Ipswich Town left it late to rescue a point against Preston North End on a day where they lost further ground on the Championship automatic promotion places.

Jack Clarke scored from the spot in the 92nd minute to earn a late draw for the hosts, but Middlesbrough's win against Norwich and Hull's win at Blackburn means they end the day in fourth place and seven points off second spot.

Coming into the trip to Portman Road, Preston had failed to score in their past four games, yet they dominated much of the encounter and deservedly led through Lewis Gibson's tap-in.

Pol Valentin conceded a late spot-kick in the lead up to Clarke's goal but there was late controversy as Clarke appeared to slip in the process of taking his penalty, yet referee John Busby judged that he had not touched the ball more than once.

Paul Heckingbottom's side had the better of the action in the first half, with Daniel Jebbison twice going close, first when his shot was well blocked by the Ipswich defence, and again when he struck wide of the mark.

Ipswich came into the match off the back of four wins from their past five, however they were defeated by Sheffield United last time out, and they struggled to gain traction against the Lilywhites.

They fought back, however, when Wes Burns teed up Darnell Furlong, but his right-footed effort was nudged away by the Preston back line.

The visitors continued to threaten, with Ipswich keeper Christian Walton having to stay alert to deny Gibson's volley before the break.

In the second half, Preston maintained their momentum, with Alfie Devine's lofted effort going over the crossbar, while Jordan Thompson also went close with a long-range drive.

The breakthrough came with less than 20 minutes remaining as Gibson prospered from a corner and coolly tapped in from three yards out - but there was more drama to come.

Clarke was brought down in the box and duly dispatched his spot kick, awarded despite Preston's protests, as the hosts avoided a second consecutive defeat and kept in the fight for an immediate return to the Premier League.

Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna told BBC Radio Suffolk:

"It was a tough challenge. They came today with a gameplan, they defended really deep, put an extra body in midfield, which they don't usually do, and they made it really hard for us to break them down.

"We did some good things, we came close a few times but we didn't quite do enough or execute enough. We need to keep working on it.

"We didn't quite manage to counter enough throughout the game. Daniel Jebbison was a big threat with his running and then they scored their goal from a set play which was a bit lucky as well, to be honest, in terms of how it fell, but we didn't defend it well enough.

"After that I thought the reaction from the team and the stadium was really good."

Preston North End boss Paul Heckingbottom told BBC Radio Lancashire:

"The result is a shame, but the performance was good and strong. Sometimes it goes against you. For the majority of the game I felt we were comfortable, regardless of the players they've got and how well coached they are.

"I felt that we controlled when they had the ball and after the first five minutes we did carry our threat and I felt that threat grew in the game.

"That's the way it goes. You know you're going to have big spells to defend, especially as the game wears on and Kieran is throwing more attacking players on.

"It's frustrating and a shame. I don't think anyone could begrudge us if we'd got the three points there because it was really well done and a big performance, but we didn't manage to do it."