League One Playoff Final 2015: Date, Start Time, Live Stream and Preview
Having suffered the agony of missing out on automatic promotion by just two points, Preston North End will look to finish the job against Swindon Town in the League One Playoff Final.
The match pits Preston against the team that finished fourth in English football's third tier. Yet 10 points actually separated Swindon from their rival.
Town's task could be tougher still considering Preston are likely to be at full strength for the big game.
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Here are the schedule and viewing details, followed by a preview:
Date: Sunday May 24
Start Time: 5:30 p.m.
Live Stream: Sky Go and BBCSport.co.uk/Football (web updates)
Preview
Swindon's biggest problem concerns the fitness of skipper Nathan Thompson. The influential right-back is battling to overcome a slight hamstring tear, per Sky Sports.
Manager Mark Cooper needs Thompson available. Not only is the 24-year-old vital for rallying the players on the pitch, he's also a key attacking outlet from the right flank.
Like most full-backs in the modern era, Thompson is blessed with a tireless engine. He simply never stops facilitating quick transitions from defence to attack.
But Cooper will really look to 22-year-old dynamic midfield Massimo Luongo to stamp his authority on the game. The Australian is a box-to-box battler with a real eye for goal.
In fact, Cooper thinks his team needs this win in order to keep star players such as Luongo in the fold. The gaffer made clear his desire to keep the core of his squad together during a recent interview with BBC Points West (h/t BBC Sport).
Luongo, who is a former Tottenham Hotspur academy prospect, is already drawing interest from the Premier League. Leading the way is ex-Spurs boss, now current Aston Villa chief, Tim Sherwood, per the Daily Mail's Laurie Whitwell.
Luongo has previously admitted finding the transfer talk surrounding him a distraction, per an interview with Fox Sports Australia's David Weiner. Cooper needs his talisman in the middle to be fully focused on the task at Wembley.
The bigger distraction is likely to be among a Swindon defence trying to cope with a prolific Preston strikeforce. Complementary duo Jermaine Beckford and Joe Garner lead the way.
The latter is the deadliest scorer in the division this season, according to the Sky Sports' stat pack. The same source details just how in-form this tandem is headed into Preston's biggest game of the season: "Preston’s last 11 goals have been scored by their in-form strikers. Garner has six goals in his last six games for Preston, while Beckford has five in five."
Beckford played for North End boss Neil Grayson with Leeds United and is certainly lethal at this level. He has the pace to stretch any defence.
By contrast, Garner is more of a bullish centre-forward who's a constant menace in the air, although his instincts in the box are excellent. Together, this partnership causes havoc.
Both strikers will hope Scottish schemer Paul Gallagher is on form. A talented, yet inconsistent creator, Gallagher has the technical quality to make a difference in a close game.
Along with Garner, he is bidding to end a nine-match failure to win promotion from the playoffs for Preston, per the Lancashire Telegraph.
Predicted Score: Preston 2-1 Swindon
Grayson's men just have too much power and pace in forward areas for Swindon to contain. If Gallagher provides the guile, the Lilywhites will finally snap their playoff jinx and win the right to play Championship football next season.
