'Flat' and 'exhausted' Peterborough United 'let the party down' on the final day

Posh ended a disappointing campaign with a 3-1 defeat at home against Doncaster, which secured a second consecutive 18th place finish in League One.

Billy Sharp scored a hat-trick to give himself a fairy tale send off as he departs the club. Harry Leonard offered brief hope of a comeback when he scored with 15 minutes to play but within three minutes, Posh had fallen two goals behind again.

Williams spoke of the difficulty in replacing Archie Collins in the midfield while also stating that he felt his side looked ‘exhausted.’

He said: “In the first half, we were a really competitive team and we looked to try and score the first goal and work hard together to keep them out. We then looked exhausted in the second half.

“We looked very flat and maybe after Tuesday night, it was too much.

“It was a great turnout, a brilliant atmosphere before kick-off and the first half was two really good teams going at each other and we let the party down.

“I’ve managed team against Billy Sharp for a very long time and he's a special player. He’s a top, top player there’s no doubt. Once one or two mistakes were made, we started to lose the thread and they capitalised in a big way.

“Losing Bolu was a shame as he is a huge threat. He was playing well and causing them a lot of problems. It disrupted our flow.

“It’s the first time I have seen a midfield without Archie since I’ve been here. Clearly there is a difference there. Brandon and Ben are really good players but Archie is a little bit different and he’s harder to find somebody to fulfil his role in the team.

“All the squad should be grateful to Alex Bass. He’s made big save after big save and he’s brave in helping us to try and distribute the ball. Some of the most key passes today were played by him too.

"I have loved Harry’s attitude in recent weeks. He looks really angry about the situation. I love that. He looks like he’s determined to dig deep when I know he is exhausted. He is trying to find something extra. I am really excited about him. I wouldn’t be surprised if he scored 299 goals in the EFL in years to come like Billy Sharp.”