Keith Southern is relishing taking to the field at Deepdale tomorrow for a fixture that he says is 'extra special'.

The Seasiders' second-longest serving player has been instrumental to many a Blackpool performance down the years and is hoping to be so once again this weekend.

No stranger to the Derby, the midfielder admits that the fixture between Blackpool and Preston at the home of the Lilywhites always takes on extra significance.

"I think the Preston Deepdale game is extra special just for the fact that we take over 5,000 fans to an away game," he said. "The whole atmosphere surrounding the game is a little bit different than the home game - I'd be lying if I said it wasn't different than any other game."

Team talks aren't necessarily needed in the big local derbies, with self-motivation providing plenty of adrenaline and passion.

"If you can't raise your game and raise your level of performance for this then you shouldn't be in the game really," Southern insisted. "It's a fantastic occasion for both sets of fans in the area and it's a game that we need to win and they need to win, so there's a bit of added pressure with that as well.

"We've got to put our past weeks behind us and try and grind out a result."

The midfielder, who has scored his first two goals of the season in recent weeks, would love to get his third of the campaign - a winner - in the Lancashire derby, something that would rank above past achievements.

"It would mean everything. It would eclipse probably anything I've ever done at the club. The club means as much to me as any diehard fan really, it's the club that means the most to me - I've only been at two clubs - and I'm very proud to wear the shirt. Hopefully we'll do the area proud on Saturday."

With almost 5,500 Blackpool fans descending on Deepdale, there will be plenty of proud people in the stadium as well.