Nathan Jones will take charge of his 200th Luton Town game in all competitions when the Hatters take on Preston North End tomorrow afternoon.
In front of 2,000 Town supporters, Nathan and his team will look to build on the point against Coventry City midweek and hope to leapfrog Preston, with the sides currently level on 23 points. A Hatters win will be the 100th of the gaffer's Luton managerial career.
The Lilywhites beat Middlesbrough 3-0 on Wednesday to secure their second home win of the season and they are unbeaten in three matches.
The 2,000 'Band A' season ticket holders who will attend tomorrow's match have been emailed all of the essential instructions to ensure everyone's safety in the stadium. There is also a 'Covid-19 Return to Football' page containing all of these vital details in the 'Supporters' section of this website.
Please be aware that the online health questionnaire does not go live until the day of a match. Every person attending will need to be complete this by 11am.
Tomorrow's match is also our fixture dedicated to Stonewall's Rainbow Laces campaign, supporting LGBT inclusion in sport. You can play your part by visiting https://www.stonewall.org.uk/our-work/campaigns/rainbow-laces to support the campaign.
You can read all the details of the Hatters' role in this year's campaign, including some of our players taking contributing to an EFL video, by clicking here.
Mick Harford said:
(Please note these quotes are taken from Mick’s quotes post-Coventry on Tuesday night – you can watch the full version by clicking here)
On fans returning to the Kenny: “Absolutely thrilled, I take my hat off to them last week, they were brilliant against Norwich even though there was only 1,000 in there.
“They got behind the team and with 2,000 inside Kenilworth Road, it’s going to be brilliant and we need them, the team needs them and I just can’t wait to see them all back in there.
“A full Kenilworth Road makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, so we look forward to that at some point in the future, and hopefully put on a performance for those returning on Saturday."
On Preston’s threat: “Preston was Nathan’s first game back when he came back to the football club. They were a tough ask, Callum McManaman got a late goal and they played well on that day, we got a draw out of it.
“Good club, good team, good players, a real tough opposition we have been able to look at, myself and Nathan (going to Preston's game on Wednesday), so it’s another tough game in the Championship as always.”
Who?
Founded in 1880, Preston North End have plenty of honours to their name including winning the FA Cup twice in 1889 and 1938.
The Lilywhites have won Division Three twice in their history and Division Two four times. They were promoted via the play-offs in 2015 and have been in the Championship ever since.
The Manager – Alex Neil
Prior to going into management, Alex Neil played as a midfielder for Airdrieonians, Barnsley, Mansfield Town and Hamilton Academical up until 2013.
He then became player-manager with Hamilton, before joining Norwich City in 2015. During his first season he guided the Canaries to promotion via the play-offs, but they failed to remain in the top-flight and were relegated the following season.
In 2017 he became manager of Preston and has since achieved finishes of 7th, 14th and 9th in the last three seasons.
Main Threat – Scott Sinclair
Scott Sinclair is Preston’s top scorer this season with seven goals in the Sky Bet Championship and he has played in all bar one of their league matches thus far.
The 31-year-old joined the club in January following his departure from Celtic and is well known for his time with the Scottish champions, as well as Swansea City and Aston Villa having started out at Chelsea.
When and where?
Kick-off is 3pm at Kenilworth Road on Saturday 12th December.
Man in the middle?
The referee for tomorrow’s game is Jeremy Simpson – who last refereed the Hatters in the home defeat against Stoke City in October. He has taken charge of nine games in total this season, dishing out 28 yellows and three red cards.
Played before?
The two sides last met in Nathan Jones’ first match back in charge of the club for his second spell. The game at Kenilworth Road ended in a 1-1 draw after Callum McManaman's late equaliser cancelled out Sinclair's opener.
Follow the action
Season ticket holder iFollow access continues for all Saturday home league matches and midweek away fixtures, even for those who are attending the game in person.
Match passes for non-season ticket holders to watch the 3pm kick-off live on iFollow Hatters are now available to purchase by clicking the image at the foot of the page.
There will also be live commentary on BBC Three Counties Radio.
