THIS match was just a bridge too far for North End as a season which has been absolutely wonderful for everyone connected with Preston fell apart at the final hurdle.

Forget that final scoreline for in no way does it reflect the closeness of the match as the teams were only one goal apart with only two minutes left to play.

Preston had a great chance to take the lead after just five minutes as David Healy sprinted clear down the right to provide a perfect cross for Jon Macken but the North End striker headed too close to Matt Clarke in the Bolton goal.

Bolton settled down after a shaky start and went in front after 14 minutes with a powerful 25 yard drive from Gareth Farrelly that took a deflection off Mark Rankine wide of David Lucas into the bottom corner.

North End were now under pressure and David Lucas was called upon to make important saves from Dean Holdsworth and Kevin Nolan.

It was a completely different performance from Preston in the second half as they brought the game to Bolton looking for an equaliser and Mark Rankine had a good chance on the right of goal but his powerful shot went wide.

Then came an important moment that left the Preston fans in despair. Jon Macken set up a fine chance for David Healy, back came the right boot and an explosive shot was on the way into the corner of the net until Clarke made a brilliant save to push the ball around the post.

Preston never stopped trying and only some excellent defending by Colin Hendry and Gudni Bergsson kept the Deepdale side out.

With two minutes remaining, Preston were caught on the break and Michael Ricketts sprinted clear to knock in number two.

Ricardo Gardner sealed the match two minutes into stoppage time as he ran clear from just inside the Preston half way line to score a goal of quality and that was the match over.

The Preston supporters gave their team a tremendous ovation on the final whistle as a season of great excitement came to an end.

North End achieved much more than was ever anticipated at the start of the season and they will come back stronger next season after this experience.

After such a sparkling season, several players were candidates for the player of the season vote but at the end of the day the nod has just to go to Graham Alexander.