Laird hails squad strength

Scott Laird believes Preston's impressive pre-season results epitomise the strength in depth in Simon Grayson's ranks.

North End held Premier League newcomers Leicester to a 1-1 draw on Saturday, just four days after they had come from behind to beat last season's Sky Bet Championship runners-up Burnley at Deepdale. Grayson made seven changes from the midweek win over the Clarets and, just as they had done in that game, they conceded first with Liam Moore brilliantly volleying in off the post from distance. However, the Lilywhites' final pre-season contest would end in a draw as Tom Clarke nodded home an equaliser 12 minutes into the second period. "When Premier League opposition come to your gaff and you put on a positive display and get a positive result, it's brilliant," utility-man Laird said in quotes published on North End's official website. "I think this pre-season has given us some very good results against some very good opposition. "You can see the depth in the squad this week. We started with an almost entirely different team to the one that started on Tuesday, and you saw how the lads were able to carry it on. "It breeds positivity around the squad and it was great to see other lads coming in and taking their chances to impress the gaffer ahead of next week. "You've got to be at the top of your game all the time, or else you're not going to keep your place in the team. It's great for PNE as a whole if only lads who are at the top of their game are playing. "I'm definitely happy with the standards we've set. It has been a very good pre-season - a tough pre-season, but we've done some very good fitness work and got some great results, so now we've got to carry that on into the season."