Preston need to go that extra yard

Preston striker Neil Mellor says the Lilywhites must shrug off the tag of ‘nearly-men’ in their quest to clinch promotion to the top flight.

North End were beaten by Sheffield United at the semi final stage of the play-offs last term, their fourth post-season knock-out defeat in the last eight years.

But Mellor believes their luck has got to change soon as they try to put last season’s disappointment behind them.

“I thought we had enough to beat Sheffield United over the two legs, but that wasn’t the case,” he said.

“The defeat hurt us a lot because not only did we miss out on promotion, but also the chance to play at Wembley, which every player dreams of.

“We are desperate to go one better this season and win promotion. We expect to finish in the top six – anything less than that would not be a successful season for us.”

But Mellor is also expecting the division to be enough tougher following the relegations of Newcastle, Middlesbrough and West Brom.

He added: “We expect a tough battle this season because there are about ten teams that could finish in the top six.

“The three that came down will expect to go straight back up. They are all big clubs but they will suffer – every team will want to beat them. They will treat the games against them like a cup final.”