Yesterday PNE lost 3-1 at home to Middlesbrough and a win for either team would have been a good lift up the relegation area. That PNE lost and Scunthorpe won cemented PNE well down in the relegation spots. Overall PNE had been showing some signs of improvement but cancelled games lost some momentum and yesterday was the key result where the owner must have thought Darren had taken as much rope as he could have, and it had been generous.
It seemed like PNE might be going to stay with Darren Ferguson this season whatever happened although Trevor Hemmings doesn’t seem like someone to risk an asset too much. It must have been difficult with the reported relationship between him and Alex Ferguson but it can’t be said he wasn’t given a decent run in the face of such results. PNE have paid a lot of compensation in the last few years to managers that could have been spent on players so lets hope who-ever takes over lasts at least 4 seasons. You might also ask what sort of contract are they going to offer, would someone come without a compensation clause, unlikely and as a finisher they often expect a transfer budget. There are so many big name managers about it’s nice to fantasise, and PNE aren’t a bad prospect, but it seems unlikely any top managers like Sam Allardyce are going to take pity on PNE’s financial plight, unless Mr Hemmings is a negotiator magnificent. You never know, and maybe just for a few weeks or months or maybe longer, Sam, go on.
Disappointing for Darren Ferguson, he can be sure that no-one at Preston wanted it to end like this. Unlikely to be the end of the road for him as he has known good success in divisions 1 and 2 and maybe a bit more time there will give him more edge.