Preston slipped to another narrow defeat as they were beaten 2-1 by basement side Crewe Alexandra.

After going into the break a goal to the good, the Lilywhites conceded two late second half goals, as the Railwaymen picked up a vital three points in their bid for survival.

North End's hopes of promotion now seem all but over, as they failed to improve their recent poor which has seen them gain no points in the league since mid November.

With an evening kick off, a tough encounter was expected with Crewe being bottom of the league and in a desperate search for points, especially since Rotherham, who are also fighting relegation, had picked up all three in their game against Stockport earlier in the day.

Both teams had equal possession in the opening half hour with Preston going close through a Sarah McCrea free kick. The deadlock was broken after 34 minutes when centre forward Sam Cadwallader finished well to put Preston 1-0 up. Further chances fell to the Whites before the North End keeper Horrocks pulled off two saves to ensure the 1-0 advantage going into the half time interval.

The opening thirty minutes of the second half brought no difference to the scoreline, prompting North End Manager Simon Gerrard into a triple substitution in the hope of further goals to put the game beyond the home side's reach.

Quite the opposite occurred however, with Crewe finding an equaliser, a cross from the right being met by an unmarked player just inside the box.

North End searched for a further goal with Cadwallader seeing her effort hit the post and roll agonisingly along the line without actually crossing it.

With the equalising goal spurring them on, Crewe also pushed for the winner. Their perseverance was rewarded in the final five minutes of the game, despite a corner being cleared off the line by a Preston defender it was eventually forced home off the post much to the delight of the Crewe players and staff.

The final few minutes passed without North End being able to find an equaliser that would have given them a share of the points. Credit must be given to Crewe who fought back from going a goal behind to register a valuable victory.

North End's next fixture is against Newcastle at Irongate, Bamber Bridge on Sunday 10^th February with a 2pm kick-off.

By Julie Jones