The Peterborough Evening Telegraph
Can Posh stay out in front in the race for the League One title? Of course they can!
Posh - The reasons why Darren Ferguson could celebrate a third promotion from League One
Posh have smashed their way to top spot in League One, but can they stay there?
Of course they can! And here’s why...
A FEARSOME FRONT THREE
The ‘experts’ on Quest’s Football League show reckon it’s nigh-on impossible to stop Jonson Clarke-Harris, Sammie Szmodics and Siriki Dembele from wreaking havoc.
And they are right. One of them will usually score and the trio have been responsible for 11 of the 13 goals scored in the five-game February winning streak.
They now have 34 goals between them this season. No other club has three players able to match that combined tally.
Posh are the joint highest highest scorers in League One (49) alongside Grant McCann’s Hull City.
THE BEST BACKLINE FOR YEARS
Naturally those forward players garner most of the headlines, but it’s tough to remember a better defensive and goalkeeping unit in any of Darren Ferguson’s previous Posh sides.
Nathan Thompson and Frankie Kent are classy ballplaying defenders and skipper Mark Beevers has been a rock this season.
They’ve been so good, it’s been tough for a talented goalkeeper Christy Pym to show off his skills, but the number one’s concentration levels are so strong he is usually there to make a crucial stop when needed.
Posh have the second best goals against record (25 in 29 games) after Sunderland.
TAYLOR-MADE MIDFIELD
Jack Taylor is as good an allround midfielder Posh have seen since Grant McCann in his heyday.
He can pass like McCann, but he can also tackle like Dean Keates and finish like Lee Tomlin. Reece Brown complements Taylor well.
MANAGERIAL EXPERTISE
Ferguson has won two previous promotions from this division and both were hardearned and completed under extreme pressure.
You can’t buy experience like that.
Ferguson also has a League One promotion-winning skipper in Mark Beevers. Pressure will increase as the season draws to a close, but it’s tough to see ‘bottle’ or inexperience becoming an issue during the run-in.