Frankie McAvoy thinks Preston North End were a 'bit unfortunate' only to draw against Stoke City

Frankie McAvoy felt Preston North End's second-half performance probably merited more than the goalless draw they got against Stoke City at the bet365 Stadium.
By Dave Seddon
Published 17th Apr 2021, 16:08 BST
Updated 17th Apr 2021, 16:10 BST
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PNE's interim head coach saw his side struggle somewhat in the first half, certainly as an attacking unit, before being the better side in the second 45 minutes.

Andrew Hughes hit the post with a free-kick in the second period, then three minutes from time Stoke were reduced to 10 men when Harry Souttar was shown the red card for tripping Alan Browne when clear on goal.

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The draw moved North End on to 49 points with four matches remaining.

Preston North End interim head coach Frankie McAvoy fist-bumps Stoke striker Same Vokes at the final whistlePreston North End interim head coach Frankie McAvoy fist-bumps Stoke striker Same Vokes at the final whistle
Preston North End interim head coach Frankie McAvoy fist-bumps Stoke striker Same Vokes at the final whistle

McAvoy said: "I thought first half we started okay but to be fair to Stoke they then took control of the game for a good 30 minutes.

"We then managed to get the press fixed from the front for the second half which was miles better for us and we were the dominant team in the second half,.

"Over the piece I thought we were probably a bit unfortunate not to come away with the three points.

"We created some good opportunities.

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PNE and Stoke players observe a minute's silence for HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, before the gamePNE and Stoke players observe a minute's silence for HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, before the game
PNE and Stoke players observe a minute's silence for HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, before the game

"I thought Alan Browne did brilliant for the sending-of when he got across the young boy Harry Souttar and with a bit more composure could have scored just after that the chance he had inside the box.

"In the end I thought it was a positive result. That's a win, two draws and a defeat for us in the last four games."

McAvoy revealed some harsh words were said in the dressing room at half-time in response to the largely disappointing first-half show.

He said: ""We didn't do well enough in the first half, it's as simple as that.

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"We came with a plan to play 3-5-2 and get the wing-backs higher up the pitch with Alan and Ryan Ledson supporting the front two.

"Once we got breached a couple of times , we got a bit disjointed and we needed to fix that at half-time.

"In the second half we were much better, we put a structure in place where it was easily to win the ball back and it worked really well."

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Related topics:Frankie McAvoyStoke City