A stroll in Stamford for Peterborough United as set-piece prowess was decisive
It was a stroll in Stamford for Peterborough United as you’d expect against a team from four rungs lower on the English football lower.
It finished 6-0 in front of a healthy crowd at the Zeeco Stadium, but it could have been 10 such was the dominance of a League One side over a team from the Southern League Premier Division Central.
Posh were 4-0 up in 21 minutes and added two more after the break. Remarkably four of the goals came from corners, which is a sentence you’d never dream of writing in a Posh match report, not in the favour of Darren Ferguson’s side at least.
From the first minute Posh played at a tempo Stamford never came close to matching. The ball was zipped about on a decent playing surface as the visitors ran amok.
All the set-piece strikes were close range finishes with Kyrell Lisbie claiming his first Posh goal, Oscar Wallin, who was a slightly surprising starter, converting a classy volley at the far post and Ihionvien tapping home, again at the far stick. Stamford’s Stacey Freeman nodded another one in on the hour mark when under pressure from George Nevett.
Ihionvien also scored from the penalty spot after home ‘keeper Nick Jackson had bundled into Cian Hayes. Jackson redeemed himself by thwarting Ihionvien’s hat-trick attempt from 20 yards with an outstanding fingertip save. The lively Lisbie was denied his second goal by the woodwork and by an offside flag.
Much of the Posh work was impressive in a dominant first-half with Joe Andrews, who also forced Jackson into a fine save, and Brandon Khela prominent in midfield. Posh ‘keeper Nicholas Bilokapic was drawn into action just once and his handling of Cameron Johnson’s shot was impeccable.
Posh stayed on the front foot with a completely different XI after the break and, after the own goal, Gustav Lindgren failed to convert a one-one opportunity past a trialist ‘keeper before he unselfishly squared for Chris Conn Clarke to claim his second goal in two friendlies seven minutes from time.
Posh (first-half): Bilokapic, Johnston, Mills, Mendonca, Wallin, Andrews, De Havilland, Khela, Hayes, Lisbie, Ihionvien.
Posh (second-half): Bass, Dornelly, Gbajumo, Nevett, Rose, O’Brien-Brady, Collins, Conn-Clark, Odoh, Frith, Lindgren.