Memory Match: Joe Garner is Preston North End's hero and Fernando Forestieri the Sheffield Wednesday villain in February 2016

Although it took just the one goal to settle the contest, there was plenty of incident over the 90 minutes to keep a 16,900 crowd entertained.

Not least a red card for Fernando Forestieri who got his marching orders for two second-half bookings.

Neither were for fouls by the Italian, both yellows earned for trying to hoodwink referee Keith Stroud.

Foresteri’s first caution was for going to ground far too easily when trying to go past Paul Gallagher.

Then when he stuck out a hand to try and reach a cross from Atdhe Nuhui when realising he wasn’t going to meet it by fair means.

Mr Stroud had seen enough, a second yellow followed by red, Forestieri making the long walk to the tunnel to far from sympathetic taunts and jeers from the North End supporters.

Foresteri would have barely have had the chance to get his boots off and run the early bath when North End scored their winner.

He’d been off the pitch for seven minutes when Garner struck, the striker ending a 12-game wait for a goal.

Gallagher got possession in midfield and switched play out to the right-wing with a pass to Calum Woods.

The wing-back moved the ball on to his left foot and curled a cross into the box.

It cleared covering defender Jack Hunt and there was Garner at the far post to power a header past keeper Kieran Westwood.

Not since scoring a penalty against Reading two months earlier had Garner found the net, his flappy arms celebration making a welcome return.

North End deserved a greater margin of victory than the single goal.

They were the better side throughout against an Owls side who had arrived from the other side of the Pennines on the back of a seven-match unbeaten league run.

PNE’s form was pretty decent at the time though, with just one defeat in their last nine – this their third victory on the bounce.

They’d steadily adapted to the Championship after an uncertain opening to life after promotion.

Victory moved them up to 10th place in the table and this result meant they had taken points off all nine sides above them.

Little wonder North End boss Simon Grayson was glowing in his praise.

Speaking post match, Grayson said: “I challenged the players beforehand that with three games in a week, let’s get a win to start with and see where it takes us.

“Every one of them carried out the plan we had worked on in the week.

“I thought the system suited us again, when we had to defend, we defended and when we broke forward, we did that with some really good quality.

“We limited another top team to not having a shot on target.”

In the first round, Adam Reach had curled a shot just wide for North End, while Garner forced a good diving save from Westwood.

Tom Clarke fired wide from a good position after Gallagher’s free-kick had been flicked into his path.

Foresteri’s dismissal for the bookings in the 48th and 66th minute was key, that is not to say PNE had played very well against 11 men.

Garner struck in the 73rd minute to lift three sides of Deepdale to its feet and silence the 5,600 Wednesday followers.

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