After a wait of five months to see any sort of competitive cricket being played by England, we’ll finally see bat take on ball again when the clock chimes 11am at the Ageas Bowl tomorrow morning.

The game itself will essentially be the same – barring bowlers being unable to apply saliva to the ball, therefore potentially aiding reverse swing later in the innings, there are no other fundamental changes in terms of how the game is played on the field.

Players can practice social distancing throughout, even in a packed slip cordon. With Old Trafford normally being a spinners’ paradise, expect to see plenty of short legs in place for Dom Bess and Roston Chase for the second and third Tests.

All of that makes Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s refusals to allow the return of recreational cricket all the more questionable. Johnson told the House of Commons two weeks ago that a cricket ball was a “natural vector of disease”.

I find that difficult to accept, given that every other ball sport has been given the go ahead. What makes cricket so different, if safety protocols are correctly followed?

What was even more difficult to accept was Johnson’s assertions last Friday that it was the teas and dressing rooms that prevented cricket’s return. Let’s just say it seemed a remarkable statement from a government that has supposedly discussed these issues at length with the relevant authorities, and come up with that response.

The idea that a cricket match cannot take place if players don’t drink teas is laughable. You don’t need a dressing room either. Players can turn up, put their kit on outside the facilities, and either go out to field or sit behind the boundary waiting for their turn to bat (or nick one to the keeper first ball, as a few club cricketers can testify to).

Thankfully, however, the government performed another one of their ‘U-turns’ and allowed the return of recreational cricket from this weekend.

Johnson often criticises his fellow politicians for performing U-turns on different issues. His latest was to accuse Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer of “wibble wobble” (me neither) over the schools issue. There is an irony in the fact that Johnson’s government has performed several over the last few months.

But, from this weekend onwards, this isn’t about Boris Johnson, nor is it even about the lack of decisive action from this government. It’s about the club cricketers around the country that can finally take to the field again.

County cricket also has a provisional return date of August 1. There’s no confirmation yet of which formats will be contested, but the expectation is that some form of T20 competition will be played, alongside a watered-down County Championship.

The return of T20 is a financial nightmare for some of the smaller counties, who need crowd revenue to sustain themselves. Hopefully a large share of the matches will be televised, or failing that, a paid streaming service set up to encourage loyal members to tune in. It is a scheme that Lancashire have already announced, with further details still to come.

Lancashire are, thankfully, in a solid position despite the pandemic. They announced a club-record turnover of £34m for the 2019 financial year in May, mainly due to the hosting of the fourth Ashes Test, a 34% increase in T20 Blast crowds and several World Cup matches.

They will be without the services of overseas players BJ Watling, Glenn Maxwell and James Faulkner this season, the trio’s contracts having been cancelled due to the lack of cricket, but most counties are in this position.

There has been movement in terms of player transfers, however, and it will be strange to see a Yorkshire side without Warwickshire-bound Tim Bresnan take to the field for the first Roses match of the campaign. Whether that will be in the Championship or in one of the white-ball formats remains to be seen.

What we do know is that red-ball cricket will be the first to be played this summer. I personally cannot wait for either Rory Burns of England or Kraigg Brathwaite of the West Indies to face the first ball of the summer on Wednesday morning, weather permitting. It will be different without crowds, although we’ll get to clearly hear Stuart Broad loudly appeal, arms aloft, whenever there is an lbw shout to be had, before turning back to the umpire and then the keeper with a look of confusion.

Here’s hoping he takes a bag of wickets this summer. Here’s hoping for a great cricketing summer for all.

 

Guernsey triathlete Josh Lewis said he “couldn’t be prouder” after he took home the first medal of the 2019 Island Games in Gibraltar.

Lewis took first place in the men’s triathlon ahead of the Isle of Man’s Will Draper and Jersey’s Ollie Turner.

Speaking immediately after the win, Lewis said:

“I couldn’t be happier or prouder. I’ve been chasing this for a good few years.

“I’ve done about six Games of swimming and triathlon altogether and this is my first medal.

“I’m so happy to have been able to finally get a medal and gold is just the icing on the cake.

“I’m so happy to have done this for Guernsey.”

