Preston started their pre-season warm up with a hard fought 1-1 draw at Bamber Bridge and a 3-0 victory at Chorley.

The game at Bamber Bridge attracted a crowd of over 1000 and will be remembered for two things, an overhead kick by Andy Smith and a penalty miss by Richard Cresswell.

Billy Davies had split his squad for this game with the other half going to Chorley, with both matches kicked off at the same time. North End gave a debut to Joe Anysanah at Irongate while fellow newcomer, Dave Hibbert was on the bench.

The opening goal arrived on 15 minutes when Andy Smith, scored with a Brazilian style overhead kick.

When his first attempt was blocked, Smith turned the rebound into the corner of the net with a stunning overhead kick. North End continued to press and in the 32nd minute they were awarded a penalty but Cresswell put his kick high into the timber yard behind the goal.

The second half saw wholesale changes for both sides with North End bringing on a largely youthful team. Hibbert came and Gavin Ward replaced Nash in goal. Bamber Bridge equalised in the 57th minute when one of their debutants, Greg Brickell, smashed a shot high into the net. The game after that was a pretty even affair with both sides largely cancelling each other out.

Another North End XI recorded a 3-0 win at Chorley thanks to a brace from David Nugent and a goal by Patrick Aygemang.