Peterborough United host their second pre-season friendly on Saturday as Craig Mackail-Smith returns to London Road with Brighton and Hove Albion.
Peterborough United -Vs- Brighton and Hove Albion
Venue: London Road
Date: 26th July, 2014
Kick-off: 15:00pm
Posh fans will be eagerly waiting to see Posh newcomers Jon Taylor, Erhun Oztumer, Kenny McEvoy, Michael Smith and Ben Alnwick for the first time at home this season but they will also be looking forward to return of legend Craig Mackail-Smith.
Mackail-Smith suffered a nightmare season after rupturing his Achilles tendon in March last year but he`s now fit and looking forward to the start of the season: “I`m getting there; I am having the odd little niggle and the physios are pulling me in and out of training, but I got through 65 minutes against Crawley and played three previous 45 minutes, so I`m pushing along nicely.
“I haven`t had a full pre-season in three years, so my aim is to get through everyday making sure that I am fit, sharp and ready to go by the start of the season.”
He`s looking to get more match time under his belt as he comes up against his former club: “I`m looking forward to going back there, as I had a special time at the club. Hopefully I can continue to get some more minutes on the pitch and push towards the start of the season.
“They are a good footballing team and like to pass the ball about. They`re quite a young side, so they`ll be very energetic and it`ll be up to us to put our game plan together.
“We need to make it a little bit tighter, create a few more chances and just work our way closer to the new season.”
The Posh match will the Seagulls fifth pre-season match. They started out with convincing wins over Lewes (5-0) and Partick Thistle (4-0) before Mackail-Smith gave Albion the lead over Real Betis but they eventually lost 3-1. Their last outing came at Crawley Town on Wednesday and had to come from behind after Collins John had given the League One outfit the lead after 15 minutes. Sami Hyppia`s men equalised after 72 minutes through Lualua.
Posh were expected to start off with the team that played the final 30 minutes of Tuesday`s 2-2 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers but three players have since signed for the club which may change Darren Ferguson`s thinking.
Goalkeeper Ben Alnwick and defender Michael Smith made permanent switches to London Road today [Friday, 25th July] while winger Kenny McEvoy has joined on a season-long youth loan from Spurs. All three can expect to play some part in the match.
Posh are unbeaten in pre-season so far after wins over Barnet (1-0) and S.C.Freamunde (4-2) before the draw with Wolves on Tuesday.
After Saturdays match, Posh have three matches remaining before the season kicks off at Rochdale. Daventry are the first opponents on Tuesday where it is expected a reserve side will battle it out for the Maunsell Cup before the main team face their third championship side of pre-season in Charlton Athletic. They then complete their pre-season the following Saturday when they travel to last seasons Conference Champions Luton Town.
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