Preston North End rounded out their pre-season fixture schedule with a 5-0 victory at Deepdale on Saturday – against a side that refused to be named.
In a slightly unorthodox approach, PNE confirmed via their official website that it was agreed that the club could publish the score and match details, without naming the opposition or any of their players.
There were also no highlights of the fixture, which was played behind closed doors.
Social media quickly got involved, and even Paddy Power got in on the act on Twitter. They made a hilarious reference to Jay Cartwright’s famous Football Manager line on The Inbetweeners.
North End appear to have put in a confident display ahead of their first game of the Championship season this weekend.
There were five different goalscorers. Brad Potts, Ben Whiteman, Emil Riis, Tom Barkhuizen and Jordan Storey all got their names on the scoresheet.
The Lilywhites were due to play Manchester United on Saturday. It was to be the first game in front of fans at Deepdale since March of last year.
However, the friendly was cancelled after United announced a small number of suspected positive Covid-19 cases.
They announced that “as a precautionary measure”, they were not able to play the friendly.
After further tests the following day, it was announced that there were “no positive cases within the first team group”.
PNE look ahead to Championship start
The day prior to the behind closed doors friendly, North End lost 3-2 to Wigan Athletic at the DW Stadium.
Frankie McAvoy’s side take on Hull City on the opening day of the Championship season on August 7.
The Scot was given the head coach role permanently this summer. He took up the role on an interim basis at the end of last season following the departure of Alex Neil.
His coaching staff includes former PNE and Leicester midfielder Paul Gallagher, ex-Bolton midfielder Steve Thompson and former Rotherham and Wigan goalkeeper Mike Pollitt.
Featured Image Credit: Getty / CameraSport