Preston 2 West Brom 3 - Report and pictures

Jay Rodriguez and Dwight Gayle both added to their considerable tallies with goals of quality, but it was a fortuitous own goal two minutes after Preston had levelled in the second half that proved decisive.

Considering the league's leakiest defence met its deadliest attack, perhaps there was always destined to be goals in this fixture, but the goalless first half failed to live up to expectation.

Preston were bottom at the start of the day after picking up just two points from their previous seven league games, but for large parts of the game it didn't look like two teams at either end of the table.

However, Albion's strikeforce can blow the best of them away in this league, and they did it again at Deepdale with first Rodriguez and then Gayle netting at either end of the second half.

Thanks to Middlesbrough's draw away at Hull, it was enough to lift them to the top of the table.

Darren Moore made two changes to his team, replacing Chris Brunt and the injured Matt Phillips with Tyrone Mears and Gareth Barry, who have a combined aged of 72.

It was Mears's first league start of the season and came on his return to Deepdale, 12 years after leaving Preston.

Sam Johnstone was returning to his hometown club who he helped win promotion out of League One in 2015 during a successful loan spell from Manchester United.

Jake Livermore, who was made captain by Moore for this game, lost possession to Ryan Ledson in a dangerous position early on, but Ahmed Hegazi blocked Callum Robinson's resulting effort.

With four goals from his last five starts, Robinson was in as red-hot form as Albion's strikers.

But it was the Baggies defenders who threatened first when Ahmed Hegazi headed Harvey Barnes's deep corner back across goal seven minutes in.

Kyle Bartley looked like he'd scored when he diverted it goalwards but Chris Maxwell pulled off a lightning-quick reaction save to deny him from point-blank range.

Alex Neil had matched Albion up with a back three, which allowed the hosts to press the Baggies' own backline - and it nearly gave them an early lead.

Eleven minutes in Ahmed Hegazi made a rare mistake when he gave away a bizarrely cheap corner with a misjudged backpass to Johnstone, and Ledson cracked the post from the edge of the box after the resulting delivery had bounced out to him.

Maxwell was soon called into action again up the other end though after a neat passing move up the pitch ended with with Livermore slipping Harvey Barnes through on goal.

The Preston keeper rushed off his line quickly and saved well, but it was clear in these early stages why there had been 19 goals in the hosts's last four league games.

But after a round of applause from both sets of fans on the 18th minute for missing student and Albion fan Thomas Jones, the chances dried up.

Preston were growing in confidence, but lacked quality in the final third, and apart from a corner when Jordan Storey found the side netting, neither team threatened too much for the rest of the half.

Albion were struggling to get Barnes on the ball, and they lacked presence down the right-hand side with Phillips out. Mears was not the same outlet and Dawson didn't seem to trust him.

Shortly before the half-hour mark the home fans ambitiously called for a red card after Kieran Gibbs wrestled the ball away from Darnell Fisher to take a throw-in but he was only shown yellow.

Ben Pearson was mopping up play in defensive midfield, and had Preston had more quality in the final third, they'd have been ahead by half-time.

It didn't look like a first half between teams at either end of the table, but whatever Moore said to his team at half-time, it worked.

The Baggies were much better after the break, and zipped the ball around with purpose before taking the lead three minutes into half.

After working the ball to Livermore on the right hand side, the midfielder clipped an inviting cross from deep into the box.

Rodriguez got in front of his man expertly before guiding a header into the top right corner.

That breathed life into the Baggies who threatened again not long after with a move that involved two backheels, but Barry's cross evaded Gayle at the far post.

The 3,300 Albion fans who had packed out the Bill Shankley Kop were enjoying themselves, but the hosts responded well and Brandon Barker fizzed a low shot from 25 yards out inches past Johnstone's post.

But when the Baggies kept the ball on the deck, Preston struggled to contain them, and just after the hour mark they carved their hosts open when Mears drove in off the flank and fizzed a ball into Rodriguez.

The goalscorer played it round the corner to his strike partner first time, and Dwight Gayle rounded Maxwell before being tripped, but Albion's perennial penalty-winner was flagged offside.

Preston had a more legitimate shout for a penalty shortly after that though when Ben Pearson's gorgeous ball in behind found Alan Browne's run.

He got the wrong side of Kyle Bartley before going down in a tangle of legs but nothing was given.

That lifted the home side, and in the 71st minute, they had drawn level through Hughes's free-kick after Gayle had given it away on the edge of the box.

The Preston man bent his low shot around the wall and into the far corner, wrong-footing Johnstone who thought he was going over the Albion defence.

But when you're down the bottom, you need a bit of luck to go your way and Preston's luck was out.

Two minutes later, Albion's lead was restored through extremely fortuitious circumstances.

Ninety-times out of a 100, Dawson's cross from the right would have been headed clear by Davies, but this time it bounced off his head and looped into the far corner.

Preston rallied again, and they made it tense until Gayle wrapped up the points with a fierce free-kick from 25 yards out two minutes from time.

The striker was standing over a central ball with Chris Brunt, but just when it looked like the midfielder would take it, Gayle whipped a shot into the top corner for his sixth goal of the season.

That put a gloss on the scoreline, because in reality, it was much closer than that, so when Alan Browne grabbed a late consolation it was only fair.

Johnstone saved the initial deflected shot, but he could only palm it to the advancing midfielder, who set up a nervy ending.

But when Preston's long throw at the death was headed clear by Bartley, that was that.

The league's top scorers march on and with strikers like Rodriguez and Gayle, Albion are going to take some stopping this season.

Now they're top of the table, let's see how long they can stay there.

Key moments

07' Super save from Maxwell denies Bartley from point-blank range.

12' Ledson hits the post from the edge of the box after Hegazi gives away a cheap corner.

48' GOAL ALBION - Livermore clips in an inviting cross and Rodriguez gets in front of his man before heading it into the top corner.

66' Penalty shout for Preston when Browne and Bartley tangle legs in the box but nothing given.

71' GOAL PRESTON - Hughes whips in a low free kick from the edge of the box.

73' GOAL ALBION - Dawson's cross from the right hand side bounces off Davies' head and loops into the far corner.

88' GOAL ALBION - Gayle whips a free-kick into the top left corner.

90+5 GOAL PRESTON - Browne follows up a shot to convert from close range.

Man of the match

Ahmed Hegazi - Mopped up everything at the back with Craig Dawson. Apart from one mistake in the first half, he didn't put a foot wrong.

Position in the table

1st, with 20 points from 10 games.

Teams

Preston North End (5-3-2): Maxwell, Storey, Huntington (c), Davies, Fisher (Harrop 85), Pearson, Ledson, Browne, Hughes, Barker (Moult 75), Robinson (Barkhuizen 53).

Unused subs: Rudd, Earl, Clarke, Johnson.

Albion (3-4-1-2): Johnstone, Dawson, Hegazi, Bartley, Mears, Barry (Brunt 72), Livermore (c), Gibbs, Barnes (Robson-Kanu 72), Rodriguez, Gayle (Field 90+2).

Unused subs: Myhill, Adarabioyo, Edwards, Hoolahan.

Referee: T Harrington

Attendance: 14,099 (3,192 Albion)