Lewis was in the top two for the vast majority of the race, his neck and neck battle with Ollie Turner throughout the swimming and cycling sections one of the highlights of the race.

Turner dropped back to third in the running stage, but Lewis reserved plenty of praise for his fellow competitor and training partner.

The Guernsey athlete said: “It was a great race with Ollie.

“I’m so happy to have one, raced together, and been at that level together throughout the race.

“It looked like he suffered a bit on the run but I’m happy that he did as well as he did.”

The triathlon in itself is one of sport’s most demanding events.

Lewis achieved the gold medal after a 1500 metre sea swim followed by a 40km non-drafting bike and a 10km run.

It goes without saying that the endurance levels of the athletes have to be top class.

He added: “We put hours and hours, almost working weeks, into this.

“It’s a massive relief to see this kind of result come forward and finally put into practice what we practice every day.”

It was a double medal success for Guernsey this morning, with Megan Chapple taking home the silver in the women’s triathlon.

University of Central Lancashire students and staff alike are “really looking forward” to the challenge of providing medical assistance to athletes at the upcoming Island Games in Gibraltar. 

The sports therapy and the sports medicine team were chosen to provide the specialist care in the games, which are being held from 6-12 July.

Sports will be held on either side of the famous Gibraltar Rock, one of the world’s most picturesque attractions.

The UCLan team are the first independent medical team to cover the games, bar officials, since its inception in 1985.

The group will be led by London 2012 volunteer Andy Cunningham, the Principal Lecturer of Sports Therapy at the university.

The team prepared for the beginning of the games on Saturday by undertaking a number of role play and training sessions.

This involved preparing for dealing with more complex injuries, such as concussions, as well as a refresher on how to treat younger athletes (the minimum age for competitors at the Games is 13).

Karen May, Principal Lecturer at the School of Health Sciences, will represent the university at the opening ceremony on Saturday, 7pm.

Speaking about today’s training event, she said:

“Today has been about giving them (the medical team) a heads up before the start of what is potentially going to be a week long poly clinic.

“The team from the Cayman Islands have 112 athletes – they will have general medical conditions.

“There is a liaison there for the students between the teams and the GPs and the nurses who are going to be working in the clinic as well.”

https://twitter.com/UCLanLive/status/1147492397686906880

It is bound to be a challenging experience for the students, but one they are relishing.

Third-year sports therapy student Taylor Fairhurst, 22, spoke of both her excitement and the importance of the work UCLan is doing for the event:

“I am really looking forward to seeing a lot of sports that I haven’t witnessed myself before.

“Being in a clinic, you don’t know who is going to walk through the door – it could be anyone.

“You have to be on guard for who is coming in, and just take it from there.”

The Island Games kick off tomorrow morning with the triathlon.

The event starts at 8am, and will involve a 1500m sea swim, followed by a 40km non-drafting bike and 10km run.

 

 

 

The man in maroon, number 26, on his knees in the middle. You’d struggle to write a more exciting finish to a game of cricket.

Carlos Brathwaite, century maker, almost history maker, at one of the most famous grounds in the country.

The images broadcast worldwide yesterday were of Ross Taylor consoling Carlos Brathwaite, a man who had almost single-handedly dragged West Indies out of the rubble of World Cup elimination.

The first comparison that comes to mind is of Andrew Flintoff putting his arm around Brett Lee immediately after Kasprowicz gloved one to Jones in 2005.

One side jubilant, the other in despair.

And on Saturday, Brathwaite’s 82-ball 102 deserved so much more, especially given the context in how he had made it.

Yet in a strange way, the end result meant it wasn’t even the contribution of the match, in numerical terms.

Kane Williamson’s 146 won the man of the match plaudits, the difference in the end between New Zealand and one of cricket’s greatest batting assaults.

But if you asked any fan at the ground what the defining innings of the match was, they would give it to Brathwaite, the 30-year-old Barbadian all rounder.

And before he laid waste to all in front of him, he walked out to bat in scenes of chaos.

Windies had built steadily early on, 142/2 after 22 overs perhaps suggesting New Zealand’s 291 was a tad under par.

