Every word Ryan Lowe said on Preston North End's opening night loss to Sheffield United

Preston North End manager Ryan Lowe was disappointed to start the season with a 0-2 defeat to Sheffield United.

The Lilywhites went one behind after 12 minutes, with Oliver Arblaster’s strike from distance deflecting cruelly into the far corner. And, ten minutes into the second half Gustavo Hamer doubled the Blades’ lead - pouncing on a Freddie Woodman error and lofting the ball into the net.

Post-match, PNE’s boss said: “I thought we were alright and well in the game, before their goal. It was a shot which ricocheted in. After that, I thought we were OK - we got in at half time and discussed how we can get the centre-backs, fours and tens higher. We didn’t do enough at the top end of the pitch, in the first half. Second half, we changed one or two things and came out of the blocks a little bit faster.

“I thought we had real impetus and were on top. The decision Fred has made, it is a genuine mistake. I thought he was fantastic all game - his distribution was brilliant and there is no blame culture here, from us. We are in this together and Fred is disappointed in there. I think he reacted to the noise for us to go quickly and he hasn’t seen Hamer - a quality player like that can punish you. Overall, they had three shots on target I think and two went in.

“They are a good team, let’s have it right. They move the ball well and the rotations, we could not get to grips with it first half. Second half was a little bit better. So yeah, disappointed, but I saw some positives in there - the lads moving the ball quickly. We want to play faster and play more forward passes, but when teams drop back into two banks of four they are hard to break down. The lads don’t want to give the ball away.

“We should play more balls in behind if needs be and we need those runs, so we’ll look back at tonight and debrief it with the players. I am sure, just thinking off the top of my head, there will be loads of positives in there. But, the negative side is we’ve lost a game of football. If we could’ve kept it at one-nil until late in the game, you never know, we might’ve done something a bit different. There are small, fine margins. I am disappointed with the result, but I think some of the performance was OK.”

Lowe added: “We knew what we were coming up against, we just felt we could be better in possession, not turn the ball over as much and be more fluent at the top end. I think we had 11 shots, but only two on target, so we need more. We had some good moments and you are coming up against a quality opposition and manager - who knows the league inside out. We knew it was going to be tough. At two-nil, it is hard to recover.

“(The second goal) just sucks the life out of you and everyone. Freddie has been fantastic for us, so there’s no blame. He pushed himself to get back for this game, from a slight niggle. We will pick Fred up... we are not going to dwell on it. We have lost to an ex-Premier League team, who has come down. We have them a run for their money. Was it good enough at the top end, to get more chances? No, we know that, and we need to be better overall with our decision making.

“It is constructive criticism, which we will speak about on Sunday with the lads. We have to stick together and keep doing the right things. I think you saw there was more football played, more passes and more penetration at the right times. You want a bit more, but you are coming up against a team who are not going to allow you to do it. I have seen some good signs tonight, as I saw over pre-season.”