Preston North End are held but stay in the mix as Hull City battle for Deepdale draw

It's how you finish games, not start them, but the opening exchanges of Preston North End's crunch clash with Hull City on Saturday had a feel of added importance. As eighth hosted sixth, the Lilywhites had evidently prepared to combat the Tigers' possession-heavy approach. Ryan Lowe went unchanged once again, while Liam Rosenior brought Regan Slater into a Hull team that featured no out-and-out striker. But, the visitors were not short of attacking talent by any stretch. And as Hull looked to settle and impose their pure style on proceedings, North End hunted in packs, with purpose.

Mads Frokjaer wasn't quite able to pick out Emil Riis with a low cross and Ben Whiteman could only send a tame effort at Ryan Allsop, after Preston won the ball back high. With energy at its highest and legs freshest, PNE clearly sensed the opportunity to land an early blow. To Hull's credit, they weathered the storm, stuck to their guns and then had moments of their own. Freddie Woodman pushed away Fabio Carvalho's swerving strike from distance, before Jordan Storey blocked the Liverpool loanee's close range effort well. At the half-way stage it was all to play for - and a case of who could seize the day.

And Preston recharged sufficiently at half-time, to make another lively start. The white shirts went after the ball in pursuit of that elusive opener; chances came their way once again. The vast majority of Deepdale expected the ball to nestle in the bottom right corner, from another Ben Whiteman shot - only for it to agonisingly drop the wrong side of the post. North End had seen a major penalty shout turned down at the MKM Stadium, back in October and there was more 18-yard box outrage - when Will Keane looked to follow up Riis' parried shot, only to - seemingly - be dragged to the Deepdale turf. No penalty.

Tension started to sneak into the air, with the contest a six pointer in the context of the play-off race. There was ebb and flow throughout, with neither side ever truly in control. As the second half progressed, it made for an engaging but anxious watch. Hull enjoyed another spell of pressure soon after PNE's penalty shout - and Woodman produced a smart reflex save to keep out Jaden Philogene's cute and clever effort hit. While both sides searched for the breakthrough, respective centre-halves Liam Lindsay and Jacob Greaves continued to impress at either ends.

And it was the two defences who ultimately came out on top, as North End had to settle for a hard earned and - based on the 90 minutes - fair enough point. Lowe's side arguably shaded the encounter in terms of chances and their denied penalty will no doubt be a hot topic of discussion post-match - but Hull were always there and waiting to pounce. Losing would've been a major blow to Preston's top six hopes, but they now head to Southampton still very much in the mix.

Attendance: 16,997 PNE starting XI: Woodman; Storey, Lindsay, Hughes, Browne (c), Whiteman, McCann, Millar, Frokjaer (Holmes 68'), Keane (Osmajic 68'), Riis. PNE unused subs: Cornell, Whatmough, Cunningham, Ledson, Brady, Woodburn, Stewart.