Instead of blogging about Preston's poor 1-0 defeat to Bournemouth, the final blogpost of the season will be a review of the team and how they've performed over the season (so expect a lot of low marks)
Thorsten Stuckmann - 9
The signing of the season without a doubt, Stuckmann has been a shining light in an otherwise awful season and we would no doubt be in league two now if it hadn't been for the big German, 10 clean sheets this season despite only signing in January which is more than we managed in the 2009/10 and 2010/11 seasons combined which shows how much of an impact he has had
David Gray - 5
Only made 18 starts so hard to make a considerable comment on his performances but he has been distinctly mixed, very good going forward but poor defensively which for a right back is not a good quality to have, seems to have fallen out with Westley so doubtful that he will be at the club next season, won't be greatly missed
Chris Robertson - 6.5
Certainly Westleys best permanent signing of the January market, solid and dependable and a very good replacement for Carlisle, not made any major errors in the time he's been here and weighed in with a winning goal against Huddersfield in April, formed a good partnership with Craig Morgan at the back
Craig Morgan - 6.5
After a nightmare performance against Colchester, Brown dropped him and he disappeared (apart from cup games) until late autumn and he has been our best defender this season. Like Gray he fell short of 20 appearances because of a red card against Yeovil followed by an injury which kept him out until April, on a multi year contract so he should be at the team next season and his shortcomings which were shown up in the Championship are less so in League One.
Iain Hume - 7
A season of two halves, like the team he started the season on fire and was one of the top scorers early on but injuries against Huddersfield and Sheffield Wednesday derailed his season, returned in February but has blown hot and cold with good performances like Exeter and Stevenage tempered with poor performances like Brentford and Tranmere, but this matches the team. Ended up as the team's top scorer with 10 goals.
Paul Coutts - 5
Started the season with a bang with a goal against Colchester which was shortlisted for goal of the season, but fell away horribly in the autumn and never got the form back, partly because he spent a lot of time on the wing, and the fall out with Westley in January was well publicised. Got the potential to be one of our best players but if he doesnt sort his attitude out he can go back to Peterborough in the summer
Jamie Proctor - 5
Billed as the next big thing in August, ended the season on a whimper, but not through fault of his own, looked sharp early on and scored a few times, but an injury combined with unsuccessful surgery and then being rushed back too soon has wrecked his season, turned into a scapegoat for fans in the latter part of the season and a good break off in the summer will do him the world of good.
Barry Nicholson - 4
Apparently he made 22 appearances this season, apart from his goals against Chesterfield and Yeovil I really can't remember what else he did for the team, won't be surprised to see him leave although he expressed a desire to stay, only time will tell.
Juhvel Tsoumou - 4.5
Looked very poor when first signed but hit a purple patch in October with a fair few goals and was a leading light when Preston lost form, strangely dropped soon after and then sent on loan to Plymouth, probably will be sold and we will never see if he did have any potential but that miss against MK Dons will live long in the memory
Brian McLean - 4
Brought in on a free and started the season pretty well, but fell away horribly and the first half performance against Charlton away was the final straw and Brown didn't play him again. He played in Westleys first game against Leyton Orient but another poor performance saw him dropped until the end of the season, he is contracted for another season but I can't see him staying.
Steven Smith - 3
Too slow, can't tackle, 5 yellow cards and 1 red in 13 appearances speaks volumes and it says a lot that winger Parry did a better job than him at left back, released in March and wasn't missed by anyone
Adam Barton - 5
Until Westley came he was weak, uninterested, never won the ball or got stuck in and his only performances of note came in the cup games against Southampton and Rochdale. But looked a completely different person after January and was one of our best midfielders until an unfortunate broken leg against Walsall, hopefully he comes back stronger int he summer
Danny Mayor - 6
On his day he is a lightning winger who can scare opposition teams to death and has a rocket of a right foot, however he is very frustrating and inconsistent but this was down to injury more than anything else, another player who looked stronger after Westley came in. He'll be a valuable asset next season
Paul Parry - 8
The most consistent outfield player of the season, finally showing what he is capable of, nearly had an injury free season but limped off against Huddersfield in April but made 39 starts, his third highest in a season in his career and considering most of them were at left back shows his versatility and performed credibly, weighed in with a few goals too including the match winner at MK Dons in December, needs to be kept on next season.
