Ipswich Won't Look Forward To Deepdale. That's For Sure - Notes For The Preston Replay Monday, 13th Jan 2014 13:00 by HarryFromBath HarryfromBath assesses the mood in the opposition camp ahead of Tuesday's FA Cup replay by delving into their forums. "What a bloody great result against a very good Championship side", "You can't beat the FA Cup. Delighted we're still in the hunt and looking forward to the replay", "The unbeaten away run continues. Great stuff and the replay is much worse for Ipswich that it is for us." There was general contentment on Preston message boards as the full-time whistle sounded at Portman Road last Saturday week. "It will give the team great confidence that they have gone to a Championship team and got a very creditable draw." "Let's all enjoy the result, and most importantly the performance today. It shows we have good reason to be optimistic about what lies ahead", "Credit to Simon Grayson for the confidence he showed in the positive 4-4-2 team formation." "Grayson uses 3-5-2 or 5-3-2 to pack the midfield and give the defence more cover. We are less creative but don't get over-run so easily. The 4-4-2 system is bolder and more adventurous, but it shows our weaknesses as a unit with only two in the centre of both midfield and defence." The Game at Portman Road"Really pleased with this strong positive team, and it sounds like a decent start for us." Preston fans were quietly confident in the build-up to the game, and nothing changed this mood during the game's early exchanges. "Nothing to be scared of, boys. We're really growing into this game with each minute that goes by", "It's all us and the home crowd are frustrated", "A bit more opposition presence than we are used to, but they are giving us room to play." Several Lilywhites felt that they might have won if the in-form Joe Garner had partnered Kevin Davies up front instead of Iain Hume. "How are we not 1-0 up? An unbelievable ball in by Kevin Davies, but Hume was three yards out and didn't get enough on it." "Ipswich play another poor ball that allows Preston in", "Wordsworth plays backwards and there's more frustration from the home crowd", "Cresswell once again plays it across the pitch, finding Mings and Edwards", "Ipswich's main threat is their long ball up to Ebanks-Blake." "Paul Huntington had a brainstorm. He seemed to stick his hand up in a misguided attempt to point out he was being pushed. No-one complained. It was a blatant penalty. Huntington was an idiot, and looked distraught for a couple of minutes afterwards, totally losing his composure", "It's harsh on Preston to be 1-0 down, but that's the life we hope to get used to in the Championship next year. For now, it's about how we react", "We have made more of the early play. Now we need to get the next goal, preferably before half-time." "Frank Nouble should have been sent off for flooring (Preston keeper) Declan Rudd, but he somehow got away with it", "He had bags of time to stop or change direction." This incident, just before the Lilywhites' equaliser, upset their supporters more than anything else in the game. "Super Kevin Davies — game on again!" "Sounds like the least we deserve", "Justice", "I feel a bit for Ipswich since their defender was down, and that's what played Davies onside for our equaliser. If the defender is down on the pitch, the other defenders are stupid to play so high a line." "No-one can deny that we deserve this. Loach has denied Hume and there was a clearance off the line", "If Hume had his shooting boots on, it would be 3-1 to Preston", "Why did the defence push up, if they know there was a man down? Do they not talk to each other?" "It's half-time and I am enjoying the home side being so roundly criticised by their own support." Their supporters were happy with the state of play at the interval. "You could hear the Ipswich manager ripping into his players at half-time from where we were sat." "Ipswich are getting a head of steam up", "Which is what you would expect after a half-time bollocking from McCarthy", "We're just dropping a bit deep at the moment." The priority just after the break was one of weathering the storm. "Ipswich have started quite strongly." "Ipswich play around the back, looking once again for Cresswell, who is quickly closed down, and the ball returns to Loach", "Wordsworth cannot pick out a team-mate", "Ipswich are frustrated as they are slow to get forward", "They certainly don't look like a team in the Championship play-off spots." They had little else of note to say until we had a late chance to claim victory. "North End scramble a ball away from a corner. Rudd makes a point blank save from McGoldrick", "Phew!", "McGoldrick thinks he's won it but for Rudd's heroics", "What a save by Rudd." "Full-time. Whatever happens now, I've been really impressed with the lads today", "It was frustrating that we had chances to win it, but a draw was a result that most of us would have accepted at kick-off, given that they nearly snatched it at the end." Praise for Our Manager"Mick McCarthy said that Preston deserved the replay", "He always gets stick at Deepdale, but has usually been pretty complimentary about the club and the team", "McCarthy is incredibly honest. If you can't see that, you're a bad judge of character." "Mick McCarthy popped up for one match in the Finney, and sat in front of me and my lad, who was about eight at the time. He made a right fuss of my lad and was chatting to him about whether he played footy and what he thought of Preston. He's a top bloke and made the lad's night." Defeat at WolvesPreston's outstanding away run came to a stuttering halt with a 2-0 defeat at Molineux on Saturday. "We played 4-4-2 against Wolves, who are one of the best teams in the league, yet he plays 3-5-2 against all of the rubbish teams. It was too free a selection." "Kenny Jackett (Wolves manager) got it spot on playing 4-4-1-1 with a deeper lying forward to draw the inexperienced (centre-back) Jack King out of position. He used his midfield runners to bomb into the space in our defence." "Wolves' midfield had runners we couldn't handle, and we needed players who were prepared to get in front of the ball. Welsh and Kilkenny were too static", "Our midfield was over run", "It sounded like we were giving the ball away all afternoon." "This seemed to be a game in which his normal tactics would have worked a treat. Frustrate them and hit them on the break, yet we gifted the midfield, and looked very vulnerable at the back", "Our wide midfielders, Holmes and Gallagher, didn't help the full-backs. It seemed a very strange set-up." Lilywhites' Thoughts on the Replay"A part of me would like to use this game as a kind of freebie, playing a mixture of first teamers and giving fringe players a game. In saying that, the money for winning would be very helpful, so I expect Simon will play our strongest team if possible." "Scott Wiseman can't play. Players have to be signed before the original game to be eligible for the replay." The Gibraltar international and former Barnsley right-back joined Preston on Friday, and featured as a substitute in Saturday's defeat to Wolves. They also hope to take Anthony Wordsworth on loan. "Really hope we go back in for this lad. He was a stand-out player in the division during his time at Colchester", "I remember him from the 4-2 home defeat a couple of seasons back. He scored the first goal and gave us the run around all game." "Let's look to a good reaction (from the Wolves defeat) on Tuesday in the Cup", "It could be an exciting evening at our place in a week's time", "The replay will be a different challenge. For a start, they will know what they are up against", "I'm really looking forward to this game." WebsitesThe best Lilywhites forum is PNE Online.
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