Posh went into this match with new right-back Jason Naismith captaining the first-half side as the hosts kicked off and it was the hosts that had the first chance of the match. The chance for St Neots captain Knight didn’t trouble the new Posh goalkeeper though.
The first chance for Posh once again landed at the feet of Siriki Dembele, who is looking to add to his four goals in three matches. His effort was saved by Swan before the keeper kept out new loanee Jason Cummings.
Dembele started the next move by Posh after winning the ball in his own half before setting George Cooper away down the wing to cross to Naismith. Unfortunately, the header went sailing over the top of the goal.
In recent seasons we’ve seen players wearing the captain’s armband affected by the added pressure that comes with it but Naismith seems to be thriving as he then went storming down the wing before cutting the ball back to Cooper but the midfielder’s effort went wide.
Williams then had a chance to open the scoring for St Neots but his effort also went wide of the target.
Posh won a couple of corners, firstly from Dembele and then from a deflected Matty Godden shot. Cummings met the second corner with his head but he couldn’t keep his header down. He then created the next opportunity for Posh as he cut inside onto his left foot but his shot was gathered well by Swan.
After a short drink break, it was Posh again who won another corner after Cooper had his shot tipped round the post. The home woodwork was then smashed by a Ryan Tafazolli shot from just inside the penalty area before winning yet another corner via Naismith. Naismith next set up Godden but his header was saved by Swan once more.
Posh kept knocking on the door and came close once more when Dembele released midfielder Mark O’Hara but as he flicked the ball around the advancing keeper, the ball was cleared by a St Neots defender.
Despite pressing the home side constantly in the first-half, a combination of missed chances and saves by the home side left the score goalless!
Half-time: St Neots 0-0 Peterborough United
Posh kicked off the second-half by winning a corner straight away after good work down the left by Danny Lloyd. Midfielder Louis Reed provided the corner which met Lloyd’s head but it didn’t trouble the home keeper.
Posh finally got on the scoresheet after just three minutes via an own goal from Parr. Reed played in youngster Matty Stevens whose shot was saved by Swan but unfortunately for the home side, the ball then hit Parr and found its way into the net!
A similar effort ten minutes later saw teenager Morgan Penfold complete an identical move as he taps the ball past the keeper before slotting it into the empty net for goal number two of the match and the transfer listed players second goal in two matches.
It was two youngsters that combined for the third goal a couple of minutes later as defender Sam Cartwright played in an excellent ball for Stevens to score his third goal of pre-season. Stevens almost doubled his goal tally in the match with an overhead kick but his effort was cleared off the line. He then held the ball up well before feeding Reed whose shot fails to trouble the keeper as it flies over the bar.
Stevens is playing well and must be giving Steve Evans questions over whether he should be loaned out next season or whether he could become a useful squad member.
It was so near yet so far for Stevens as he gets the ball in the net again via a cross from left-back Colin Daniel but the goal was ruled out for offside. He wasn’t to be denied with his next effort which came from a cross by Joe Ward this time. Stevens‘ header was powered into the back of the net for goal number four.
Will Stevens try to claim that first goal and in so doing so claim a hat-trick?
Full-time: St Neots 0-4 Peterborough United
Attendance: 471
Posh First-Half:
Chapman (1)
Naismith (2), Yorwerth (4) Tafazolli (5), Denton (3)
Cooper (7), Woodyard (6), O’Hara (8), Dembele (11)
Godden (9), Cummings (10)
Posh Second-Half:
O’Malley (25)
Cartwright (14), Baldwin (15), Bennett (16), Daniel (17)
Ward (18), Reed (19), Trialist (20), Lloyd (21)
Penfold (22), Stevens (23)
Vital View
Having seen St Neots comfortably beaten by the likes of MK Dons and Cambridge United, we were certainly expecting to see a bit of a goal-fest especially when we saw the first-half team sheet. The starting eleven named for this match certainly looked like they were the ones currently in possession of the Posh shirts waiting on the opening day of the season so it was disappointing to see them go into the break goalless.
They did create many chances and forced many corners but they either fluffed their lines or were denied by an inspired 45 minutes of goalkeeping by the St Neots keeper.
You still can’t read too much into this especially as Matty Godden has missed the last couple of games with a knock and his strike partner, Jason Cummings, was making his debut for the club having signed on loan just 24 hours earlier.
The second half saw Posh turn their dominance into goals as young strike partners Matty Stevens and Morgan Penfold earned Posh the win. Stevens, especially, is showing some of the potential he has so could Evans take a punt on keeping him in the first team next season instead of shipping him out on loan. Regardless of that potential, he would probably be better off seeking a loan to a League Two side instead of sitting on the bench getting very little game time at Posh.
Posh will now set off for a week in Portugal which includes a couple of games during that time which will provide more questions to the team and it will be interesting to see how they cope.