Chris Gayle was in typical Gayle form, on 81 not out, before Shimron Hetmyer’s breezy 54 was put to an end with his stumps splattered by the in form Lockie Ferguson.

It’s often said that momentum can shift completely in the space of one ball, and New Zealand sensed something.

They sensed the fact that middle order collapses have been a recurring theme of this World Cup – get runs on the board first, they all say.

Out strode captain Jason Holder, who lasted one ball as another Ferguson beauty took the edge of his bat and into the gloves of the excellent Tom Latham.

Brathwaite’s record for West Indies isn’t as consistently good as he would’ve liked since THAT Ben Stokes over, but he’s always up for the challenge.

His fielding backed it up in the first innings, saving runs from his usual mid off position on several occasions.

Brathwaite is a key member of this West Indies side, not just for his hard hitting with the bat, or his death over bowling, but his leadership skills.

His first port of call was to lead his country away from falling victim to a hat trick, and one that would almost certainly end their World Cup hopes.

Ferguson banged it in short, as he has done successfully so many times this World Cup, but Brathwaite got behind it and defended it below his grille. Ball one survived.

He then had to watch from the other end as Gayle, then Ashley Nurse perished.

Then came Evin Lewis, barely able to walk to the middle because of a hamstring injury suffered in the field.

He lasted a three-ball duck and limped back to the dressing room, perhaps summing up the state of West Indies’ World Cup hopes.

From the moment Brathwaite set foot at the crease, though, he was a man on a mission.

Just six runs came from the first five overs of the eighth wicket partnership between him and Kemar Roach, as Brathwaite looked to take as much of the strike as he could whilst making sure his wicket remained intact.

Then he released the shackles, hitting Santner for six in the first ball of the 31st over before watching Roach do the same from the other end.

Ball by ball, the two whittled down the target, until 81 runs were needed from 72 balls. Game on then.

Matt Henry, the bowler chewed up and spat out again by Gayle earlier on in the innings, before promptly dropping him later on, took Roach’s edge and Latham took another fine catch.

With the domineering Sheldon Cottrell now in, however, the West Indies just carried on from where they had left off.

When Brathwaite was joined by Roach, the chase looked all but over, as it so often does when a team needs nearly 150 with just three wickets in hand.

But with 10 overs to go, that target sat at 70.

And after Cottrell hit two consecutive fours off Jimmy Neesham, that stood at just 49 off 44.

Cottrell then departed, a huge blow for the Windies, Ferguson once again to the fore as he took out his off and middle stump.

But the 6′ 4″ Brathwaite still stood mightily at the crease, a road block between New Zealand and victory.

It was a throwback to ODI innings of old for the first 70 balls, and a tutorial of how to bat with the tail.

But now Brathwaite knew it was time to play his shots, and play them he did.

For Brathwaite unleashed a brutal assault on New Zealand’s bowlers, carting Matt Henry for three consecutive sixes in the 48th over.

Strangely, the game never felt over whilst Brathwaite was at the crease – it so often does when teams are seven down needing plenty.

His first real false shot came when he tried to pull Henry for yet another six.

He mistimed it, the ball shooting over the head of wicket keeper Latham and straight to the boundary. Four more.

There were groups of West Indies fans gathering around the big screen near the Old Trafford exits, some barely able to watch what was happening.

From a position of relative security, New Zealand were now beginning to panic.

Captain Williamson and keeper Latham surround Matt Henry, trying to give him some advice, any sort of advice, to deal with this onslaught.

Williamson knew Brathwaite’s feelings all too well.

He’d been at the middle in the game of the 2015 World Cup, when Australia’s Mitchell Starc tore through New Zealand’s lower order.

The Black Caps needed six to win with just Williamson and number 11 Trent Boult at the other end.

Williamson took on the first ball of Pat Cummins’s over, skipped down the ground and slapped it over the bowler’s head for six.

Now he was in loose control of the proceedings, electing to give the final over to Jimmy Neesham over Colin de Grandhomme.

De Grandhomme had already taken the crucial wicket of Gayle, but the decision would prove to be key.

For Brathwaite took on the short ball, the sixth delivery of the 49th over, and the ball hung in the air agonisingly towards Boult at deep midwicket.

