EVANS: JACK’S JUST THE BEST!
STEVE Evans hailed Jack Marriott as the finest goalscorer he has worked with after he got Peterborough out of jail with a 98th-minute leveller at fellow play-off contenders Rotherham.
The Posh man struck to net his 30th goal of a stellar debut season at London Road, cancelling out a second-half effort from Millers substitute Caolan Lavery that looked to have secured the points.
“I think, in fairness to us, we’ve probably played our best football in those final eight minutes of injury-time,” said Evans.
“We’re disappointed with that and then our marking from a set play leads to their goal, and we can’t be moaning about the decision if you don’t defend the second phase.
“They probably should have got a second as we had to throw caution to the wind but the one thing this team has is character.
“We also have simply the best goalscorer I’ve ever worked with in Jack Marriott, and we got the point.”
Meanwhile, Rotherham boss Paul Warne defende his team after dominating for large periods, only to concede the equaliser late on.
Warne said: “I thought it was edgy in the first half but we were dominant in the second half and thought we had done enough to win the game but 1-0 is never enough and numerous times this season, we’ve conceded late goals.
“I’m not disappointed with the performance.
“They’ve done exactly what I asked them to do and we’ve dealt with the threat of [Marcus] Maddison and Marriott until the 98th minute.
“I’m pretty pleased, even though it is a results business.”
Inside seven minutes, the hosts should have been in front as a delightful flick from David Ball set Anthony Forde free but the onrushing Posh goalkeeper Conor O’Malley was quick to thwart the danger.
A fast-paced match produced chances for both sides as Joe Mattock’s shot was palmed away and Ball could not get enough contact to steer home from Matt Palmer’s cross.
Posh’s Marriott had the best chance of the half as Maddison found the striker free in the box but his shot was saved by goalkeeper Marek Rodak as the half ended in stalemate.
The second half saw the Millers take control, with Lavery firing wide and that proved to be just a taster as on 68 minutes, a whipped-in free-kick fell to Lavery in the six-yard box and he fired home for a deserved lead.
With the clock running down, Marriott worked himself into space to fire a 25-yard effort that looked destined for the top corner, only for Rodak to expertly palm the ball away.
Again, that proved to be just a warning as Marriott’s late goal, latching onto a ball across the box from Junior Morais and hooking under Rodak, was enough to snatch a point for Peterborough. ROTHERHAM (4-4-2): Rodak 6, Emmanuel 6, Ajayi 6, Vaulks 7, Mattock 6 (Ihiekwe 84 6), Forde 6, Palmer 7, Towell 5 (Williams 90 N/A), Newell 7, Ball 5 (Lavery 59 7), Smith 6 Subs not used: Price, Wood, Taylor, Yates PETERBOROUGH (3-5-2): O’Malley 6, Shepherd 5, Tafazolli 6 (Freestone 73 6), Taylor 6, Hughes 6, Forrester 5, Grant 6, Lloyd 5 (Ward 56 6) Maddison 6, Cooper 5 (Morais 51 6), Marriott 7. Subs not used: Bond, Da Silva Lopes, Doughty, Anderson