Past Peterborough United v Leeds United: 'They said we had no chance and they were right!' And a goalscorer turned publican turned policeman

​Even though Posh were thumped 4-1 at London Road by the best team in the country at the time and even though he was kicked up in the air a few times by one of the hard men of seventies football.

When Posh, who were battling for the Fourth Division title, were paired with Leeds, who were top of Division One, there was great excitement in the city and a 28,000 sell-out crowd was inevitable.

But there was also some trepidation according to Cozens, who scored the Posh consolation goal.

"They said we had no chance,” Cozens recalled. “And it turned out they were right!

"It was some experience though. Leeds were the best team in the country with some fantastic players and we didn’t really know what hit us in the first-half when they went 4-0 ahead.

"We knew we were well beaten, but we just went out for the second half to dig in and get on with things. We had a great spirit in that team and we never gave in.

"We did manage to get a goal back when I headed in a Tommy Robson cross, but we were just happy not to have lost by a massive margin.

"It was a game I’ll never forget though. I was up against Norman Hunter and he kicked me a few times so I was pleased I responded by scoring a goal.

"We were a good Fourth Division side full of confidence, but we just couldn’t get near them. They just had too much quality all over the pitch.

"They had no weaknesses. They left no gaps or holes for us to exploit and yet they had so much time to play themselves.

"It was really eye-opening for us, but as I say, it was still a great experience.

"They went on to the win the league and so did we, so the defeat didn’t do any lasting harm.”

Joe Jordan (2), Peter Lorimer and Terry Yorath scored the Leeds goals.

The 1973-74 Posh team is still the last to have won a Football League title for the club.

Goalkeeper Mick Drewery never played for Posh again because of a back injury and the arrival of Eric Steele.

Posh: Drewery, Bradley, Lee, Turner, Jones, Murray Llewelyn, Walker, Cozens. Hill, Robson. Sub Carmichael.

Leeds: Harvey, Reaney, Cooper, Ellam, Hunter, Bremner, Madeley, Cherry, Lorimer, Yorath, Jordan. Sub: F. Gray.

HARD TIMES

Posh and Leeds had fallen on hard times by the time they faced off again in their only other FA Cup clash.

Posh were struggling under manager John Wile in the Fourth Division, while Leeds were now a Second Division side.

And it was Posh who triumphed 1-0 in a third round tie in January, 1986.

Substitute Greig Shepherd was the matchwinner with a 67th minute header from a Francis Cassidy cross, but that was just the start of the drama.

An injury to Posh goalkeeper John Turner meant left-back Martin Pike went between the sticks for the final stages and he kept a mini clean sheet as Leeds saw midfielder Scott Sellars sent off for dissent.

Posh went on to reach the fifth round where they lost following a replay to Second Division Brighton.

Posh went down 1-0 at the Goldstone Ground to a Dean Saunders goal after a famous 2-2 draw at an ice-covered London Road.

Posh (v Leeds): Turner, Paris, Pike, Slack, Gage, Cassidy, Kowalski, Fuccillo, Gallagher, Kelly, Worrall. Sub Shepherd.

Leeds: Day, Irwin, Snodin, Aspin, Linighan, Sellars, Ritchie, Swann, Baird, Hamson, Dickinson.

Shepherd scored in the third, fourth and fifth rounds of the FA Cup for Posh in the 1985-86 season.

Second Division Carlisle were also beaten 1-0 at London Road. The Cumbrians included future Posh skipper and legend Mick Halsall in their fourth round team.

Shepherd dropped out of the professional game in 1987 to run a pub before joining the Cambs police force. He was often on duty at London Road.

LEAGUE CUP

Posh and Leeds also met in a second round League Cup tie in 1988. The game was played over two legs with Leeds winning 2-1 at London Road and 3-1 at Elland Road. Craig Goldsmith (at home) and Bryn Gunn (penalty) were the Posh scorers.

LEAGUE MEETINGS

Posh have met Leeds three times in Football League matches at London Road, winning the first one in the League One promotion season of 2008-09 2-0 with second-half goals from George Boyd and Craig Mackail-Smith.

Leeds won Championship matches 3-2 in 2011 and 2-1 in 2012.