Match ends, Preston North End 1, Nottingham Forest 0.
PrestonPreston North End1Nottm ForestNottingham Forest0
Eoin Doyle netted his first goal for Preston to stretch Nottingham Forest's winless run to eight matches.
Doyle scored on the rebound after a swift second-minute breakaway and the hosts held on for a fifth consecutive clean sheet to go above Forest and up to 16th in the Championship table.
Joe Garner almost made it 2-0 but the Reds rallied and Ryan Mendes, Jamie Ward and Nelson Oliveira went close.
A dull second half saw little in the way of chances as Preston held on.
Forest boss Dougie Freedman had dismissed talk of feeling the pressure as a result of his side's poor run, which has now seen them score just twice in six matches and slip to 19th place.
But with key forwards Britt Assombalonga and Matt Fryatt out injured, they once again lacked the finishing touch up front despite having several good opportunities after the early setback.
On-loan Cardiff City striker Doyle scored his first goal in eight appearances for the hosts, finishing past Dorus de Vries at the near post after the goalkeeper had saved from Daniel Johnson.
After Garner headed a good chance over, Forest dominated the first half with Ward going closest when his strike clipped the bar.
The second half provided little action in either penalty box as Forest ran out of ideas against a side happy to trust their in-form defence to ensure victory.
Preston manager Simon Grayson:
"It's a fantastic achievement to get five clean sheets on the trot.
"To do it in any league takes some doing but at this level with the players we've been against.
"There's a huge amount of credit to the lads, as individuals and as a team."
Nottingham Forest manager Dougie Freedman:
"I've seen enough over six or seven games that we are in a very false position.
"I understand that everybody at the football club would be concerned but I'm certainly not from what I see.
"You're going to have difficult moments in a season and this is one - I don't see us anywhere near a relegation battle."
Line-ups
Preston
Formation 5-3-2
- 1Pickford
- 2VermijlSubstituted forHuntingtonat 83'minutesBooked at 85mins
- 15Woods
- 6Wright
- 3Cunningham
- 32Reach
- 16BrowneSubstituted forWelshat 57'minutesBooked at 90mins
- 12Gallagher
- 11Johnson
- 14Garner
- 13DoyleSubstituted forKilkennyat 83'minutes
Substitutes
- 8Kilkenny
- 9Keane
- 19Welsh
- 23Huntington
- 24May
- 25Hugill
- 43Kirkland
Nottm Forest
Formation 4-5-1
- 1de Vries
- 2Lichaj
- 5Mills
- 25Hobbs
- 31Pinillos
- 19WardSubstituted forBlackstockat 81'minutesBooked at 85mins
- 18Trotter
- 37GrantSubstituted forWalkerat 63'minutes
- 38Osborn
- 15Mendes da GraçaSubstituted forWilliamsat 63'minutes
- 17Oliveira
Substitutes
- 6Wilson
- 20Williams
- 23Blackstock
- 26Evtimov
- 27Burke
- 29O'Grady
- 34Walker
- Referee:
- Tony Harrington
- Attendance:
- 10,216
Match Stats
Home TeamPrestonAway TeamNottm Forest
- Possession
- Home48%
- Away52%
- Shots
- Home10
- Away15
- Shots on Target
- Home4
- Away6
- Corners
- Home0
- Away6
- Fouls
- Home9
- Away14
Live Text
Post update
Full Time
Second Half ends, Preston North End 1, Nottingham Forest 0.
Post update
Jonathan Williams (Nottingham Forest) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Post update
Foul by Joe Garner (Preston North End).
Post update
Attempt missed. Daniel Pinillos (Nottingham Forest) left footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the left following a set piece situation.
Booking
John Welsh (Preston North End) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Post update
Jonathan Williams (Nottingham Forest) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Post update
Foul by John Welsh (Preston North End).
Post update
Foul by Dexter Blackstock (Nottingham Forest).
Post update
Bailey Wright (Preston North End) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Booking
Paul Huntington (Preston North End) is shown the yellow card.
Booking
Dexter Blackstock (Nottingham Forest) is shown the yellow card.
Post update
Corner, Nottingham Forest. Conceded by Bailey Wright.
Post update
Foul by Greg Cunningham (Preston North End).
Post update
Tyler Walker (Nottingham Forest) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Substitution
Substitution, Preston North End. Paul Huntington replaces Marnick Vermijl.
Substitution
Substitution, Preston North End. Neil Kilkenny replaces Eoin Doyle.
Post update
Attempt saved. Nélson Oliveira (Nottingham Forest) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Daniel Pinillos.
Substitution
Substitution, Nottingham Forest. Dexter Blackstock replaces Jamie Ward.
Post update
Offside, Preston North End. Paul Gallagher tries a through ball, but Joe Garner is caught offside.
