A look at this month’s Championship fixtures which offer some hope for struggling Peterborough United

Posh picked up four points from five Championship games in August and four points from five Championship matches in September to leave them in the relegation zone after 10 matches.

Will October bring better results? With three of the five matches away from home and with Posh yet to pick up a point on their travels, it will be tough, but the PT remains optimistic!

Saturday, October 2

v Bristol City (home)

City have picked up nine of their 13 points away from home - they have yet to win at Ashton Gate - so their threat is obvious.

But they have injury concerns (striker Nahki Wells for one), they took part in an awful game at Millwall on Tuesday when they lost 1-0 to a penalty and manager Nigel Pearson will be absent as he’s self-isolating, so there’s a chance Posh could keep a third clean sheet in a row at home. They’ll surely show more ambition against a more modest team than they showed against Bournemouth so they could well nick this one and head into the international break on a high.

Forecast 1-0 win.

Saturday. October 16

v Middlesbrough (away)

Boro have been bad, but then they went and beat in-form Sheffield United 2-0 at the Riverside on Tuesday to lift them into the top half of the table. It was just a second win in five home matches though and newly-promoted Blackpool did win there last month. QPR also won at the Riverside despite playing with 10 men for half the game so it’s not an impossible task. The Posh away form has to improve sometime doesn’t it? Probably not here though even if skipper Mark Beevers could be back to add calmness and experience to a defence that has shipped 16 goals in five away games - five more than any other team in the division.

Forecast 0-2 defeat.

Wednesday, October 20

v Hull (away)

The best chance to end an awful record as Posh visit a stadium where they tasted success last season when Grant McCann’s Hull were flying in League One. The Tigers have been dismal since winning 4-1 at Preston on the opening day of the season and they’ve scored just two goals in five winless games at the KCOM Stadium, although they did net one of those late on in a 1-1 draw against Blackpool on Tuesday after they’d been reduced to 10 men. This will probably be a nervy contest between two teams lacking confidence going forward - Hull would be bottom, but for Derby’s hefty points deduction. Posh striker Jonson Clarke-Harris will probably be suspended and it wouldn’t be the greatest surprise if it finished all square

Forecast: Draw 0-0.

Saturday, October 23

v QPR (home)

This doesn’t look as tough a game as did a few weeks back. QPR didn’t lose any of their first six Championship games, but then lost three in a row, all of them 2-1. They ‘only’ beat Birmingham 2-0 at home on Tuesday and Posh bettered that result. It will be hard to stop eighth-placed QPR scoring as they average over two goals a game away from home, but they have conceded nine goals on their travels and only three teams have conceded more, including Posh obviously.

Forecast: Draw 1-1.

Saturday, October 30

v Swansea (away).

Russell Martin is the second Posh promotion hero to lead a team into battle against their old club this month and, like Grant McCann, he’s been struggling. Swansea have won just one of their five home games and scored just two goals. Last season’s play-off final losers are in an unaccustomed position of 19th, just two points ahead of Posh. If Posh can frustrate their hosts and a volatile fan base they could get something from their longest trip of the season.

Forecast: Draw 0-0.

Six points from five October matches is the PT forecast which could be good enough to pull them out of the relegation zone, especially if Reading’s impending nine-point deduction is applied.