Doing it by halves

Jansen 5, 18 Hughes 9

Macken 54, Healy (p) 72

JIM Smith must have rubbed his eyes in disbelief when he picked up his paper at breakfast this morning.

The Derby County boss left Ewood looking a worried man at half time last night after watching Rovers put North End to the sword thanks to a breathtaking first half performance.

But the Bald Eagle clearly hadn't done his homework because anyone who has seen Blackburn this season knows full well how they love to do things the hard way.

For 45 fabulous minutes, Graeme Souness's side hit the kind of heights some managers can only dream of thanks to some flamboyant football more in keeping with Brazil.

But, as against Crystal Palace just before Christmas, Rovers suddenly looked a completely different team after the break.

And, by the end of this contest, they were left hanging on for dear life as plucky Preston were allowed to mount a stirring fightback which left Souness reaching for his blood pressure tablets.

"If I could have gone home at half time tonight I would have been absolutely elated because I thought some of our football was sensational in that first period," said Souness. "Those three goals certainly didn't flatter us.

"But it leaves a bad taste in the mouth, the way we played in the second half. What should have been an easy game for us turned out to be a battle.

"If we'd been a bit more streetwise it should have been 3-0 at the worst. They didn't do anything clever against us -- they just stepped up the tempo, both in pace and aggression.

"And we didn't deal with it, which is disappointing."

Smith -- at Ewood on a scouting mission ahead of Derby's visit in the FA Cup later this month -- must have had the fright of his life after Rovers stunned the visitors with a blistering goal-blitz inside the opening 18 minutes.

With Matt Jansen at his marauding best, North End needed snookers by the time Smith vacated his seat at the break with Blackburn holding a seemingly unassailable 3-0 lead.

But, had the Rams boss stayed around, then he would have seen just why Rovers are still in the slipstream of both Fulham and Bolton and not running away with the title as some of their football would suggest.

At times, they can be awesome as they were here and in that opening 20 minutes against Watford.

But, the capacity to self-destruct never seems too far around the corner.

And they'll soon have to start issuing home fans with false nails as they come through the turnstiles otherwise there won't be many fingers left in Blackburn come the end of the season.

"It was a bit like the Palace game -- a bit of a deja vu," said two-goal hero, Jansen.

"We're delighted with the result but it should have been easier than it was and the manager wasn't happy with us afterwards. We take it too easy sometimes and think the game is won before it is.

"They were fighting for their lives to get back in it and, when they got a goal, their tails went up and ours went down.

"So we've got to start fighting for 90 minutes instead of 45 -- I think that's the problem."

When the dust settles, however, Souness and Co will reflect on another vital three points in their quest for promotion.

Like Burnley before them, Preston fans had waited a long time for this game but in the space of 18 scintilating minutes their dreams of pulling off a famous coup lay in tatters.

Jansen could have drawn first blood inside three minutes when Craig Hignett slipped a clever ball through a flat North End defence but keeper Dave Lucas blocked his shot.

However, the 23-year-old was quick to make amends two minutes later when he received a throw in off John Curtis, spun away from his marker, and, after a lucky ricochet off Michael Appleton, beat Lucas with a brilliant left-shoot from the edge of the box which curled inside the far post.

The England Under 21 international then turned provider, latching onto a Stig Bjornebye ball down the left before crossing for Mark Hughes to stab home his fifth of the season from six yards on nine minutes.

And the Blackburn End was in dreamland nine minutes later when Hignett's right-wing corner was flicked on by Martin Taylor at the near post for Jansen to head home unmarked on the edge of the six yard box.

With Hignett and Damien Duff now terrorising North End down the flanks, Rovers were showboating as Jansen missed two chances to complete his hat-trick.

Preston boss David Moyes took drastic action, sacrificing birthday boy Gary Parkinson for Colin Murdock, in a desperate attempt to stiffen up his midfield. Even then, Duff missed a golden opportunity to put the result beyond doubt before North End had chance to regroup at half time.

With a tongue-lashing from Moyes still ringing in their ears, Preston came out fighting. North End's top scorer Jonathan Macken handed his side a lifeline after a chesting down a Ryan Kidd cross before stroking the ball past Friedel on 54 minutes.

Rovers suddenly hit the panic button, consequently losing all control in midfield. And the jitters really set in when Preston were harshly awarded a penalty with 18 minutes still remaining.

Henning Berg appeared to be fouled by Mark Rankine as they contested a ball from Brian McBride but, as the Norwegian stumbled to the floor, he grabbed hold of Rankine's shirt and referee David Laws pointed to the spot. David Healy duly converted to set up another tense finale.

But, despite some hair-raising moments, Rovers held on to leave Smith with plenty to ponder in the next fortnight.