Peterborough United boss impressed with his side's resilience in 'hard-earned' Bristol Rovers win

Posh advanced to the second round of the EFL Cup for just the third time in ten attempts thanks to a 1-0 win over Bristol Rovers, secured by a first half penalty from Harry Leonard.

Posh looked in control of the first half and created several opportunities to score but this gave way to a second half performance where Rovers had more of the possession but failed to put Posh under pressure for large periods. The backline dealt with a physical Steve Evans side well, a quality that impressed Williams.

The Posh boss saw positives in both halves and stressed the importance of the win as a platform to build as they begin their league campaign in a week’s time.

Williams also used his post-match interview to give an update on the fitness on Sam Hughes, who was absent from the squad.

He said: “I’m happy with the way we defended more than anything else. We showed some moments of quality but it was a hard earned victory and I’m pleased with that.

A lot of players spent a huge amount of energy in the first half and the adrenaline eats at your resources so quickly. These guys have been training incredibly hard and to see them get cramp so early in the game is something I can understand because the legs go like jelly and the heart rate goes through the roof; they are burning through everything. I’m equally pleased that they were able to withstand an onslaught in that condition.

“They pumped set-pieces into our box and it was two halves that really gave me a view of different sides of my team.

“We thought that they would be direct because they have a lot of power at the top of the pitch. We dealt with it pretty well and then we mounted some pressure and there was two decent crosses into the box, the second led to the penalty and Harry Leonard dispatched the penalty in a top class way and that was enough for us.

“We had a couple of opportunities to score again, Bolu was in and probably miscued it and Harry caught one on the outside of his boot that could have ended up inside the far post. Certainly, we looked a threat going forward.

“Both the wingers were incredible. The amount of times they ran behind their full backs and caused problems. They were so brave and direct and put balls across. I’m really happy to see that. I’d have loved for Bolu to have scored because he deserved it for his performance.

“We have to try and take as many positives from this game we we can. This is a really strong side. I think they will be at the top of the division and should think they could compete in our division. It’s a hard earned win, it’s a taste of what’s to come and now we have to go to Bradford and put in a resilient performance like we did today.

Posh begin their League One campaign away at Bradford on Saturday (August 15, 3pm).