Milutin Osmajic scored a superb hat-trick off the bench as Preston North End came from behind to beat Huddersfield Town 4-1.
After a lacklustre first half Will Keane scored his 13th goal of the season after winning a penalty himself before Osmajic scored a sensational seven minute hat-trick.
A dismal first half
Ryan Lowe is missing some key players and that showed in the first half. We weren’t getting high enough up the pitch with Andrew Hughes and Robbie Brady failing to cause any problems in the final third.
With Huddersfield fighting for their lives they were always going to push for goals. With Ali McCann already on a yellow he couldn’t stop a breakaway before some desperate defending wasn’t enough to restrict Josh Koroma from eventually finding the back of the net.
Perhaps it was what North End needed as going a goal behind seemed to breathe some life into them.
Season on the line in the second half
The fans, the players, and the manager knew that things had to turnaround in the second half if our season was to carry on any longer.
With Norwich City 2-0 up at Sheffield Wednesday at half time, Preston now stood 10 points adrift of The Canaries.
Lowe’s options on the bench were fairly limited and The Lilywhites were missing the likes of Liam Millar, Brad Potts, Ben Whiteman and Alan Browne with the captain having to settle for a place on the bench.
North End have fought back from a goal down at Deepdale plenty of times before this season though; four times before in fact, so there was still hope.
An early goal in the second period would be key and Keane was able to win and convert the penalty himself. Preston huffed and puffed for a winner but it was time to turn to the bench.
The Town End hero
Before the game on Tuesday night, all five of Milutin Osmajic’s goals had come at Deepdale in front of the Town End, and he was about to extend that run.
He’s had to settle for a place on the bench for the majority of the second half of the season but you always feel he can make an impact when he comes on. The club’s record signing has probably seen his confidence drop but he only has to look at Emil Riis for inspiration.
He’s so keen to impress and his finishing can be deadly.
For his first he was nicely picked out by Duane Holmes before smashing home with just six minutes remaining.
Just three minutes later his captain Alan Browne who had come on with him, released him with a through ball which Osmajic gladly slotted away.
There was still time for more and in the 91st minute Milly sent Deepdale into euphoria as Mads Frokjaer played a perfectly weighted ball into the box for Osmajic to smash into the corner.
A first career hat-trick for the former Cadiz striker and the first for Preston for some time.
8 years in the waiting
Not since 2016 have we seen a Preston player score a hat-trick. That came from Simon Makienok in the League Cup tie away to Bournemouth.
The last in the league was in 2015, Joe Garner against Swindon, just a month before Jermaine Beckford scored three in the play-off final against the same opposition.
The last hat-trick as a substitute was also Joe Garner in an FA Cup win over Ipswich Town in 2014.
You’d have to go back to 2010 for the last time someone scored a treble at this level for The Lilywhites. That was Jon Parkin in the famous 6-4 win over Leeds United at Elland Road.
As for the fastest hat-trick, well Osmajic can’t actually claim that one. In 1966 Brian Godfrey scored three goals in five minutes in a 9-0 win against Cardiff City.
A top performance from Brady
I’ve been the first to criticise him on numerous occasions this season. At times he hasn’t offered enough and hasn’t seemed interested. Millar and Potts should be the first choice wing-backs when fit but on Tuesday Brady was key in Preston’s win.
Whilst he doesn’t have the pace to burst down the wing he was popping up everywhere on the pitch. Brady showed fight and desire to get back into the match and it was a great captain’s display standing in for Browne.
His energy helped set the momentum in the second half along with Duane Holmes. It kept the pressure on Huddersfield and it was his cross that found Holmes at the back post leading to the first of Osmajic’s goals.
Norwich game is huge
As we scored four goals in the second half, Norwich conceded two and ended up drawing to Wednesday. There was a five point swing in the last 45 minutes. After being 10 points behind Norwich we are now five points behind.
We still have a game in hand and also play them on Saturday. So it’s in our hands to finish above them. Win all our games and we will. Easier said than done and Coventry City and Hull City could still finish above us too, but they do face each other in two weeks time.
There’s never a dull moment in this league.
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