Jermaine Beckford was Preston North End's Wembley hat-trick hero five years ago

Beckford's time at Bolton had ground to a halt, with just two goals in 16 appearances before he headed for Deepdale on loan in mid-November, but business was about to pick up for the former Leeds and Everton frontman.

He netted 12 times between December 20 and the end of the regular season, with North End finishing behind runaway title winners Bristol City and runners-up MK Dons but streets ahead of the chasing pack.

Twenty points separated them them from their play-off semi-final opponents Chesterfield but when they met over two legs it was Beckford who proved the difference, scoring the only goal of the game to give PNE a vital away win and then adding two more on home turf in a 3-0 win to finish the job.

Swindon Town awaited in the final at Wembley on May 24, 2015, but were even less able to counteract Beckford's purple patch.

He opened the scoring inside just three minutes, doubled his tally just before half-time and secured the match ball before an hour was played.

Preston were 4-0 winners, ending a dismal run of nine defeats from nine play-off losses from nine attempts, leaving boss Simon Grayson to toast his understanding with a player he had first worked with at Elland Road.

"He knows how I work and I know how he works," said Grayson at the time.

"I've got a special relationship with him and, at the moment, he's producing the goods for us."

Beckford would sign permanently that summer but he suffered a knee injury in pre-season which eventually required him to have surgery.

He endured a couple of lean years before leaving for Bury and retiring aged 35.