Preston's final home reserve encounter of the season ended in disappointment as a young side suffered defeat to a Chester side boasting a crucial extra couple of years' experience at this level.

Matty Mainwaring gave Preston hope after coming off the bench at half-time to net PNE's equaliser, but his close range finish was sandwiched by a brace  of strikes from Lloyd Ellams either side of the break.

For many of the youngsters in the side, it was an ideal opportunity to seek revenge on the same club that had inflicted an undeserved 1-0 defeat at youth level just four days earlier.

However, the Cheshire side wasted no time in causing further anguish on the Lilywhites, going ahead after just five minutes when Paul McManus' square ball found Lloyd Ellams in space, 20 yards from goal, and he didn't waste the opening - thumping a strong drive into the bottom left corner of Chris Neal's net.

Preston's youngsters chased ferociously in an attempt to restore parity, but they couldn't quite find the cohesion they needed to start putting pressure on the visiting side's defence.

Chris Neal was the busier of the two keepers as the mid-point of the half approached - getting down low to hold McManus' angled drive and then holding on again when the same man's shot took a sizeable deflection off Ray Shearwood en route to goal.

Preston found chances few and far between in an uninspiring first period, with their first notable chance headed over the bar by Dominic Collins from Danny Mayor's right wing corner.

Within a minute of that chance, however, Nathan Fairhurst came within a whisker of equalising - rasping a shot across the face of goal and only missing the target by the narrowest of margins after a great ball down the left from Shearwood had sent him racing towards goal.

Shearwood had to block again from the lively McManus after Ryan Williams played him through with a lovely ball on a quick break, while North End couldn't take advantage of their growing territorial advantage - Ash Higgins striking the ball too early and too wide after right-back Shaun Densmore headed through to him from a more advanced midfield role.

Arran McCarthy was replaced by Matty Mainwaring at the break as Preston pushed to try and find an equaliser, and they nearly got it just over a minute into the second period when the stray boot of half-time sub Paul Smith connected with the head of Danny Mayor.

Mainwaring, straight off the bench, curled the ball towards the top right hand corner from just outside the area, but there was too much bend on the dead ball and it merely found the side netting.

Neal saved well from Ellams as the visitors broke quickly for another opening, but North End, having dominated the opening stages after the break, then levelled when Higgins broke down the left from Shearwood's through ball, reached the by-line, and cut the ball back to Mainwaring in an almost unmissable position eight yards out.

The lead only lasted around eight minutes though - Ellams putting his side ahead once again after another testing break inspired by Stephen Vaughan's through ball on 63 minutes. Ellams took the ball into his stride and thumped it past a badly exposed Neal, and North End were indebted to Williams' generosity when he missed from a near-identical chance just moments later.

Chester began to exert more dominance as the half progressed - Glenn Rule rattling the crossbar with an acrobatic 20-yarder after Vaughan's free-kick was chested back into the midfielder's direction via Giovanni Felicello.

The hosts rallied towards the end as they looked to save a point, but they couldn't find a way of breaching City's solid rearguard.

PNE: Chris Neal, Densmore, Shearwood, Appiah, Smyth, Collins (sub Ciaron Barton 57), Aspin, Fairhurst (capt), McCarthy (sub Mainwaring 46), Higgins, Mayor (sub Conchie 76). Subs not used: Adam Barton, Cudworth.

Chester: Palethorpe, Robson (sub trialist 60), Felicello, Rowlands, Kelly (sub Smith 46), Vaughan (capt), Rule, Williams, Ellams, McManus (sub trialist 46), Mitchell. Subs not used: Dorman, Newman, Ablett, Dowling.

Booked: Aspin (73); Smith (47)

Referee: Mr D Mohareb