Toney nips in to give Fergie his first win

DARREN Ferguson didn’t enjoy his Peterborough side’s performance at Oxford – but said the three points were vital in re-establishing belief.

The victory at the Kassam Stadium, which sent Oxford back into the bottom four, was Posh’s first win under new manager Ferguson, who is in his third spell as manager at London Road.

The match looked to be heading for a stalemate until Ivan Toney was left unmarked at a free-kick in the 76th minute, quickly taken by Marcus Maddison, and Toney finished superbly with an angled shot for his 19th goal of the season.

Ferguson said: “It was quick thinking from Marcus and a superb finish from Ivan, too.

“It’s a big win for us, just getting that momentum back.

“We didn’t have enough of the quality we expect and that the players expect from ourselves.

“But the most important thing was to get that win.

“There’s still a lot for us to play for this season, and I think that performance in the second half from us showed that.”

Oxford created very little on a poor surface, although goalkeeper Conor O’Malley did save a long-distance effort from Cameron Brannagan.

Posh had been quick out of the blocks with Toney forcing Simon Eastwood to tip over his header from their first corner, before Jason Naismith smashed a drive against a post.

U’s boss Karl Robinson had some strong words for his players in the dressing room. Robinson said: “I was furious at half-time.

“We were ambling at times. There needs to be an intensity in our play or otherwise we’re not going to get anywhere.

“The players here have an arrogance that they think their talent will get them out of it.

“They’ll be in on Sunday – to see the facts behind that performance.”

Robinson was furious that one of his players completely lost concentration to leave Toney on his own for the goal.

“When people switch off then it doesn’t matter how you prepare,” he added.

“I thought we were the better team and were dominant, apart from the first five minutes.”