Exeter City 1 Preston North End 2. Saturday 17 March 2012.

MATCH REPORT by Ant Moxey 

Employing a very young side including home debutant Aaron Dawson manager Tisdale opted for an attacking 3-4-3 formation, and from the off it was clear the plan was to work the ball wide to Frear scampering up and down the left. As early as the fourth minute such a move saw Frear racing to the byline before whipping in a nifty cross to Cureton at the far post. He looped a good looking header back over the keeper and back across goal, but unfortunately it was just too high and dipped behind the crossbar on to the roof of the net.

But Preston kept their shape and kept their discipline and eased their way into the game. Howeverfor all their physicality, it was a soft goal that handed them the lead in the 11th minute. Danny Mayor was left unchallenged on the right corner of the box and so when no-one went to close him down and Krysiak stood and watched, Mayor dinked a cross to the far post where lan Hume was on hand to bundle home from five yards to make it 1-0 to the visitors.

Cureton had a chance midway through the half when Dunne rolled a free kick wide to Tully- Tully then floated a cross to the far post to Cureton who nodded wide of the angle of post and bar from 15 yards. In the final minute of three minutes stoppage time Cureton spurned a third chance to open his City account. Fortune sent Frear scurrying down the line where he showed great determination holding off a defender twice his size before fizzing a cross in to the near post. Cureton raced in and flicked the ball goalwards, but the keeper pulled of a great reaction save thrusting out an arm to deflect the ball round the post for a corner.

By contrast in the second half City looked much more determined and almost drew level within the opening minuteTaylor was fouled on the edge of the box on the goal line, but showed great awareness to take the free kick himself quickly playing it in to a mass of bodies in the box. O'Flynn rushed forward to stab at the ball, but only succeeded in skimming it off the top of the crossbar from ten yards out. In the ninth minute more Frear trickery down the left saw the ball cut back to Cureton just inside the box, but his first time smash was straight at the keeper Just after the quarter hour O'Flynn was replaced by Bauza, then in the 20th minute City deservedly drew level Dunne fired the ball across the box from right to left where Frear collected out wide. He laid it off inside to Sercombe who stole into the corner of the box before unleashing a ferocious drive across the keeper low into the far corner to make it all square at one apiece and game on. Bauza fed the ball to Sercombe inside the opposite corner of the box five minutes later, and in a single movement Sercombe turned and lashed the ball inches wide of the top corner of the net.

BBC Match Summary and information 

Preston secured their sixth away win of the season to pile more pressure on relegation-threatened Exeter. Preston dominated the first half but only had one goal to show for it, Danny Mayor's right-wing cross was turned in at the back post by Iain Hume. Exeter equalised when Elliott Frear laid the ball off to Liam Sercombe to fire home from the corner of the box. Hume scored his second when he rounded goalkeeper Artur Krysiak, who had failed to deal with a long goal-kick.

VIEWS FROM THE DRESSING ROOM

Exeter City manager Paul Tisdale told BBC Radio Devon:

"I thought we were going to get the winner. "I'm certainly not going to tell anybody any criticisms of my players, we've got nine games to go and I don't think that's going to help. "The difference between the two sides was their striker, Iain Hume. "We had lots of endeavour and I've got no gripes at all with the way we applied ourselves."

Referee Mick Russell

Attendance 4741, including 336 away fans.