He’d celebrated his century earlier in the over, and now the target was six. In other words, one hit.

For a fleeting moment, it looks as if the 28-year-old has done it.

With Ian Bishop on commentary as well, the headlines were already written.

But Boult holds on, on one leg to avoid touching the boundary.

And given the events of two weeks later – Stokes’s hit, Boult’s foot touching the rope – it adds extra meaning.

They check for the no ball, but Neesham is safe. New Zealand win.

Brathwaite sinks to his knees, holds his head on his bat and looks straight ahead of him. The impossible has almost been made possible. The unthinkable made thinkable.

And there’s Taylor, first over to console him, followed by the rest of the New Zealand team.

Brathwaite may not have carried his team to victory, but it was a remarkable innings nonetheless. As many have said since the game, it really was a ‘where you there?’ moment.

After the final international break of the season, Championship teams are back in action on Saturday as they hurtle towards the run in.

Barring games in hand, eight matches for each team will determine promotion, play offs and relegation.

One of the major games of the weekend is relegation threatened Reading against play off chasing Preston North End.

Alex Neil’s Lilywhites sit in seventh place, only off the top six on goal difference.

Reading, however, find themselves in a much more perilous position – after their 0-0 draw against Stoke on March 16, Jose Gomes’s side are in 21st place, just one point above the bottom three.

The Royals started the season poorly and Paul Clement was sacked after a 2-0 home defeat to Sheffield United in December.

His replacement was Jose Manuel Gomes, the Portuguese boss leaving his home country & Rio Ave to take the vacant post at the Madejski.

Results have steadily improved and after a strong January there is the feeling that the Royals can avoid the drop.

They face a tough test on Saturday against a Preston side who have gone 12 games unbeaten.

North End had an excellent January, bringing in a total of five players, including Brad Potts from Barnsley for a reported seven figure fee.

They also fended off several Championship and League One clubs to secure the signature of prolific Exeter forward Jayden Stockley.

The Whites have won their last five games on the road, including wins over top half Middlesbrough and rivals Blackburn Rovers.

I spoke to Reading fan Tom Amies about what he expects from the game, his favourite memories of the fixture & his predictions for the remainder of Reading’s campaign:

It is safe to say Reading haven’t had the greatest season up to this point, what do you think are the main reasons behind the struggle?

“I personally think that confidence was very low coming into this season, both that of the players and the supporters, and heads seemed to drop very early on.

“The supporters started getting on their backs and it all started to turn sour. Fortunately, Jose Gomes has lifted the mood significantly.”

Are you confident that the club can beat the drop, given what looks like a tough run-in against mainly top half sides?

“It changes every week. After the result against Wigan, I was convinced we were staying up. And then some results went against us and I’m not so sure.

“It’ll certainly be tough and it’ll divide the boys from the men in the Reading camp.”

Reading have had a good record in matches against Preston at the Madejski in recent times, what are your best memories of the fixture?

“My best memory against Preston is the opening day in 2017. Jaap Stam’s first game in charge, crowd was bouncing.

“John Swift converted a nicely worked corner routine, it was brilliant. Really started the season off nicely.”

On paper, Reading had a solid January window with the likes of Nelson Oliveira and Lewis Baker signing on. How would you rate the signings Jose Gomes has made?

“January was solid for Reading. Unfortunately Nelson Oliveira is likely to miss the rest of the season, but was still a very good acquisition.

“Lewis Baker is getting better with every game, and Emiliano Martinez is an incredible goalkeeper. Matt Miazga is a definite improvement on Tiago Ilori.

“Ovie Ejaria has really gone under the radar. The ball seems to just stick at his feet and he manages to get out of really tight situations with ease.

“If I was to give our business a rate out of 10, it would be a nine.”

What type of playing style has the side adopted, firstly under Clement & then Gomes?

“Clement’s style of play was very negative. Lots of passing backward. No real attacking threat. It almost looked as if he had sent the team out with the aim to get a draw.

“Gomes, however, has brought a much more positive style of play, looking to play out from the back and play ‘beautiful football’, as he calls it.”

Who is your one player to watch and why?

