Peterborough United boss has returned to 2011 for pointers towards play-off success

That star-studded team had also finished fourth in League One before winning promotion to the Championship. That team had also finished as top scorers in League One before adding seven more goals in three play-off matches.

That team also played an exciting brand of attacking football, but they have also shown the current team how to navigate the perils of play-off football.

Posh beat MK Dons 4-3 on aggregate in the semi-final after losing the first leg 3-2 and then saw off Huddersfield 3-0 in the final at Old Trafford.

"That team kept clean sheets in the semi-final second leg and in the final and that could key again this time around,” Ferguson said.

"Play-off football is special. There’s something about them that gives you a real buzz as well as butterflies in the stomach and I wouldn’t want it any other way. I’ve been through them a few times now and people still talk about 2011.

"We had two great semi-final games against MK Dons. We started off well at their place and then lost our way until we got a break late on. But the second leg performance was one of the best I’ve seen from one of my teams. We were completely dominant and we also dominated the final.

"It helped having the semi-final second leg at home which we have this season, but you still have to perform on both nights. The fans can play a part and fair play to our club for reducing the prices for the home leg which to me suggests we will get a full house and that could be important.”

Posh played the semi-final first leg at home to Sheffield Wednesday last season and delivered a near-perfect display in winning 4-0, but the Owls, helped by an incredible Hillsborough atmosphere, overturned the deficit to win the second leg 5-1 to advance to Wembley after a penalty shoot out.

“There are still some players here from that night,” but it won’t be a factor now. “Something like that is never a good thing, but in the long run it could work in our favour. I started re-building from that night. I still hadn’t decided my own future at the point, but I did that night as there was no way I could leave the club after that.

"We shouldn’t forget how well we performed in the first leg though. It was an incredible home performance. It was almost perfect as we should have won by more.”