Posh on a roll

Peterborough United are thriving under the pressure of a League One play-off push.

That’s the verdict of Posh boss Darren Ferguson who has been impressed by his players’ response to a losing run that had appeared to scupper their chances of a top-six finish.

Posh lost three games on the bounce at the beginning of March, but they’ve now responded with a run of three straight wins on the back of three clean sheets.

A 1-0 win at Blackpool last weekend courtesy of a fine finish from in-form Marcus Maddison was the most impressive win of the lot and it kept Posh in touch with sixth-placed Doncaster.

Posh remain five points behind Doncaster, but have a game in hand ahead of the busy Easter programme.

“There’s a lot of pressure at this time of the season,” Ferguson stated. “Every team going for promotion will be feeling it and whoever copes best will be successful.

“We have done well to bounce back from a poor run and it’s just as well we did as Doncaster have also been in great form.

“We are both fighting for one place and all we can do is keep winning and hope they slip up. If we display the same sort of togetherness and spirit we showed at Blackpool we will have a chance.

“It’s always a tough game up there, but we were worthy winners. The only downside was not taking any more of the chances we created just to take some of the pressure off.

“But collecting the three points was all that mattered. I know the Doncaster players would have come into the dressing room after their game and they would have been disapppinted we had won again.

“Defensively we were very strong and the clean sheet was crucial as we are always likely to score.

“Marcus Maddison has really hit some form. His quality has never been questioned in his five years or so at the club, but whereas he would deliver a 9/10 performance one week and a 5/10 performance the following week he’s consistently at 7/10 at the moment which is what I prefer.

“Marcus is playing with a smile on his face and he’s working hard for the team, but it’s not been a one-man show by any means.

“Partnerships are clicking. Ryan Tafazolli and Rhys Bennett have been very good together at the back and Louis Reed and Alex Woodyard have combined well in midfield.

“Alex has a great attitude. I left him out for a couple of games, but his attitude stayed very positive.

“He’s very good at pressing the ball so with Louis comfortable sitting in front of the back four Alex has been able to get further forward and cause problems for the opposition.”

Skipper Woodyard has also praised his teammates for their recent form.

“It’s starting to click now,” Woodyard said. “Three clean sheets and three wins in a row is testament to the hard work we’ve done and the togetherness we have in the squad. We had a poor run before the current run and as players we had to take responsibility which we did.

“The coaches and manager had done all they could so it was up to us to sort it out and the response has been excellent.

“It’s hard to play at Blackpool. It’s a long journey, the pitch is not the best and they are a good side who had a chance of the play-offs themselves. It was a case of who wanted it more winning the battle.

“And as a team we were very good. As always it was about keeping the ball out of our net because we have so much quality up top we are always likely to score.

“We have proper players up there. Siriki Dembele, Marcus Maddison, Lee Tomlin and Ivan Toney are all quality footballers.”

Captain Alex Woodyard has impressed the Posh boss.

Centre-back Ryan Tafazolli was outstanding for Posh at Blackpool.

Alex Woodyard: “The players had to take responsibility for results.”

Marcus Maddison celebrates the only goal of the game.