“My one player to watch is Ovie Ejaria. He has been out injured recently, but should be fit after the break. His ability to keep the ball under pressure and get out of tight situations really improves Reading’s game and creates more space in the middle of the park.

“When positioned out wide, he likes to drift in the middle due to his lack of pace. But when he’s in the middle, he really makes things happen and he has been a great signing for the Royals.”

 

Finally, what is your expected lineup & score prediction?

(4-2-3-1)

Emi Martinez; Andy Yiadom, Liam Moore, Matt Miazga, Tyler Blackett; Lewis Baker, John Swift; Callum Harriott, Ovie Ejaria, Mo Barrow; Yakou Meite

“My score prediction is 2-1 to Reading. I know Preston have been on a good run recently and I think they will be a tough test for the Royals, but I have the confidence that they will go out there and get the three points.”

Statistics

• Since Preston were promoted back to the Championship in 2015, they have won four & lost four games against Reading

• The Royals won the meeting between the two sides earlier on the season, Leandro Bacuna scoring an 81st minute winner in a 3-2 victory

• Reading last did the double over Preston in 2005/06 – the season they won the Championship title

• Preston did the double over Saturday opponents in 2015/16, with a 1-0 home win and a 2-1 success at the Madejski

• Alan Browne is Preston’s top scorer this season with 11 goals. Reading’s Yakou Meite leads the scoring charts with seven strikes.

Thanks to Tom Amies for answering the questions – you can follow him on Twitter @tomamies8

Neil Robertson said he was “really pleased” with how he fought back after coming from 2-0 down to beat Mark Williams 6-4 at the Guild Hall.

The win books Robertson a semi-final date against number two seed Judd Trump on Friday night.

The Aussie lost the opening two frames to reigning World Champion Williams but fought back to go 5-2 up, hitting breaks of 95 and 75 in the process.

Williams then reduced the deficit to 5-4, hitting a 57 break in the eighth frame.

But Robertson produced a brilliant match winning break of all reds, all blues to take the game 6-4.

Robertson will now face Trump, who came from 5-2 down on Wednesday night to beat Jack Lisowski 6-5.

When asked about whether he feared history could have repeated itself in his match, Robertson said:

“You’re aware of what happened obviously, but I guess Jack’s a lot more inexperienced and has got a little bit of a nasty habit this season of losing matches he shouldn’t lose.

“That’s probably just experience with him and I’m sure he mature and start learning from this.

“Myself, I’ve never really had that problem with getting over the line. Everyone was aware of the result but it never really entered my mind today.”

Snooker has made a return to the Guild Hall over the last few years following a ten year gap from 2004 to 2014 of the famous theatre not hosting the sport, but Robertson is another player who is a big fan of the popular venue.

“I enjoy the Guild Hall, it’s a very historic venue. Stephen Hendry won five of his UK Championships here.

“It was one of my first televised tournaments that I played in when we had the Grand Prix here (in 2004).

“It’s a wonderful venue to play in, one of the very best and a lot of the players are very happy that we’ve got a big tournament here.”

Ronnie O’Sullivan battled his way into the second round of the Players Championship with a 6-4 win over Barry Hawkins at the Guild Hall.

The defending champion was in fine form early on and motored his way to a 3-0 lead.

World number ten Hawkins hit back with a break of 106 in the fourth frame, before ‘the Rocket’ took the fifth frame to head into the interval 4-1 in front.

Despite a spirited Hawkins fightback in the second session, O’Sullivan capitalised on a foul in the last frame to take the game 6-4.

Five time world champion O’Sullivan hit his only century break of the match in the first frame, moving his career total to 995.

He has potentially three more games of this tournament to reach the landmark of 1000 tons.

Failing that, he could become the first player ever to reach the feat at the Tour Championship in Llandudno later this month.

The tournament, which features the top eight ranked players, uses a one year ranking list to determine who qualifies.

O’Sullivan is all but qualified for the event, sitting in fifth place in the list.

Hawkins is in 13th and ideally needed a Players’ Championship victory.

His last chance to gain ranking points comes at the Gibraltar Open next week.

