Preston North End’s FA Youth Cup run ended with a 2-0 home defeat to Bury at Deepdale.
Second half goals from substitute Bright Amoateng and a second shortly after from Femi Sekiri gave former North End defender Ryan Kidd’s side a place in the last eight of the competition.
The Lilywhites’ Academy manager Nick Harrison had named an unchanged team from the one that thrashed Norwich City in the fourth round, with Ethan Walker having recovered from the knock that took him off early in the previous Deepdale tie.
And it was a bright start from the young Lilywhites. Five minutes in Walker picked up a clever ball from Jack Baxter, drove into the box and shot, but Sam Allardyce – grandson of his former North End defender namesake - did well to block and Louis Potts couldn’t get the rebound on target under pressure.
Potts was again involved shortly after holding up a long ball from Lewis Earl well and finding Walker, who pushed inside from the left before unleashing a low left-footed effort, but Bury keeper Mark Edwards-Williams got right behind it and holds on.
Kidd’s side’s first chance came just before the quarter hour mark as Seriki did well on the right-hand corner of the box for Bury, bursting into space and shooting across goal, but Lincoln McFayden got in a vital block to concede the game’s first corner.
Just before the half hour mark Jimmy Corcoran made an important save to deny Shakers skipper Jimmy Adams, but the follow up was passed back to him three yards out and he picked it up giving the visitors an indirect free kick six yards out, which Adams again took, but the PNE backline blocked superbly to keep the game goalless.
Just before the hour mark skipper Adam O’Reilly was hauled down 25 yards out, just to the right of the ‘D’. Walker lined up the free and curled it over the wall, but just over the left-hand corner of the bar as well.
But on 63 minutes the visitors went ahead. Substitute Amoateng had only been on the pitch four minutes when he collected the ball in the left corner of the box, drove inside and fired an arrowed ball right-footed into the bottom right hand corner.
And within two minutes they had doubled that lead. Amoateng this time turned provider, going down the right, to the byline, before cleverly pulling the ball back to the penalty spot to where Sekiri was well-placed to calmly stroke the ball into the empty bottom left corner of the goal.
Allardyce had a glorious chance to finish the game off, when the ball fell to him on the penalty spot unmarked, but the centre half shot tamely and Corcoran claimed low to his left.
Four minutes were added on, with O’Reilly and substitute Jolly both having efforts as the home side looked to mount a late comeback, but it was Bury who held on and booked a home quarter-final tie against Liverpool or Wigan Athletic.
PNE line-up: Corcoran, Simmons, Coulton, Baxter, Earl, McFayden, Dolan, O’Reilly (c), Potts (Brannigan, 77), Pollard (Jolly, 66), Walker. Subs not used: Ngongo, Cottam, McManus.
Bury line-up: Edwards-Williams, Hatton, Jones, Hulme, Allardyce, Shotton, Adams (c), Skinner, Brown (Amoateng, 59), Hill (Copping, 72), Seriki. Subs not used: Ondoa, Jones, Collins.
Attendance: 1,024
Referee: Mr A Bannister