Today’s game between Preston North End and Burnley could be regarded as the oldest derby in the Football League. That’s because on the opening day of the first ever season of the oldest league in the world the Lilywhites tackled the Clarets at Deepdale. September 8^th 1888 was the date, 5-2 was the scoreline in North End’s favour.

It was a game that almost never happened due to the Burnley side arriving late to the ground, maybe there was traffic jams on the M65, but whatever happened it meant that the game did not kick-off until 3.50pm in the afternoon, by which time the rest of the Football League had already completed one half of football.

Six thousand patient fans awaited Burnley’s arrival and even though the Clarets were perhaps the favourites for the game, having won the previous 15 encounters, it was a game that was keenly anticipated.

Two minutes in and Fred Dewhurst etched his name into the history books of North End by becoming the club’s first ever league goalscorer. One minute later Jack Gordon made it 2-0 for Preston and it looked like a rout was on the cards. PNE put the visitors under intense pressure for the opening 15 minutes of the game and they were fortunate not to go further behind with Sandy Robertson and Dewhurst again going close. The Clarets finally clawed their way back into the game in 21 minutes when Gallacher scored a tap-in after good work from Keenan.

North End had a goal ruled out just before the break but in the second half Preston’s Jimmy Ross aka ‘Little Demon’ showed his class to hit two quickfire goals to make it 4-1. The more the game went on the more the Burnley defence became exposed and Fred Dewhurst completed his brace of goals to make it 5-1. A late goal for Burnley from Poland was little compensation as Major William Suddell’s team won the first of what would be a 27 game unbeaten run and hence the Invincibles were born.

It was a different story entirely 25 years later, PNE had not won any of their first nine fixtures of the 1913-14 campaign and confidence was at a low following promotion from the Second Division the year before.

Things looked to have gone from bad to worse when Hodgson put Burnley ahead with only two minutes on the clock, this despite PNE’s England international Joe McCall’s best efforts to stop the ball from crossing the line.

But McCall didn’t have legendary status for nothing and in front of 28,000 eager fans he turned the game on its head with same great craftsmanship. On 35 minutes he picked up the ball in the centre of the park and set off on a surging run right at the heart of the Burnley defence before delivering a ball towards Toward, the Preston striker turned and shot in one movement to level matters.

Still the game looked to be heading for a draw and with it PNE’s hopes of a first win of the season looked to have been dashed. But McCall was having none of it, with just seven minutes left the centre-half played a wonderful ball into the box and Barlow slotted home to make the final score 2-1 to Preston North End.

Sadly it would prove to be a false dawn for PNE and they would return to the Second Division after finishing second bottom of the table.

Twenty years later in the 1933/34 season both teams were languishing in the Second Division after some lean years in North Lancashire. But an early season double over the Clarets would lead to North End being promoted. In fact PNE would play Burnley twice and Blackpool once in the opening four fixtures of the season.

The first game against Burnley was at Deepdale, goals from future PNE boss Jimmy Milne, David Galloway and George Stephenson helped the Lilywhites to a 3-2 win. Then six days later Preston travelled to Turf Moor and inflicted a painful 4-1 defeat on their hosts, Stephenson got a brace this time with Frank Wilson and John Torbet weighing in with the other two.

The Clarets would not join Preston back in the top flight until after the Second World War but when they did return in the 1947/48 season they retuned in style. Cliff Britton’s Burnley side had beaten their local rivals 1-0 in a Christmas Day fixture with a last minute goal and they arrived at Deepdale aiming to clinch a record for undefeated away games one day later on Boxing Day. Fortunately Preston were having nothing of it, in front of 39,400 fans the Lilywhites won 3-2 thanks to a brace of goals from Andy McLaren and Harry Jackson grabbing the crucial third goal.

Fast forward 25 years and the sharp suits and brillcream had been swapped for big sideburns and flares as both teams were once again playing their football in the Second Division.

The 1972/73 campaign will be one that is remembered by Clarets fans for their promotion to the First Division but they arrived at Deepdale for the final game of the season still needing one more point to claim the Second Division title. But with QPR breathing down their necks they faced a PNE side who needed one point to ensure safety.

Burnley arrived at Deepdale to find that the pitch had been narrowed and watered heavily. And temporary PNE boss Frank Lord was taking no chances as he set an ultra-defensive formation packing defenders around goalkeeper Alan Kelly.

Surprisingly it was Preston who managed to score first when Alex Bruce slotted home on the stroke of half-time. Most of the 21,550 fans packed inside Deepdale erupted praying that this would be the goal that kept them in the division, they had suffered relegation at the hands of Blackpool three year earlier and to suffer the same fate again would have been too much. There would have been plenty of nails been bitten when Colin Waldron equalised just after the break but Lord’s team held on and kept their Second Division status whilst Burnley would march towards the top flight as Champions.