It took 36 days in coming, but finally North End were able to breath more easily after securing a priceless 1-0 victory over bottom side Sheffield Wednesday at Deepdale.

New loan signing Paul Gallagher was the hero with a 28th minute strike on his first start for the Club, ending a month of anxiety for the Preston faithful.

North End should have been in the lead within four minutes when good link up play between Paul Gallagher and Patrick Agyemang fashioned a clear sight on goal for new skipper Kevin Nicholls, but his shot was too close to the body of keeper Lee Grant and the stopper showed good awareness to block the ball with his left arm.

The home faithful responded well to the positive start with a raucous atmosphere echoing around Deepdale, and another chance soon came the way of the home side as Andy Carroll whipped a ball in from the right that Patrick Agyemang couldn't quite direct with the head.

More good wing play saw Carroll head into the hands of Grant after the lively Paul Gallagher had created space down the left for Callum Davidson to deliver a cross. Gallagher, brought into replace Danny Pugh on the left flank, was a constant menace, and along with fellow loan man Carroll they posed some serious questions of the Wednesday defence.

Steve Watson's trip on Carroll with the goal 25 yards away was enough to earn the Owls skipper a booking, and Kevin Nicholls wasn't far off netting the opener as he curled the free kick just wide of Grant's right hand post.

A seemingly endless stream of North End pressure nearly yielded a goal for Gallagher, who somehow turned the ball right across the face of goal after a superb delivery from Chris Sedgwick, and Agyemang was just inches away from converting with a header just seconds later.

Chances for Wednesday were few and far between in the opening stages, and when Richard Wood finally delivered a header on target, the attempt was stopped in its tracks due to a foul on Andy Lonergan.

A goal looked a certainty as Gallagher sent Agyemang free of the last man, but just as the Ghanaian shaped to shoot, his hopes - and those of the Deepdale faithful who watched with bated breath - were dashed as the assistant referee's flag was raised.

The lack of chances for the visitors meant they snatched at one when it came midway through the half - Akpo Sodje hammering his shot over the bar after Watson had worked an opening for him down the right.

On 28 minutes, it all came good. It had taken 207 minutes of league action until a North End goal at Deepdale this season, but new signing Paul Gallagher kept his cool when the best chance of the half came his way. With Carroll full of confidence after his debut goal for the England U19 team in midweek, it was no surprise when he led the defence on a merry dance and forced a great stop from Grant.

Unfortunately for him - but fortunately for thousands of Preston fans - the rebound landed at the feet of the unmarked Gallagher, and he slotted the ball into a near post gap with his left foot.
The Gallagher-Carroll combination was on hand to create the next chance, though this time Carroll couldn't convert a headed chance when the role of supplier and receiver were reversed.

The pair seemed inseparable in every chance that came the home side's way, with Billy Jones' deep cross turned back along the six yard line by Gallagher, only for Carroll to see another effort denied by the in-form Grant.

With luck having deserted North End on many occasions so far this season, it was something of a confidence boost to see many of the game's key decisions given in favour of the hosts. The Owls following were growing continually impatient at what they perceived to be a succession of calls being unfairly given to the side in the lead, and they seemed to have a case when Francis Jeffers and Liam Chilvers tangled in the home penalty area, only for referee Eddie Ilderton to wave away the penalty claims as the England international fell.

Another brief moment of panic inside the home area followed when Glenn Whelan's right sided free kick was headed towards goal by Wood, but Callum Davidson was in the right spot to hack the ball clear.

A frenetic half showed no sign of slowing down, and an immediate counter attack saw Carter hammer another shot on target that Grant did well to block.

The second half re-started in much the same vein as the first - albeit with the first chance going Wednesday's way. Jones seemed content to stand off Etienne Esajas as the winger decided what to do with the ball in a wide position. What wasn't expected was a pot-shot from distance the clobbered Lonergan's left hand upright and bounced back from whence it came, with North End just about able to clear.

A quality encounter continued to leave the audience in raptures, and Grant continued to stake his claim for the man of the match award with a top drawer save to deny Carroll's header from a Davidson cross in the deep.

A key moment for the home side could have spelt disaster with Gallagher hobbling off after injuring himself in a tackle. He was replaced by another huge talent in Simon Whaley, but it seemed to momentarily unsettle PNE. Whelan broke down the right from the re-start, and he tested Lonergan's reflexes with an angled shot, with Youl Mawene having to scramble the loose ball clear as it landed invitingly for Sodje.

The pressure on the defence continued when Jeffers broke free moments later, but Longergan was superb in his efforts to deny the initial effort and a well struck follow-up from Esajas.
With incidents coming thick and fast, the away side were once again adamant that they deserved a penalty, but the referee deemed Whaley's trip on Wade Small to have been committed on the very edge of the area. It may have proved crucial, as Esajas merely thumped the set piece into a solid-looking wall.

The inevitable string of substitutions seemed to take the sting out of the game, which allowed the Owls to take a firmer foothold on the direction of the play.

PNE did well to hold firm, but they were dealt a blow when the fourth official's board indicated they would have to play out five minutes of added time. They could have made life much more tolerable, but Carroll headed wide when Whaley's cross looked destined to create a second nerve-settling strike.

PNE: Lonergan, Jones, Mawene, Chilvers, Davidson, Sedgwick (sub Pugh 82), Nicholls, Carter, Gallagher (sub Whaley 55), Carroll, Agyemang (sub Ormerod 68). Subs not used: Chris Neal, Mellor.

Sheffield Wednesday: Grant, Simek, Wood, Watson, Spurr, Small (sub Johnson 70), Folly, Whelan, Esajas (sub Hinds 90), Jeffers (sub Burton 59), Sodje. Subs not used: Burch, Lunt.

Booked: Gallagher (54), Mawene (67); Watson (12), Johnson (71)

Referee: Mr E Ilderton

Attendance: 13,062