League leaders Peterborough United turn on the style against Port Vale
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Version 0 of 1. Entertaining with stylish football is sometimes more important than winning, according to the Peterborough chairman, Darragh MacAnthony, but at London Road the former is delivering the latter. “It’s Posh We Are” proclaimed several of the banners draped across the new stand approaching completion behind one of the goals, and there was indeed a certain strut about a performance that kept United at the top of League One. While it pleased the crowd, however, the crowd cannot have pleased the club, in terms of its size at least. Just over 6,000 to watch a team topping the division, on a day without competition from the Premier League or Championship, can only be disappointing, and should be a cause for reflection. A father bringing his son to the game was taken aback to find two seats in the stand cost £39; reducing the cost might, in the circumstances, have filled the ground for once. Had it done so, many might have come back, because not for the first time Darren Ferguson is building a young and talented side. The £5.5m realised by the sale of last season’s top scorer, Britt Assombolonga, to Nottingham Forest enabled him to bring in the former Newcastle United winger Marcus Maddison from Gateshead, the Hartlepool striker Luke James and the Middlesbrough defender Christian Burgess, which for an outlay of around £1.2m looks to have been outstanding business. The trickery and energy of Maddison, along with his fellow winger Jon Taylor, caught the eye, but Burgess was wonderfully composed on the ball in a team with an average age of 21 and a half. “He is going to be a player,” said Ferguson afterwards, with a smile. An early Vale shot that dribbled wide was hit by a player whom the programme confirmed to be one Michael Brown. A few minutes later the same individual got involved in an entirely unnecessary spat after a nasty tackle, confirming it was indeed the former Manchester City, Sheffield United, Tottenham, Fulham, Wigan, Portsmouth and Leeds United midfielder, at 37 less inclined to slide into man-and-ball tackles but still capable of a neat pass into space. Brown’s presence notwithstanding, it was quickly apparent the home team were by far the more potent on the ball. Vale goalkeeper Chris Neal did well to block Conor Washington’s volley, and James should have done better than turn the rebound over, but shortly after the half-hour Maddison was allowed to turn on to a throw-in and, from just inside the angle of the penalty area, guided a fine volley beyond Neal into the top corner. Vale worked hard to stay in the game – “We lost with our boots on for a change,” said their manager, Micky Adams – and might have done so if Mark Marshall had not completely missed his kick eight yards from goal. It was a useful reminder to Peterborough that they needed another, and after Burgess nearly turned in a corner, Taylor drifted a free-kick into the box and Kyle Vassell was the first of three unmarked players waiting to head the ball home. Jack Payne’s angled drive made it three after fine work by Washington, but, while irritated that Jordan Slew’s late reply took something of the shine off the result, Ferguson was happy enough. “A young squad is developing, the ground is being developed, the training ground is being developed, so the club is in a good place at the moment,” the manager said. “We do very well getting players who have started at big clubs but for whatever reason not made it first time around, and players like to come here because we have a reputation for improving them.” It is a reputation that looks likely to be enhanced this season. |