Owner Trevor Hemmings delighted with Preston North End's progress on and off the field

Hemmings has enjoyed watching the football played under Neil and is hoping for an exciting finish to the season.

North End have eight games left and are two points behind Derby County and Middlesbrough who occupy fifth and sixth places.

“I’m delighted with what we are achieving as a club,” Hemmings told the Post.

“What we have done since we took on Alex has been very good.

“He is a bundle of energy as a person, he probably regards the training ground as home because of how long he spends there working,

“The lads love working with him and Alex is getting everything he can out of them, that is good to see.

“It is a pleasure watching the team but being a bit older now I can’t get everywhere to go and watch the games.

“Having a lot of younger players in the squad is very encouraging.

“You look at Ben Davies, Josh Earl, Darnell Fisher, Alan Browne, Sean Maguire, they are all kids really.

“Maguire has come back well from his injury and for him to have played 90 minutes in the last game was great.”

Hemmings was speaking at Aintree when he was guest of honour at the media lunch to mark the countdown to the 2018 Randox Health Grand National festival.

The 82-year-old is a three-times winning owner at the Grand National.

He sees PNE’s development on and off the pitch as very much a team effort.

Said Hemmings: “The club gels with everyone working well together.

“I’ve spoken about what the team and manager are doing, while off the pitch you have John Kay, Peter Ridsdale, Ben Rhodes and Kevin Abbott as a team.

“We are driving on, we have started on the training ground and will have new turnstiles in at the ground next season.”

The Isle of Man-based Hemmings is one of only four owners to have three Grand National winners.

He won the famous race with Hedgehunter in 2005, Ballabriggs in 2011 and Many Clouds in 2015.

This year Hemmings has two horses running and there could be a third.

Vicente and Warriors Tale are definitely running and Vintage Clouds is among the 73 entries following Tuesday’s scratchings deadline.

Final declarations for the 40-strong field are on April 12.