Preston ended their four-game winless run with a 2-1 home victory over Fulham tonight.
North End had been struggling of late, but were well worth their win. Seani Maguire put Preston in front, before Denis Odoi was sent off for a late aerial challenge on Patrick Bauer.
Joe Rafferty’s red card levelled up the numbers, before David Nugent bagged his first goal since returning to Deepdale. Aleksandar Mitrovic set up a tense finale with a deflected effort, but Preston go back into the top six having held onto the win.
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Here are our ratings for tonight’s game…
Declan Rudd: Didn’t have a great deal to do, caught confidently and couldn’t do much with Mitrovic’s deflected strike. 7
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Joe Rafferty: Sent off for a rather clumsy challenge in the first half. Had been solid if unspectacular before that, but the red card really hurt. 5
Patrick Bauer: An outstanding performance, colossal at the back. His return from injury was very welcome. 9
Paul Huntington: Much like Bauer, Huntington was superb. He headed and cleared everything in front of him, and largely dealt with Aleksandar Mitrovic well. 9
Andrew Hughes: Strong defensively and got forward well, showing nice link-up play. Much more like the player we saw last season. 7
Ben Pearson: Where to start really. Played well in front of the back four, broke up play and passed well. However, he should have been sent off not one but twice, and these issues are becoming tiresome. 7
Billy Bodin: Put in the corner for the first goal and produced a stunning pass to set up the second. Sometimes tried to do a little too much, which brings his mark down slightly, but you can’t knock his impact tonight. 7
Alan Browne: Superb in terms of pressing in the first half, and battled away brilliantly at right back after Rafferty’s red card. Committed throughout and so important to the win. 8
Brad Potts: Criticised so heavily recently, bu showed why Alex Neil rates him tonight. Pressed well, and played a key role in the second goal with a driving run and effort on goal. Much more like it tonight. 7
Seani Maguire: Another player criticised of late, Maguire got the ball rolling with the opener. He pressed well and was effective around the box, whilst he was impressive as the striker on the break late on. 8
David Nugent: It happened – Nugent scored for Preston again! His link-up play was great, he battled and chased well, and he was on hand to sore what proved to be the winner. 7
Substitutes: Tom Clarke, Tom Barkhuizen weren’t really on long enough to make an impact, but Barkhuizen could and should have killed the game off with a great chance late on.