Preston North End once snubbed 26-cap England international - It'll hurt them forever | OneFootball

Preston North End will always wonder what could've happened had they pursued their 2011 transfer interest in Jamie Vardy

Preston North End’s 11-year stint in the second tier of English football came to an end in 2011, when Phil Brown could not keep them in the division.

The Lilywhites finished 22nd in the Championship under the former Hull City boss, who had taken over in January of that year from the sacked Darren Ferguson

The Lancashire outfit were hoping he could steer the club back from League One at the first attempt after a busy summer, which saw seven fresh faces arrive at Deepdale - which included the return of veteran Graham Alexander.

However, he was dismissed by December with the team struggling for consistent form, and the club ultimately finished 15th in the table in an underwhelming season for supporters - could a striker that Brown snubbed that summer have been a difference-maker?

Phil Brown’s Jamie Vardy regret

Action Images

Remarkably, one option Preston explored in the summer of 2011 was for Halifax Town striker Jamie Vardy.

The Lilywhites were reportedly interested in a deal for the 24-year-old, who had impressed at a non-league level in the previous campaign, striking 23 times in the Northern Premier League for the Shaymen after being taken from Stocksbridge Park Steelers the year before.

However, a deal never materialised for Vardy to jump from the National League North to League One, and he ultimately ended up signing for Fleetwood Town instead, who were in the National League at the time.

Brown will surely always regret his decision to not pursue a deal for Vardy, given the success he went on to enjoy as a player in the years that followed.

Preston North End's 2011 striker options may have closed door to Jamie Vardy deal

Action Images

Preston went into the 2011/12 campaign with all of Iain Hume, Neil Mellor and Jamie Proctor to choose from as their forward options, and all three played together when fit at the start of the season, and scored 13 goals between them in the opening nine matches.

For the time, this was a solid trio to have going into a season in League One, which explains the decision to not pursue a deal for Vardy, who had yet to prove himself at that level.

However, in the end, they combined for a total of just 20 goals between them, with Mellor suffering a season and career-ending knee injury, which really didn't help matters.

With Brown sacked and Graham Westley taking over Preston earned just 54 points, 19 adrift of sixth-placed Stevenage, and were closer to the relegation zone than the play-offs, coming 11 clear of Wycombe Wanderers in 22nd.

The Lancashire outfit scored a total of 54 goals in 2011/12, which ranked 16th among the 24 teams in the division - could adding Vardy in the summer of 2011 have helped that stat improve?

Jamie Vardy’s Fleetwood Town move proved to be a success

Action Images

Vardy instead signed for Fleetwood Town in the summer of 2011 in a £150,000 deal - a big sum for the top level of non-league, but it provide a massively beneficial move for both parties.

The striker contributed 31 goals and 13 assists in the National League, with the Cod Army winning the title in the process, winning promotion to League Two for the very first time.

This caught the attention of Leicester City, who pushed to sign Vardy in the following summer, and did just that in an initial £1 million deal, and the King Power Stadium became his home for the next 13 years.

While Preston had to wait until 2015 to return to the second tier, Vardy had already helped the Foxes to the Premier League by then, and of course went on to win the Premier League with them and became an England international too.

Preston North End will always wonder what if with Jamie Vardy

Action Images

Vardy achieved tremendous success at the King Power Stadium, including a 2014 promotion to the Premier League, the 2016 title and the 2021 FA Cup, as well as another promotion back to the top flight in 2024.

Not only that, but he became a regular England international, competing at the 2016 European Championship and the 2018 World Cup.

Preston will always be left to wonder what could’ve happened had they instead pushed for his signature instead of Fleetwood - it would've been a huge jump in levels at the time, but he clearly had the ability.

There’s no telling just how far he could’ve taken the Lancashire outfit given what he went on to achieve, and it’s something they will always be left to regret.