West Bromwich Albion 2 - Preston North End 1

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Ratings submitted so far: 18

Brendan Clegg:

A good result and one we had to really work for against a competitive side.

I think Mason went with pretty much the starting lineup most others would’ve gone for… certainly the attacking 4, with Collyer and Campbell probably the debatable ones. Taylor made the bench along with Grant and Dike to give us a stronger look there.

I didn’t think we started that well… our intent and energy were there but our passing was sometimes a bit too rushed and hurried. Preston didn’t let us settle either and we happy to hit the channels.

It felt like we gradually got into it as our players began to find a rhythm and synergy with each other and there we bright spots - Price having a decent double-strike saved, Maja running half a pitch but choosing the wrong option at the end and our wide players looking threatening generally.

There were risks at the other end too though… a loose pass to Mowatt in the quarterback role left him in a foot race he would lose against anyone on the pitch, but Griffiths was alert and rescued us.

There was also a very risky Collyer tackle that could easily have been given as a pen which showed his youthful naivety a bit.

Our opener came from MJ, who looked really sharp all game, and it was much like QPR away last season as he jinked inside and then knuckled one into the near top corner.

The other observation I would have from the half is that although Maja still looked rusty and things weren’t always coming off… you could see the potential there with Price and it created space for our wingers. There was promise that it might click and click very well.

Second half was okay, more of the same and looked comfortable and threatening.

Our second was a brilliant finish from Price after we’d intercepted it high: he pinged it into the top corner from the edge of the box with aplomb. He had options on the run so it’s a good job he scored having taken that in. It was a beauty.

There didn’t seem to be any concerns but a lifeline gifted to them from a rare Mepham error on 78 allowed a grandstand finish.

We looked a threat on the break and probably should’ve picked them off - Iling-Junior putting a header just wide was the pick.

And as our subs went a little bit negative to protect the lead we sat back, and then the referee found 9 minutes of time from somewhere - Griffiths making another decent stop to get us over the line at the end.

A good win, miles better than Millwall. Another tough week with two away games but with Grant, Dike and hopefully Bany to call on I’m optimistic for a decent return of results. And we saw a couple of brilliant goals today, those moments of beauty that justify the hours and hours of pain we suffer for it!

• Griffiths - 7 Earning points, not costing them. Growing.
• Campbell - 6 Solid showing after a challenging period
• Phillips - 7 He loved it. Headed everything.
• Mepham - 6 Error led to goal but otherwise solid.
• Styles - 6 What you always get. Effort, enthusiasm, aggression, sometimes naivety.
• Mowatt - 8 once he got a handle of it he was top class
• Collyer - 6 Steady, rangey, looked useful
• Iling-Junior - 7 Worked hard and is a big strong lad. His power is useful. Still learning.
• Price - 7 Super goal. Best performance for weeks . Still could do with calming down occasionally
• MJ - 8 Looked really up for it all game. Wanted the ball, brave with it.
• Maja - 6 rusty but is innately dangerous. His mere ideas carried a threat.

• Heggebø - 7 Good cameo again. Looked after the ball so well.
• Molumby - 6 reliable
• Grant - 6 athletic
• Taylor - 6 closed it out
• Diakite - 7 I felt contributed a lot in a little time. On the ball and defensively.

Enjoyed that mostly. More of the same attacking intent please.