January heralded the start of a new year and hopefully a fresh start for everyone involved at Preston North End after the continued disappointments of 2007.

And, in spite of two league defeats on the road, the month proved to be Preston's most successful of the season so far, with a 100% record at home in all competitions and progress to the fifth round of the FA Cup giving the Lilywhites faithful genuine belief that the ship was steadily being turned under new boss Alan Irvine.

It wasn't all plain sailing to begin with, as the New Year's Day trip to Sheffield Wednesday proved to be a game littered with mistakes and misfortune on both sides. The Owls triumphed 2-1 as Lady Luck showed that her loyalties laid on the other side of the Pennines, but Irvine was frank in his assessment that his side had to stop making mistakes - and fast - if his side was to improve their league position, having slipped to the bottom of the table over the Festive period.



The manager singled out Patrick Agyemang for praise in the aftermath of the defeat - but he hadn't even taken to the field at Hillsborough. Instead, the gaffer explained that he'd left the pacy striker out of his line-up as he was all set to complete a long-awaited move to QPR. He admitted: "Patrick has played in the last few games in the knowledge that this move was pending and I appreciate what he's done for us in that respect."



Chairman Derek Shaw equally didn't want to lose in-form Pat, but the £350,000 move was completed three days into the new calendar year as the lure of a return to his native London and a lucrative deal with the cash-rich club proved too good for the Ghanaian international to turn down.

The squad shrunk further with the release of injury-hit midfielder Adam Nowland, who had spent time out on loan at Gillingham and Stockport in his bid to regain fitness after a horrendous broken leg sustained at Norwich almost exactly two years earlier. 

Also heading out were Andy Carroll and Paul Gallagher at the completion of their short-term loan deals, as the number of strikers in the squad was trimmed from six to three, leaving Karl Hawley, Neil Mellor and Brett Ormerod to spearhead the attack heading into the FA Cup tie at home to Scunthorpe on Saturday 5th January.



It was a game that Alan Irvine believed could spark an upturn in PNE's fortunes, and his hopes of achieving that feat were helped by the return of Youl Mawene after a family illness had kept him out of action throughout the holiday period, while there was a further boost with the news that Billy Jones' hernia surgery had been a success, and a return to action at the start of February looked more than likely.

A 1-0 victory over Scunthorpe on a bitingly cold afternoon in front of just 4,616 spectators may not sound like a hugely significant result in the general scheme of things, but the boost it offered after a troubled spell was immeasurable. Irvine was absolutely delighted after winning his first FA Cup tie as a manager, and singled out the returning Mawene for extra praise after his commanding performance at centre half meant that the defence wasn't hampered by the suspension to Sean St Ledger. With just four fit defenders in the squad, the Frenchman's reinstallment couldn't have been better timed.



Though the boss wasn't able to bring in any extra defensive reinforcements, he was able to make a further two signings to bolster his squad in the same week that we learnt that Derby or Sheffield Wednesday awaited in round four of the FA Cup. All-action midfielder Richard Chaplow was brought in from West Brom and immediately stated his desire to play Premier League football with the Club, while two days later we signed a player called Chris Brown, who turned out to be quite good. If Norwich have any other players of his quality currently available for 'an undisclosed fee in the region of £400,000', I'm sure we'll be happy to take their call.



Chairman Derek Shaw admitted that the double deal wouldn't be the end of the transfer dealing, but it looked hugely unlikely that long-term target Taylor Twellman would be crossing the Atlantic, after an improved $2m+ bid was rejected by the MLS for the New England Revolution striker. Meanwhile, Callum Davidson was being taught how to dance in a bid to cover the troublesome right back slot while his colleagues returned from injury and suspension.



