Match on three occasions.

He started for City in their Lancashire FA Challenge Trophy final win over Padiham earlier this month. Nolan was recalled due to him being needed in the match day squad for Preston’s trip to Sheffield United - it proved to be his ninth unused substitute appearance for the Lilywhites.

Jonny Brindle: Brindle moved to Lancaster City in February on a one-month deal and featured in all five games for the Dollies - starting in the first two and coming on as a second-half substitute in the next three. He headed back to Springfields after his first ever loan spell and played for PNE U19s for the remainder of the season.

Nathan Snowball: Snowball joined PNE last summer from Morecambe, for whom he made his professional debut aged 16 before winning the Shrimps’ First Year Player of the Season. He made an instant impression at Bamber Bridge as he won Player of the Match on debut. However, he picked up an injury days later while playing for North End’s U18s.

Kaedyn Kamara: The midfielder started the 2025-26 season by helping Cork City complete their 2025 Irish Premier Division campaign, along with fellow PNE man Kitt Nelson. He played in a win over Waterford and draw with Shamrock Rovers, after which The Rebel Army struggled to get points on the board.

Kamara spent the second half of the campaign at Scottish Championship outfit Ross County. He made a couple of substitute appearances before starting against Arbroath, but 22 minutes into the game he was sent off. Following his suspension, Kamara did not feature again and the club were relegated to League One on the final day.

Max Wilson: After being named in three PNE squads during November, Wilson headed to National League North side Chorley. The 19-year-old midfielder, who has represented Northern Ireland at youth level, was at the Magpies on an initial month-long loan but the deal was extended until the end of the season.

Wilson had become a regular, reliable player in Andy Preece’s starting lineups. In total, the teenager made 28 appearances and scored two goals - one of which came on the final day. He racked up 2,291 league minutes and was named Chorley’s Young Player of the Season after an impressive campaign.

Theo Carroll: Carroll featured in Carabao Cup clashes against Barrow and Wrexham, while being an unused sub in many Championship games, earlier in the season. The 18-year-old joined NL North side Curzon Ashton in January but suffered an ankle injury just days into his loan spell and returned to PNE.

Kitt Nelson: After signing his first pro deal in February 2025, Preston sent Nelson out on loan to Cork City for the rest of their season. The midfielder was a regular for the Irish side and scored six times in 37 appearances. Five of those goals came in the league and he was joint top scorer, along with former PNE striker Sean Maguire. He returned to PNE in November and was in a string of match day squads towards the end of the season.

Will Keane: After a challenging six months out with a calf injury, Keane returned and scored a last-minute equaliser against Norwich City. Following another appearance against Wrexham, Keane was loaned out to League One side Reading.

The striker, reunited with old Wigan boss Leam Richardson, scored in his first two starts for the Royals - against Exeter City and Northampton Town. However, his loan spell was impacted by another calf issue. After that blow in February, game time proved harder to come by and Keane didn’t add to his goal tally.

Felipe: The forward got his first taste of regular first team football in January, when he joined eventual NL North champions AFC Fylde. Felipe moved to a side not short of goals but the 19-year-old quickly made an impact.

He scored twice on debut against Peterborough Sports and found the net a further five times, as Craig Mahon’s side secured promotion with 100 points. Felipe’s contract at PNE expires in June and his goodbye message on social media hinted that he would like to stay with the Coasters.

He said: “Where to begin... to win the league and score in the last game of the season, this is the reason I play football - not only to achieve and to win but to share the moment with special people around me. With this massive victory and achievement my time at Fylde comes to an end, for now. I wanna say thank you to the fans, the staff, and the players for welcoming me with open arms and treating me like one of their own. This is something I will remember for a very long while. Up the Coasters.”

George Gryba: The striker started the 2025-26 season with goals against Blackpool, in two Central League games. His senior football opportunity came at Bamber Bridge in February and on debut, Gryba saw an effort cleared off the line. He went on to make a handful of substitute appearances but never registered a goal for Brig.