Preston fight: Jermaine Beckford & Eoin Doyle fined, fans to be refunded

Eoin Doyle (left) and Jermaine Beckford (right) were pulled apart after coming to blows in the 90th minute

Preston will repay fans who travelled to Saturday's Championship defeat at Sheffield Wednesday from fines issued to Eoin Doyle and Jermaine Beckford.

The two North End strikers were sent off near the end of the 2-1 loss at Hillsborough for fighting each other as their side chased an equaliser.

Supporters who made the trip can claim back the cost of their match ticket.

The club have also confirmed that they will not be appealing the red cards and subsequent three-match bans.

Preston manager Simon Grayson told the club website: "The fans who travelled to Sheffield Wednesday were let down by the actions of Jermaine Beckford and Eoin Doyle.

"It is only right that the fines imposed on the players are used to refund the cost of the ticket money for the fixture.

"It has been made very clear to the players and the squad as a whole that this behaviour is not acceptable by any employee of Preston North End.

"A swift and strong response was important, however, it has now been dealt with and the matter is closed."

The two players have also issued a public apology for their actions.

In a joint statement, they said: "Our behaviour was not acceptable in any walk of life, let alone on a football pitch.

"We let down the management, our team-mates and most importantly the supporters, who had spent a lot of money to support the team.

"We have apologised to the manager, the staff and our team-mates and hope that the supporters accept our total remorse for the incident.

"It is our intention to now put this behind us and to give our all for the benefit of Preston North End going forward."

How did the fight start?

With Wednesday temporarily down to nine men following Fernando Forestieri's sending off and Will Buckley off the field receiving treatment to a shoulder injury, Preston had been in with a chance of levelling the game after Doyle had pulled a goal back.

But Beckford took exception to Doyle's decision to pass to Marnick Vermijl, who shot over the bar in the 90th minute.

The pair clashed and had to be pulled apart by team-mates before both were sent off.

How did the manager react?

Speaking to BBC Radio Lancashire after the game, Grayson said: "You expect it in the playground between four or five-year-olds, not from two professionals who've been in the game a long time.

"They've let themselves down, but that's the least of it.

"They've let our supporters down who've travelled here, and ultimately cost us the potential of getting a point or maybe three points. At 11 against 10, we were on top and we had them.

"For something like that to happen is embarrassing. It's a joke, it's a disgrace."