Danny Devine - 5.5
Some people really rate him, personally I can't see where the hype is, performed well in August until a broken jaw in a nightclub, been mostly poor since then, had to be substituted after half an hour against Carlisle and Brentford. Supporting an IRA member on twitter won't have helped him as well and I don't think he will be here next season.
Keammar Daley - 1
Who?
Iain Turner - 3
All three came for the goal against Notts County, rest of his appearances were full of embarrassing mistakes and dreadful howler with Huddersfield away and Bournemouth at home being the worst and it is unbelievable that Brown chose him over Stuckmann in the summer, thankfully he'll be off in the summer
Graham Alexander - 6
Should never have been sold, but once the sentiment of him coming back was over, it was clear his legs wouldn't survive 46 league games, nominated for League One player of the month in August as he was a midfield rock but the run of games took their toll and a hamstring injury against Stevenage was basically it, did well as caretaker manager before signing off in the best way possible with a 91st minute free kick against Charlton. Should be kept on as a coach.
Andreas Arestidou - 5.5
Competent stand in but possibly not the long term option. Played badly against Charlton both home and away but in the other league games he played he played alright, for the time being he is an okay number 2 but Westley might want to bring someone in over the summer particularly with Comrie leaving
Bailey Wright - 6
Didn't appear consistently in the team until spring but performed admirably and a last minute equaliser against MK Dons gained instant popularity, however there are rumours that he has been released which due to his height and pace might not be surprising although I think he deserves at least next season to show what he is capable of.
Neil Mellor - 6
For the games he was in he was worth an 8, tore the league to peices early on and looked like he would go on to score 30 goals and be up there with the Madines and Rhodes' of League One, but injures against Walsall and eventually MK Dons would prove to be his season over and his 5 minute appearance against Bury in March would prove to be his last in a PNE shirt and he has since retired which is a shame as he has Championship level talent but his injury record proved to be too much for him
Chris Holroyd - 6
Tireless performer who never stops running and going for the ball, unlucky to only have 1 goal to his name after managing to hit the woodwork a fair few times, for a striker one goal in fifteen isn't good enough but I think he is a competent squad player and with a good pre season he can get the best part of 10 goals next season and provide good foil for the other striker whoever that will be.
Andy Procter - 4
He's a trier, but that's about it, looks out of his depth, can't win the ball, can't pass the ball and only looks remotely like a league one player on poor, narrow pitches like Exeter and Stevenage, apparently he is off to Rochdale in the summer, for his sake I hope so or else he'll need a very big improvement on the summer to keep the fans off his back.
Graham Cummins - 5
The big jump from Irish football to English football has left it's mark as defences were quick to bully him around but weighed in with goals against Sheffield United and Tranmere, has the potential to be a quality player next season if pre season can build his strength and awareness.
Nicky Hunt - 5.5
The opposite of Gray, competent defender but poor going forward apart from the occasional game, personally I think he is worth a one year deal in the summer as he is a useful squad player, got a good shot on him as shown against Charlton in April.
The team - 4.5/10
Started off like a train and it looked like we would be fighting for the table but fell to pieces after October and ended up lonely in midtable, very big changes are needed in the summer if Preston are to be fighting it at the right end of the table next season, it remains to be seen if Westley is the right person for the job, the list of players released will certainly make interesting reading as there will no doubt be a lot of players on it and the Preston team that lines up for the first game of next season will be a lot different from the one that finished the season just ended, and that isn't a bad thing at all.
