Derby desperately needed to bring home 3 points from Deepdale having not secured a win yet under new Rams manager Paul Clement.
The Rams made several changes from their previous match, notably bringing Lee Grant in goal in place of Scott Carson. The game also saw debuts for new signings Bradley Johnson and Jacob Butterfield who were added to the Rams squad just before the window closed for a total of £10M.
The first half saw great chances for both new signing Bradley Johnson and Preston’s Daniel Johnson who had a strike blocked by Derby’s Keogh. Derby took the lead after an inch perfect ball from Johnny Russell set Chris Martin up to net his first goal of the game.
Martin made it a brace from a superb free kick just outside the area giving Derby a two-goal lead at half time.
Preston piled on the pressure in the second half and forced Grant to make a string of good saves notably from Preston’s Johnson, May and Doyle.
A nasty clash of heads saw the game come to a standstill for ten minutes whilst Rams captain Baird was stretchered off having been knocked unconscious.
Preston took advantage of Derby being reduced to ten men, and Daniel Johnson’s shot 13 minutes into extra time found the back of the net.
Despite the game finishing 1 – 2 PNE could be happy with their performance and the consolation goal netted by their man of the match who was outstanding for Preston throughout the 90 minutes, it’s not surprising the young Midfield player is starting to generate interest.
The Rams on the other hand need to now build on their win and carry their confidence into their next fixture away to Reading.
