The Preston boss clearly wasn’t having any of the hype surrounding Swansea’s celebrity investor
Preston North End boss Paul Heckingbottom claimed there was a ‘smell of weed’ in the tunnel during his side’s highly-anticipated clash with Swansea City.
Swans investor Snoop Dogg was in attendance for the clash at the Swansea.com Stadium on Tuesday night, with his arrival attracting a record home crowd, and a huge atmosphere ahead of kick-off.
Snoop was introduced to the Jack Army around 15 minutes before the start of the game, and did his part in geeing up the home crowd.
What unfolded was a surreal night that few in attendance will ever forget.
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However, visiting boss Heckingbottom clearly wasn’t all that fussed, and dismissed suggestions the hype around Swansea’s celebrity investor had an impact on the game.
Having seen his side go ahead through Daniel Jebbison in the 26th minute, the Lilywhites boss was frustrated by their inability to see the game out, with Liam Cullen coming off the bench to net a stoppage-time equaliser.
After it was suggested to him that his players were potentially walking into an ‘intense’ atmosphere, the North End boss said: “It wasn’t was it?
“It was quiet. We kept them quiet. That’s how we played. Our fans were the loudest.
“We only let them have their occasion at the very end by conceding.
“So that’s the frustrating thing.”
Asked if he felt the atmosphere was potentially different to other games, he added: “I can’t tell. It’s only different for people who are here every week, isn’t it? It’s not different for us.
“We don’t play at Swans every week, so it’s no different for us.
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“We go away to Ipswich the other week, they were at it, their fans were at it, and that was noise all game.
“It was just a game for us and we kept, I felt, everyone quiet until the end.
“I think just the smell of weed in the tunnel is the only thing where we realised something was different.”