Preston North End wait on fitness of key defender ahead of Gentry Day at Barnsley
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The defender suffered a deep cut in a toe during the second-half of Monday night’s defeat to Blackburn and had to be substituted.
North End had switched to a flat back four at half-time and Hughes had been operating at left-back when he got the injury making a challenge.
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Hide AdThe Welshman has been one of their most consistent outfield performers this season and PNE boss Ryan Lowe will be keen to have him available as they head to Oakwell in search of a much-needed win to bounce back from the derby defeat.
Lowe said: “Hughesy has got a gash in his toe, a big one.
"We’ll have to see how he is but he couldn’t continue against Blackburn.”
Hughes has started 40 of North End’s 44 Championship games this season, in the main playing on the left hand side of the back three.
The Barnsley game has plenty of significance to it, both on and off the pitch.
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Hide AdIt’s the first time Gentry Day has been held live since April 2019, with a decent-sized following expected in South Yorkshire despite the 12.30pm kick-off insisted upon by South Yorkshire Police.
On the pitch, it is about making amends for the loss at Blackburn’s hands and putting more points on the board to finish the season on a positive note.
It is the final away game of the season, with the campaign finishing a week on Saturday against Middlesbrough at Deepdale.
Lowe has made it clear to the players that he doesn’t want the season to end with a whimper.
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Hide Ad"They are a good group here and I’ve told them what I expect,” said Lowe.
"I’ve said don’t think your holidays are just around the corner, we need to get wins on the board.
"Some lads are contracted to June 30, some for much longer. If I feel we need to stick around for longer to work on stuff, we will do that.
"We’ve had some exciting games but I didn’t enjoy coming off the pitch against Blackburn, there were a few boos and frustrated fans – rightly so.
"We shouldn’t turn up for a derby and get rolled over 4-1.”