Hawkins played some excellent snooker in patches last night, coming from 4-1 down to just one frame behind at 5-4 with a couple of good breaks.

He hit his second century break in the ninth frame but ultimately couldn’t complete the fightback, O’Sullivan taking the final frame with a break of 64.

And ‘the Rocket’ was in good form in the post-match press conference as well, doing most of his interview in an Australian accent.

Speaking to BBC Radio Lancashire’s Dan Jewell, O’Sullivan said: “I’m over the moon mate, really over the moon.

“I played well, Barry was good, we were both good and I’m pleased to be in the next round on Friday.

“Every day’s a great day, tomorrow’s going to be a great day. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, they’re all going to be great days.

“I come back in Friday, got to do a bit of graft but on the whole everything’s great.

“The Guild Hall’s a great venue, one of the better on the circuit so it’s great to still be in and get another chance to sample this fantastic venue.”

On the Australian accent, O’Sullivan said: “I’m dipping into a bit of Cockney, a bit of Australian, a bit of Scouse, it’s all good.

“I should’ve been an impersonator. They should give me a bell and I’ll give it a go.

“I just feel totally positive. The Aussies are just winners, you’ve got to love a winner. Us English, we love a loser, so I thought I’m fed up of being a loser, I’m going to try and talk like a winner, like the Aussies. Get the Ashes won mate.”

O’Sullivan will face the winner of tonight’s clash between Mark Selby and John Higgins in the quarter final.

In the other game of the night, number one seed Mark Allen beat Stephen Maguire 6-2.

Northern Irishman Allen went 5-0 up before Maguire threatened a comeback, Allen seeing off the final frame comfortably.

He goes on to face either David Gilbert or Stuart Bingham in the last eight.

Rooming with Andy Cole. Having ice cold buckets of water thrown over his head in training. Managing a team with 108 goals scored after 28 games. Lee Ashcroft has had plenty of experiences in football.

Ashcroft’s Longridge Town side currently sit top of the North West Counties Football League First Division, nine points ahead of second placed Avro who have played three games fewer.

They have achieved some remarkable results this season, winning 11-2 away at Harker Old Boys and a 8-1 defeat of Daisy Hill at the start of the year, culminating in a total of 108 league goals so far.

And an era where managers often switch between clubs, Ashcroft has been loyal to Longridge – he will celebrate his fifth anniversary here in July.

When he took over he said the club had huge potential to climb the leagues, and were promoted from the West Lancashire League Premier Division last season.

But the movement from league to league does come at a financial cost for those lower down the pyramid.

League requirements often mean ground improvements need to be made to play in a higher division, usually involving increasing the capacity.

Ashcroft explained: “We’ve come a long way in a short space of time, from the West Lancs league to spending money in the summer to get the ground right for the level we need to be at.

“To get to the next level we don’t need a whole lot doing.

“Then you go into the Evo-Stik where you need to do a lot more.”

The money spent in the summer was not limited to simply ground improvements, with the playing squad invested in as well.

The increase in numbers has allowed Longridge to challenge at the top of the table throughout the season, with Ashcroft hoping they can see it through.

“We’ve brought in eight or nine new players this season and they’re a good bunch to work with.

“They’re winners, they train well and they take what they’ve done in training into games.

“Winning breeds confidence and that’s what they’ve been doing.”

Longridge were taken over in the summer with a new chairman in place, and Ashcroft spoke positively about the influence he has had.

“I’m really pleased with the way the club has progressed,” the Longridge boss said.

“The new chairman came in with fresh new ideas and I love working with him.

“I have a great relationship with him and long may it continue.”

Longridge are Ashcroft’s third club as a manager, having spent time at Kendal Town – where he ended his playing days – and Northwich Victoria.

That came after a playing career which spanned over 20 years, both in the professional and non-league game.

He started his career at hometown club Preston North End, whom he left in 1993 to join West Brom shortly after John Beck took charge of the Lancashire club.

Ashcroft said of his time at PNE: “Obviously being a local lad and playing for your hometown club, you can’t better that.

“I’ve got good memories and I’ve got some good friends who I still keep in contact with to this day.”

Before his exit, however, he received his one and only England under 21 cap.

