Preston North End vs Luton Town FC (24th Aug 2024)

**24/08/2024 Preston North End 0-1 Luton Town

Town slip to defeat at Deepdale

Rob Edwards' side slip to a second defeat of the season

The Hatters fell short in the north west with a narrow defeat at Preston.

Rob Edwards’ side were unable to respond after the draw to Portsmouth with the Lilywhites spoiling the Town’s visit to Deepdale thanks to Will Keane’s goal shortly before the break.

The Town started well enough, Elijah Adebayo heading narrowly over from an Alfie Doughty corner in the fourth minute.

The Hatters continued their dominance when Shandon Baptiste danced through the home defence but was unable to find Tahith Chong in the centre of the box.

Home keeper Freddie Woodman then kept the score level, tipping a header from Carlton Morris over the bar on 36 minutes.

But the home side took the lead seven minutes before from the break, Keane scoring past James Shea, in for the suspended Thomas Kaminski, following a cross from Emil Riis.

The Hatters started the second half on the front foot, Jordan Clark finding Adebayo on the edge of the box who fired straight at the keeper four minutes into the second period.

Preston keeper Woodman then did well to prevent Clark’s low shot on 57 minutes from creeping home and on the hour the Town felt they should have had a penalty when Adebayo went down under a challenge only for referee Whitestone to deem the offence to take place outside the area.

As the Hatters continued to press, Doughty’s low shot was blocked with 20 minutes to go before Teden Mengi’s piledriver was deflected over.

Yet the Town, for all their possession, could not force a leveller. Doughty slammed a right-foot shot high and wide when placed with 14 minutes left - the pick of their half-chances in the closing stages.

As time ticked down the Hatters – who brought on Liam Walsh for his debut, one of five substitutes sent on in the second period – tried in vain to find a late leveller.

But despite their best efforts one would not come, and Preston held on to their first league victory at the eighth attempt.

The Hatters return to work on Tuesday at QPR in the Carabao Cup. We’ll see you there.

Town: Shea; Ogbene (sub Walsh 67), Doughty, Mengi, McGuinness, Bell; Clark (sib Woodrow 78), Baptiste (sub Nelson 85), Chong (sub Walters 67); Morris (sub Taylor 78), Adebayo.

Subs: Horlick, Andersen, Burke, Mpanzu.

Report by James Logan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmQtezLYJYc – Rob Edwards post match interview

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEHL2JLIlNI – match highlights

Wasteful Luton fail to fire in front of goal as Town fall to Preston defeat

Championship: Preston North End 1 Luton Town 0

Luton's frustrating start to the Championship continued as their wastefulness in front of goal was punished by a 1-0 defeat at Preston North End this afternoon.

With the hosts, under newly-appointed manager Paul Heckingbottom, having suffered seven straight league defeats overlapping two seasons, and Town able to choose their strongest match-day squad, bolstered by the additions of Mark McGuinness and Liam Walsh, with Reece Burke and Mads Andersen both fit enough for the bench, hopes were high that following one point from their opening two games, Rob Edwards' side would finally spark into life.

However, that wasn't the case after an afternoon of poor finishing and terrific Lilywhites defending, as Luton, whose goalscoring in the Premier League almost kept them up, fired off 17 shots in total, but just four on target, six off, while seven were blocked by a dogged home side’s back-line. Making two changes from the goalless draw with Portsmouth, McGuinness in for an immediate debut, Reuell Walters dropping out, while James Shea replaced the suspended Thomas Kaminski.

The newly recruited centre half took his place in the centre of Town's back three, allowing Teden Mengi to move to the right, as he demonstrated his aerial presence early on, and an eagerness to get the ball from Shea. However, Luton, as they did more than once in the first half, gave possession away, Emil Riis unleashing a powerful drive that was well collected down to his right by the Hatters’ replacement stopper.

At the other end, Elijah Adebayo couldn't keep his header down from a Doughty corner, although Town were still proving in a charitable mood at the back, Chiedozie Ogbene's throw straight into the path of Will Keane who found Riis, the Dane keen to shoot whenever the chance arose, Luton with enough men back to crowd him out.

Tahith Chong almost got in on the quarter of an hour mark, Jordan Storey just back in the nick of time to wrestle him off the ball inside the area, while Preston went close midway through the half when Will Keane sprung the offside trap to receive a threaded pass, Shea out to make a brave sprawling stop at his feet.

The Hatters then threatened twice in quick succession, Morris meeting another Alfie Doughty corner, his header acrobatically tipped over the bar by Freddie Woodman, while Shandon Baptiste brilliantly tricked his man on the edge of the box to fashion a shooting opportunity that he nonchalantly, but unfortunately sidefooted wide.

The hosts made Town pay on 39 minutes with a wonderful backheeled flick by Kaine Kesler-Hayden on the left released Riis, who got his head up to pick out the unmarked Keane. He steadied himself and rifled into the bottom corner to end the hosts' lengthy drought of over 11 hours without a league goal, as Shea conceded for the first time in a first team game since April 2022.

Edwards’ men tried to hit back as the game entered first half stoppage time, three set-pieces unconvincingly dealt with by Woodman, the keeper escaping any punishment as Mengi's shot deflected behind, Adebayo nodding another delivery off target. After the break, Stefan Thordarson arrowed wide from 25 yards, but from then on it was pretty much all Luton in terms of possession and territory, Adebayo's first time attempt from Jordan Clark's flick beaten away by Woodman.

