LIAM EDWARDS stepped up his comeback from injury, lasting 45 minutes as Wanderers’ reserve side suffered a 3-0 defeat against Preston North End.

The defender has not featured for the Whites’ first team since January 2020 after suffering a serious knee injury.

Michael O’Neill, Joe Rodwell-Grant and Adam O'Reilly were all on target at the Euxton Training Ground.

Reserves manager Sam Hird was absent, with Mark Litherland leading the side.

The Whites named a young side featuring the likes of Mitchell Henry, Arran Pettifer and Max Conway, plus a trialist in goal.

Ex-Bolton forward Jamie Thomas was included in the Preston line-up, which also included Matthew Hudson, Matthew Hudson, Paul Huntington and Matthew Olosunde.

The first chance fell to Pettifer who sent an ambitious half volley over the bar inside the opening five minutes.

Edwards then made a vital block to keep out a goal-bound effort after Wanderers had failed to clear their lines.

Moments later, the Bolton goalkeeper did well to get a foot on Joe Blanchard’s dangerous header across goal.

And the trialist was again called into action to keep out Thomas’ dipping strike from the edge of the box.

Huntington sent a looping header narrowly wide of the post from the resulting corner after rising well at the near post.

At the other end, Sam Olawumi tried his luck from distance but the youngster failed to test Hudson.

The hosts took the lead just before the half-hour mark when O’Neill provided a simple finish after making a good run to get on the end of Olosunde’s low cross.

And Preston doubled their lead minutes later when Rodwell-Grant prodded home from close range after the Whites had failed to deal with Thomas’ out-swinging corner.

The forward was then denied by a fine stop by the Bolton goalkeeper from close range after the Whites were undone by another dangerous set-piece.

Wanderers made two changes at the break, with Noah Halford and Danny Jones replacing Edwards and Rio McEvoy.

The Whites nearly pulled one back early in the second half when Hudson made a smart stop to deny Henry before Matthew Tweedley was denied by the post on the rebound.

O’Neill then went close to a second after cutting in from the left wing but his effort hit a Bolton shirt and flew behind for a corner.

Inside the final 10 minutes, Henry found Olawumi on the edge of the box with a clever cut-back but his effort was blocked.

But in the final stages, Wanderers were dealt a cruel blow as O'Reilly's deflected effort sailed over the trialist and looped in.

And on the stroke of full-time, Rodwell-Grant's effort cannoned off the post after a mazy run. 

Preston: Hudson, Olosunde (Nevin), Coulton, Leigh (Lewis), Huntington, Blanchard, Holland-Wilkinson (Cross-Adair), O'Reilly, Rodwell-Grant, Thomas, O'Neill

Bolton: Trialist, Burgess, Conway, Sharples, Toure, Edwards (Halford), Olawumi, Tweedley, McEvoy (Jones), Pettifer, Henry