Callum returned to his native left-back spot for the visit of Watford as Sean St Ledger returned from a one-game ban to fill the right-back berth, while there were Deepdale debuts for the new boys Brown and Chaplow. The stadium was rocking as the home crowd sensed a potential upset, and with the two new signings playing starring roles, it always looked likely. However, it wasn't until the late introduction of supersub Neil Mellor that North End sealed a deserved 1-0 victory, with the joint leaders proving not to be the last big name to come unstuck at Deepdale in 2008...

For Brown, the outing was described as a 'dream debut', while Andy Lonergan was earning praise for his recent performances between the sticks. He was also to learn that he was about to gain a new defensive colleague, with Aberdeen full-back Michael Hart signing a pre-contract agreement to join in the summer, with potential for the move to take place sooner if suitable compensation could be agreed between the two parties either side of the border.

Heading out was Danny Pugh, following the formal completion of his move to Stoke City, and the same applied to Preston's youth team, who battled hard but couldn't see off the threat of Premier League side Birmingham in the FA Youth Cup, losing 3-1 at Solihull.



Just four days after officially saying goodbye to Pughie, he was back in everybody's thoughts as he lined up for his new club against the Lilywhites - or rather, the yellows - at the Britannia Stadium. In hindsight, the 3-1 defeat was nothing to be ashamed of against a side that eventually earned promotion to the top flight, but that didn't prevent the sense of disappointment that prevailed in spite of Chris Brown's first goal for the Club.



Away from squad matters, it was a hugely cost-effective time to be a fan, with replica shirts reduced, an exclusive fans forum for MyPNE Membership card holders, and free coach travel to our FA Cup fourth round tie at Pride Park, after Derby were confirmed as our opponents in the world's most famous knockout competition.

The only losers were those who travelled to Christie Park in vain following the postponement of a reserve fixture against Morecambe that took three months to finally re-arrange, though in pre-petrol crisis times that probably didn't cost a great deal either.

The Club was also recognised for its off-field efforts in the form of a nomination for the Championship Family Club of the Year at the Football League Awards, which were to be held at London's Hilton Hotel, Park Lane, on Sunday 2nd March.

Michael Hart's arrival to the North End family was still on hold, however, after a three-day assessment of his injured hip indicated he was still a possible six weeks away from a return to fitness.



Youl Mawene was a man in demand ahead of the FA Cup tie at Derby, sharing his memories of favourite previous encounters for and against the Rams, and also discussing the circumstances surrounding his Festive family problems for the first time.

A brave man off and on the field, Youl was an integral member of the PNE side that secured one of the most astonishing results of this season's FA Cup when the long awaited tie finally came around. A 4-1 victory was nothing less than the lads deserved, with Karl Hawley's brace and a well-struck effort from Simon Whaley giving the visitors a 3-0 half-time lead, before Neil Mellor sealed the deal with a late penalty to end North End's spot kick hoodoo.



The delight was evident all round. Sean St Ledger was said to be "on top of the moon", while there was further excitement to come when the draw for the fifth round paired PNE with Portsmouth - and a media-friendly return for that man David Nugent.

Ahead of that, however, was the side that ultimately ended up facing Pompey in the FA Cup Final - West Bromwich Albion. Arriving at Deepdale as league leaders, they were to provide another stern test, but the toughest examinations seemed to be the ones that brought the best out of the side during this period. It was a tale of two goals and two red cards for the Lilywhites, but the most important aspect was that the nine men held on to secure a famous 2-1 win over the Baggies, as Alan Irvine's men ended January showing they were a side that meant business.



There was just enough time to conduct a little more business after that January 29th outing, with Jason Jarrett joining Oldham on loan, Michael Hart finally completing his long-awaited early arrival (if such a thing is possible), and Neal Trotman making good use of Jarrett's cheap day return ticket to Oldham as he became the fourth permanent signing of the month before the closure of the transfer window. One man we couldn't snare, however, was Taylor Twellman, who was unable to escape from the talon-like grip of the MLS.



With everything signed, sealed and delivered, we were all set for February - which you can re-live in the latest installment of our 2007/08 season, coming soon.