Our visit to Deepdale is on Saturday, with a 12.30pm kick off, and once again we’re live on Sky Sports. As the name Preston North End suggests, the stadium is a mile or so to the north of the town centre.
If you’re going by car you need to leave the M6 at Junction 31 and follow signs Left for Preston. Go up a steep hill and follow the road down to a mini roundabout. At the roundabout with the Hesketh Arms turn right into Blackpool Road. Go straight on over three sets of lights and just before a fourth set, the ground appears set slightly back on the left.
Parking for cars is available for £5 a car at Moorfields School, just follow the directions above and at the last set of traffic lights continue straight on for about 200 yards, and you will see the school on the left near Moor Park. You can also park at Deepdale itself, but that will cost you a whopping £12.50, though there is a slightly cheaper car park across Sir Tom Finney Way (behind the Main Stand) at a mere £7.
Otherwise, you can try your luck with street parking, but don't be tempted to park on the grass verges near the ground, you are likely to find after the game that you have been given a parking ticket.
The Railway Station is on the opposite side of the town centre, about 1.6 miles from Deepdale, about 1.6 miles from Deepdale, and if you're feeling energetic enough to walk you should turn right towards the Fishergate Centre and main shopping area. Keep walking down the high street, past all the town centre shops, until you reach the ring road. Then head straight over the large traffic lights, heading towards Preston Prison.
Turn left at the Prison into Church Street, then left into Deepdale Road. Continue straight along Deepdale Road and after about a mile you will reach the ground. But if you can’t raise the energy to walk, you can get any bus from the railway station to the town’s main bus station, and then any buses 5 or 19.
One advantage of walking up from the station is that you pass a couple of decent boozers on the way. Look out for ‘Roper Hall’ and ‘The Northern Way’ on Friargate, and ‘The Twelve Tellers’ on Church Street. You could also try ‘The Station’ opposite the railway station, and if you’re coming in by car the best option is ‘Moor Park Sports & Social Club’ on Blackpool Road.
When we last visited the local plod decided to allow us to get alcohol inside the stadium because we’d been so well behaved during our the last few visits. And with any luck this will still apply this time around. Food-wise, there are a few takeaways along Sir Tom Finney Way between the stadium and the city centre.
The whole ground has been redeveloped in recent years. In 1996 the 8,100-seater Sir Tom Finney Stand was opened, followed by the Bill Shankly Kop two years later, and in October 2001 work was completed on the Alan Kelly Town End, also with a capacity of just over 6,000. The completion of the fourth side of the stadium to replace the derelict Pavillion stand brought the total capacity to 23,404.
Normally the allocation for away fans is approximately half of the Kop (3,000 seats) and it is shared with home supporters, but teams with a large away support get the whole stand. Yep, that’s us! We’ve got an allocation of 5,656 for this game, which has now completely sold out. This time they are priced at £30 for adults, with different categories of concessions at £25, £20, £15, £10 and £5. Tickets for the three home stands are only on sale to Preston North End members.
The views of the playing action and facilities within the away stand are excellent, as the stand is particularly steep, meaning that fans are kept relatively close to the pitch. On the concourse there are TVs by the refreshment serving areas showing the game live while the bars stay open. There is a wide range of food available including bacon rolls, burgers and even vegan 'potato and butter' pies, which apparently is a local delicacy.
All in all, this should be quite a good day out.
Some of this stuff came from www.footballgroundguide.com.