IF Preston North End has a self destruct button, then the first team have become quite accustomed to pushing it of late.

Once again, two priceless points were thrown away at the death and the last chance of automatic promotion evaporated in this 1-1 draw.

The end of season play-offs now beckon and the run-out to the league programme has seen Preston drop from top of the table to now trying to hang on to fourth place.

There will, of course, be a searching examination of just what went wrong and where does the finger point, but this is neither the time nor the place.

That will come in the close season - and it will come even if North End are successful via the play-offs.

Here again, North End had a whole raft of goal-scoring opportunities yet, as each one came along, they were squandered in the May sunshine.

McKenna provided a wonderful cross to the far post, Harris came in behind the exposed County defence and his header crashed into the side netting.

Notts County played an offside trap that frequently caught Preston offside but it let them down when Appleton sent Harris clear.

The Preston striker ran on towards goal and the keeper came out to him, but with McKenna and Basham to his right in open space he lashed the ball well wide of the post.

County came into the match and twice had chances to take the lead.

Pearce played in a perfect cross to the penalty area, up went Redmile to send a strong header goalwards, but Lucas made a fine save.

Then North End were dragged all over the place at the back, Beadle raced through with only Lucas to beat and he looked a certain scorer until the Preston keeper made a first-class save to keep his effort out.

Preston missed another excellent chance when Gregan sent a great ball to Basham to put him clear on goal, but from eight yards he couldn't put the ball into the net and the Preston supporters groaned again.

The second half started with North End on the attack and Gregan hit a 30-yard rocket just wide.

Four minutes into the second half Preston at last broke the deadlock as Alexander, showing good skills out on the right, floated over a cross which dropped perfectly for Macken and he crashed the ball in from a narrow angle.

Basham should have gift-wrapped it all when he was sent clear with only Ward to beat but he tried to be too fancy with the finish and Ward saved well.

Appleton headed wide from McKenna's cross,then shot inches wide of the post and Harris too was only a fraction away from putting the match beyond County.

Macken shot high and wide from a good position, Basham sent a curler past the far post and so the entire catalogue of missed chances went on.

Then, in the closing minutes of normal time, not one Preston supporter could believe the next missed chance.

McGregor wrong-footed the County defence on the right of goal before hitting in a powerful shot which Ward couldn't hold and the ball rolled gently and invitingly to McKenna six yards out.

It was a simple tap-in and the crowd stood to sheer a goal. Amazingly, the Preston man lashed at the ball and sent it into the Town End supporters for a glaring miss. It proved costly.

One minute into the stoppage time Pearce sent a corner kick into a packed area, Redmile headed against the crossbar and Rapley knocked in the rebound.

Asked what his squad was feeling, David Moyes said: "They are not happy because I'm not happy and they know that they should have won. But we will battle on - we can still do it and we will give everything."

On the missed chances he said: "We had our chances, we didn't take them and they scored a late goal."

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