Hatters looked to up the tempo in search of a leveller, Clark picking off a loose ball out from defence and driving forward unchallenged before unleashing a low drive that was repelled by Woodman. With an hour gone, Luton thought they had won a penalty as Adebayo was tripped when breaking into the box, but referee Dean Whitestone adjudged the offence came just outside the area, awarding the visitors a free kick that was wasted by Doughty.

Shea was off his line once more to stop Riis from giving the hosts a second which would have surely secured the points, as at the halfway point, Walsh was given his Luton debut in place of Chong, Walters replacing Ogbene. You got the feeling it just wouldn't be Luton's day when a long ball caused havoc, Doughty seeing his drive charged down and Mengi's effort taking a big deflection causing it to loop over the bar.

With 18 minutes left, another burst from Kesler-Hayden looked to have won the hosts a spotkick, as he went over under an outstretched foot from Walters, referee Whitestone immediately whistling, only to give the decision Luton's way and book the North End player for diving. As time ticked on, Luton kept on creating and failing to take their chances, Doughty collecting a ball inside the area and time trusting his right foot for once, hammered over.

Luton swiftly introduced Joe Taylor and Cauley Woodrow for his first action of the season, Morris and Clark making way, as Walters did splendidly to win a corner, only to see the frustrating theme of the afternoon continue, Doughty's ball in headed over the top by Adebayo. With the hosts' having the bit between the teeth as they eyed a clean sheet, skipper Ben Whiteman produced a brilliantly timed tackle on Adebayo, who then won another header, and although this time hitting the target, saw it bounce meekly through to Woodman, as the points remained at Deepdale.

Lilywhites: Freddie Woodman, Ben Whiteman (C), Liam Lindsay, Will Keane (Duane Holmes 74), Emil Riis, Mads Frokjar (Ryan Ledson 64), Jordan Storey, Andrew Hughes, Stefan Thordarson (Sam Greenwood 74), Kaine Kesler-Hayden, Brad Potts. Subs not used: Dai Cornell, Jack Whatmough, Layton Stewart, Jeppe Okkels, Patrick Bauer, Kian Best.

Hatters: James Shea, Chiedozie Ogbene (Reuell Walters 67), Teden Mengi, Mark McGuinness, Amari'i Bell, Alfie Doughty, Shandon Baptiste (Zack Nelson 85), Jordan Clark (Cauley Woodrow 79), Tahith Chong (Liam Walsh 67), Carlton Morris (C Joe Taylor 79), Elijah Adebayo.

Subs not used: Jameson Horlick, Joe Johnson, Mads Andersen, Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu.

Referee: Dean Whitestone.

Booked: Whiteman 41, Baptiste 54, Frokjar 57, Kesler-Hayden 72, Greenwood 76, Holmes 81.

Attendance: 15,245.

Frustrated Edwards rues Luton's lack of a clinical edge in Lilywhites loss

Town are beaten at Deepdale

Luton boss Rob Edwards was left hugely frustrated with his side’s lack of a clinical edge during this afternoon’s 1-0 defeat at Preston North End, as he felt Town did more than enough to have won the game themselves.

The Hatters mustered 17 shots at goal in total at Deepdale, but only four of them on target, Carlton Morris’s header flipped over the top by home keeper Freddie Woodman in the first half, with Jordan Clark and Elijah Adebayo both testing the North End stopper in the second period. They also saw six wayward attempts, Alfie Doughty putting the best opportunity over from inside the area late on, with the Lilywhites, under new manager Paul Heckingbottom, defending superbly, making seven blocks in total.

Preston themselves had just two shots on goal, both coming in the first half, the latter one seeing Will Keane beating James Shea to score what proved to be the winner, as speaking to the press afterwards, Edwards, whose side have now taken just one point from their opening three games, said: “It is really frustrating now to be standing here having lost that game.

"I think both halves there were some really good opportunities and we weren't clinical enough in the final third. We got into really good positions and maybe the final pass wasn’t right, the final slide ball, or just the finish where we missed the target. We had 17 shots overall and that could have been more and should have been more, but only four on target.

"I would put that down to some wasteful moments, but also some really good defending from Preston as well. They put some brilliant blocks in and they kept us out, so people don’t want to hear it when it's a really good performance and we come away with nothing. There’ll be one or two frustrated, but I have to look at what we’re doing right and we have to look at the areas that we have to be better in. Today it's pretty clear that we created enough to score more than one and take at least a point from the game, and it should have been more.”

After the positives from last week’s stalemate achieved when playing for an hour with 10 men at Portsmouth, Edwards was once more left happy with the overall display against Preston, as he continued: “Last week we came away nil-nil, but came away with a good feeling. We created chances, especially when we had 11 men and then showed a different side to ourselves with 10.

"Today I thought it was a good performance. They’ve got a new manager coming in and the crowd are obviously behind them, but I thought we controlled the majority of the game. Their threats came from counter-attacking moments which we know are going to be a big area for other teams this season. The performance was there, the chances were there, there was a lot of good stuff, but we want results and people will demand results."

Having scored in 18 successive Premier League games last season, and finding the net against every top flight team over the course of the 38 matches, on whether Town need to put extra work in at the Brache to brush up their finishing, Edwards added: “We do a lot of work on that every day on the training ground, so sometimes that just doesn’t go for you. There’s times throughout a season for every team where it just doesn’t quite go their way. I’m hoping it’s that at the moment as if we continue to create and get into good areas then the goals will come, I’m pretty sure of that.”