Alfie Devine netted a brace to earn Preston North End a 3-1 win over Stoke City and keep their slim Championship play-off hopes alive.

Stoke had taken an early lead through Sorba Thomas, but they could not hold onto it, with a quickfire second-half double from Preston, who ended a four-match losing streak, putting the game out of their reach.

It took Thomas just four minutes to break the deadlock as he met Junior Tchamadeu’s floated cross with a first-time finish, with the bounce beating Daniel Iverson.

Devine then finished off a stunning counter-attack to restore parity 11 minutes later; after intercepting a Stoke long-throw, Devine ran half the length of the pitch before sending a composed finish past Tommy Simkin.

Preston began the second half on top, with Lewis Dobbin curling wide, though he soon turned provider, whipping a cross into the near post where Milutin Osmajic glanced his header in after 57 minutes.

And on the hour, Devine got his second, collecting Osmajic’s slotted pass to chip a wonderful finish over Simkin and into the back of the net.

Stoke almost pulled one back late on, but while Jesurun Rak-Sakyi’s looping shot was spilled by Iverson, the visitors could not profit, allowing Preston to move within six points of the play-off places.

THAT FEELS GOOD. #pnefc pic.twitter.com/PJJxYV9QII

— Preston North End FC (@pnefc) March 20, 2026

Data Debrief: Preston moving on up

Preston have leapfrogged Stoke in the table while moving from 17th to 12th, and avoided losing five games in a row in the same league campaign since the end of 2023-24.

It was a clinical performance from Paul Heckingbottom’s side, who scored with all three of their shots on target.

While it looks a fairly even game on the balance of things (both sides attempted 13 shots), Preston topped the expected goals (xG) battle 2.81 to 0.99 as Stoke struggled in front of goal.