He said: “It was quite surprising as I was coming to the end of my time as an under 21 and it came out of the blue that they wanted me to go to Hungary (where the game was taking place).

“I didn’t have a passport so I had to fly and get one!

“I was lucky enough to room with Andy Cole, Jamie Redknapp was in the side, there were some big names.

“And there was me from Preston, no-one knew who I was.

“It was brilliant to represent your country and it was my one and only cap, no-one can take that away from me.”

Ashcroft returned to the club in 1996, working under the management of David Moyes towards the end of his second and last spell.

He said of Moyes: “I played with him as a player and was lucky enough to play under him as a manager.

“I 100% thought he would reach the top.

“He’s a winner, he has had a fantastic career and he’ll get another job and go and be successful again.

“He was an unbelievable manager and football coach to work under and wanted to make the best of what he could.

“I can’t speak highly enough of him.”

Ashcroft still follows North End to this day, the club that he helped bring some great memories to.

And he is confident that the current side can finish the season strongly.

“I think they’ll finish mid table and finish strongly.

“They seem to be better away from home than at home.

“They’ve got themselves a great manager (Alex Neil) there, he’s done really well.”

If Preston can push on in the league, alongside a Longridge promotion, it could be a perfect season for Lee Ashcroft.

Longridge are in action on Saturday 23rd February at home to Carlisle City, before they host second placed Avro under the lights the following Tuesday.

2018 has been a rollercoaster of a year for everyone associated with Preston North End.

The year started with outside hopes of a play off push that were eventually ended by Derby’s last day thrashing of Barnsley to consign North End to 7th place, and has ended with an injury crisis that has cast aside half the squad.

There have been plenty of positives – Callum Robinson, Ben Pearson and Ben Davies have further strengthened their positions as PNE’s brightest prospects, and the more than impressive home record has allowed Alex Neil’s side to put behind them the poor start to the 2018/19 season.

The year started with the signings of Billy Bodin and Louis Moult, with both having contributions to make over the coming months.

North End went unbeaten in the Championship in January, with an FA Cup defeat to Sheffield United at Bramall Lane the only real downside.

A dominating 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest at the City Ground showed PNE had real credentials to push for the top six.

That result came the day before the club record sale of Jordan Hugill to West Ham for around £10m – he faced his former club in the league just ten months later, on loan at Middlesbrough.

The cup defeat to the Blades at least allowed PNE to focus on the league, although form was at times patchy – impressive away wins over Sunderland and Bolton cancelled out by too many home draws and defeats to the likes of Ipswich and a heavy 4-1 loss at Sheffield Wednesday.

Consecutive wins over Leeds and QPR, however, gave North End a realistic shot of the play offs, with rivals Derby, Middlesbrough and Millwall all having to face either each other or other teams in the top six.

They failed to take advantage, however, with a 0-0 stalemate against Norwich and a defeat against Reading at the Madejski meaning that PNE required Derby to lose at home to relegation-threatened Barnsley whilst they had to beat Burton, who would be relegated with a defeat.

It had all the makings of a final day classic, just like in 2009 when Alan Irvine guided the club to 6th place on the final day after play off rivals Cardiff fell to defeat at Hillsborough.

But there was to be no such repeat, Barnsley failing to hold on to their side of the bargain after a 4-1 defeat.

North End did win after a late Louis Moult goal, saving the Tykes from relegation with the unfortunate Burton taking that final spot after fellow relegation candidates Bolton sparked a remarkable comeback to come from 2-1 down to beat Nottingham Forest.

Moving onto 2018/19, PNE fans were full of optimism that given a successful window, the club could finally reach the promised land of the Premier League.

Alex Neil said early in the window that a striker on a permanent deal was one of the main priorities, but come the deadline none had been signed.

The club did well to secure the loan signings of Brandon Barker and Lukas Nmecha both on loan from City, but those deals only came following injuries to key players Bodin and Sean Maguire on the eve of the season opener against QPR.

North End did well to bounce back from that disappointment by beating Steve McClaren’s side 1-0 at Deepdale, Alan Browne scoring the only goal.

But that was to be their only clean sheet and win until the home derby against Wigan in October.

