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PNE beat Torquay 4-1 in the second leg of the Third Division play-off semi-finals on May 18, 1994.

They had trailed 2-0 from the first leg in South Devon but overturned that in dramatic style in front of the North End faithful.

Four goals, all headers, saw them book a trip to Wembley.

Preston North End boss John Beck jumps for joy celebrating Paul Raynor's winner against Torquay at Deepdale in the play-offs in May 1994

The winner from Paul Raynor came late in extra-time and sparked wild scenes.

At full-time, supporters swarmed on to the pitch to celebrate and thus began a mass DIY roll up of the pitch.

North End need not have bothered with the contractors who were due in later that week to take up the plastic in readiness for a grass surface being laid that summer!

Many a garden shed and loft in the Preston area has a roll of artificial turf stored away as a memory.

PNE fans climb the fences in readiness to celebrate on the pitch

North End had targeted promotion that season and started strongly.

They started to run out of steam in the second-half of the campaign and finished fifth in the table.

That pitched them against Torquay who had finished level on points with them but with a poorer goal difference.

Torquay were well worth their first-leg 2-0 lead and would have been in confident mood going into a Thursday night return leg.

David Moyes and Paul Raynor are carried on the shoulders of fans after Preston's 4-1 win over Torquay in the play-offs

Tony Ellis headed Preston in front on the night before Gregory Goodridge levelled for the visitors.

The tie swung PNE’s way when Torquay’s Darren Moore aimed a punch at Raynor and was shown a red card.

David Moyes headed North End into a 2-1 lead on the night, with Stuart Hicks scoring after half-time to make it 3-1.

The game went to extra-time and had it stayed at 3-1, the Gulls would have gone through on the away goal rule.

However, with four minutes of extra-time left, Andy Fensome’s superb cross on the run was headed home by Raynor.

The final whistle signalled wild celebrations and the turf roll-up, this the first time PNE had reached Wembley since the 1964 FA Cup final.

It had been in the summer of 1986 that the plastic pitch was laid at Deepdale in a joint venture between North End and the local council who owned the ground.

The pitch served PNE and the town well, the community able to hire it out during the week which brought in much-needed revenue.

Preston say goodbye to the plastic pitch in the most dramatic manner against Torquay in May 1994