Ryan Lowe understands Preston North End fans' frustrations but calls for patience

There were large portions of the home fans that were booing at Deepdale on Saturday with plenty also heading for the exits early.

North End have been backed by a bumper crowd at home this season, with record season card sales, but also have one of the highest average away attendances in the division too.

Lowe said: “It is understandable. They want to see us win but we can't get too frustrated, we are where we are. We're Preston North End that have been a mid table team for many years and we're trying to force our way out of that.

"Where we are with everything that goes with it, with budgets and everything else, we're over achieving as we are at the moment. I know we want to keep getting in there and staying in there and sustaining that.

"The frustration, of course, that's why sometimes you just have to get your head down and get off the pitch because there are boos and shouts. That's fine, I've no problem, I'm big enough and broad enough to accept that because I'm the manager.

"I think we've had more good times than bad times I must say, you only have to look year to year, we've been excellent. To go that next step is what we're trying to do but we've got to be patient.

"It's not nice when the lads are coming on and off the pitch and there are moans and groans and boos. It's frustrating for the lads but I get it. We just have to make sure that doesn't happen many times more.”

The inquest will be ongoing this week as North End prepare for their next game, a Championship clash with Birmingham City as St Andrews at the weekend.

A win could see PNE rise as high as to seventh, just a point off the play-off places, but another heavy defeat could see them fall as far as 16th.

When asked where his team go from here, Lowe said: “I don't know, we'll sit down with them on Monday morning and address it and debrief the game. There will be a few honest words I must say, between us all, and I've said that to them. But we've got to roll our sleeves up and be counted for.

"We've got 19 games left to keep fighting and keep trying to climb up that table. I'm not looking at anything past where we are or what we're doing at the moment. It's all about the next game.

"We'll debrief this and go again. That's probably the fifth bad game that we've had in 27 games, I don't want any more. I'll accept being beaten by better quality and better teams, of course, but I think we beat ourselves, especially in the first half. To rub salt into the wounds they had the quality to beat us.”