That is not to say PNE were playing poorly, but couldn’t put together a 90 minute performance.

They led 2-0 against Bolton against Deepdale before drawing 2-2, and came back from 2-0 down to equalise against Sheffield United (goals from Daniel Johnson and Callum Robinson) before David McGoldrick notched the winner.

They were also involved in a remarkable encounter at Villa Park against Aston Villa at the beginning of October.

Villa went into the break 2-0 up thanks to goals from Jonathan Kodjia and Tammy Abraham, and it looked like a similar pattern was occurring, with North End having lost by two away from home on several occasions.

But the second half was like the Preston of the season before, with a Daniel Johnson penalty and a free kick from Paul Gallagher drawing the scores level.

Substitute Louis Moult then nodded home from a corner to spark pandemonium in the away end, before Yannick Bolasie equalised in injury time.

Villa could have snatched the points for themselves but Chris Maxwell saved from Glenn Whelan’s penalty, who hadn’t taken a penalty or scored for three years.

That seemed to lift the atmosphere around the club, with a 4-0 demolition of Wigan following that, before an eight game unbeaten run.

In the midst of that was a 1-1 draw at bottom club Ipswich, that game best remembered for a Chris Maxwell red card and Paul Gallagher ending up in net.

He made an excellent save from Gwion Edwards to save a point for North End.

They also beat a Blackburn side 4-1 that had been in the play offs a few weeks earlier, Callum Robinson with the pick of the goals before going off with a hamstring injury that will rule him out until next year.

Hamstring injuries, and injuries in general, are the main topic of discussion amongst PNE fans at the moment, with five out of seven attackers as well as Ben Davies and Josh Earl all out.

There are some questions about whether the training regime is to blame, but as players get injured the likelihood of others getting injured increases because their workload is higher.

It’s two successive seasons now that PNE have had such bad luck with injuries, this season on balance probably worse than last, when the majority of defenders were out at the same time in October/November.

The unbeaten run was ended at Birmingham City, a calamitous Declan Rudd error for the first goal preceding a further two second half goals from the hosts which were unreplied.

Back to back wins against Bristol City and Millwall were then followed by defeats to Sheffield Wednesday and Hull, Rudd putting in one of his best performances in a PNE shirt to keep the score at just 1-0 to the hosts at Hillsborough.

2018 ended at Deepdale with arguably the performance of the season against Aston Villa, injuries meaning North End had to name four youth players on the bench.

Two of those, Adam O’Reilly and 16-year-old Ethan Walker (the club’s youngest player to make a league appearance) made their senior debuts as Lukas Nmecha’s first for the club secured North End a 1-1 draw, and they could have had all three.

Going into the New Year, Preston sit 17th in the table with a 14 point gap to the top six, a play off push probably being unrealistic at this point.

They sit seven points ahead of Rotherham in 22nd, who they face at the New York Stadium on New Year’s Day.

If you had to predict where North End would finish, the most popular answer would probably be mid table, but with a solid January & the club’s best players now returning from injury, there could be no limit to where they finish.

Player of the year – Alan Browne – The best example of a player that has come on leaps and bounds under Alex Neil. Eight goals already this season to add to the eight he scored last season from midfield. Can do the defensive work as well. Probably PNE’s most valuable asset at the moment.

Young player of the year – Ben Davies – It says a lot about how quickly Ben Davies has progressed that PNE look a poorer side whenever he is absent, compared to 18 months ago when his future at the club looked uncertain. One of the best centre halves I have seen at Deepdale, still only 23 and potential captaincy material.

Performance of the season – Nottingham Forest 0-3 Preston, January 2018 – Difficult to pick out one game but this one sticks in the memory. There was a lot of unrest amongst the fanbase with the Hugill sale imminent, but this dominating performance at the City Ground showed that North End could compete perfectly well in the now West Ham striker’s absence.

Signing of the year – Jordan Storey – Not many signings for PNE over the course of the year but Jordan Storey is the pick of the bunch. Signed from Exeter in the summer, he’s not featured regularly for the side this term but improves game on game and Saturday’s performance against Villa was faultless. Will surely be seeing his name on the teamsheet a lot more in 2019.