Peterborough United boss on giving special fans something to celebrate and on why his side can take belief into Wembley Final.

It’s been an unusual season for Posh who have failed to challenge for promotion from League One. That has rarely happened in the eras of chairman Darragh MacAnthony and manager Darren Ferguson. They are even still a few points short of making sure they avoid an embarrassing relegation.

But Posh bosses have generally been pleased with how the supporters have stuck with the club in difficult times so now it’s payback time as Ferguson will try and mastermind a second successive EFL Trophy win for his club, something that has not been done in the competition’s 44-year history.

"We are proud to have given the Posh fans another day out at Wembley,” Ferguson said. “And it was vital we gave them something from what has been a challenging season. Our fans have been quite lucky over the years as we’ve given them an awful lot. There are other clubs who hardly ever have any success, but we have had some really big moments together.

"Because of all that success it has felt like the world’s been ending this season. It’s been challenging for all of us, but we genuinely thank the fans for their support.”

Ferguson will have his work cut out if he is to become the first manager to win the Trophy three times. His Posh side beat Chesterfield 3-1 in the 2014 final and Wycombe Wanderers 2-1 in last season’s final. But beating a Birmingham City side who clinched promotion from League One with six games to spare with a 2-1 win at Posh on Tuesday is obviously a much tougher challenge.

Yet Ferguson believes his players should take confidence from running an outstanding side close for the second time this season. Posh went down 3-2 at St Andrews in September despite taking an early 2-0 lead.

“I have no need to build the game up,” Ferguson added. “The match and the occasion will take care of itself. There’s very little pre-match prep to do either as we played them them the other night and neither side has changed the way they play all season. They will probably change some players, but they are unlikely to change a style of play that has worked so well for them.

"But my players should take belief from the dress rehearsal on Tuesday. We gave them a game. We reacted well to an awful performance at the weekend and we reacted well to falling behind on Tuesday. There were some things we did well which we will have to repeat at Wembley. We learnt a lot and now it’s about proving it.

“We will go there to win. No-one gave us a chance of winning the semi-final at Wrexham, especially at half-time when we were 2-0 down, but we showed the sort of character we will need again on Sunday.

"We were favourites in the two previous finals. We beat Chesterfield, but I hated the performance. I was confident ahead of the Wycombe game, but we were nervous and took a while to get going before winning it with a bit of luck. It was much more enjoyable last year than in 2014 though. We had a great night.

"Obviously we are big underdogs this time around, but we will be positive. It’s all about winning a trophy for the club and the fans. The things I can achieve are of no concern to me. That’s the stuff you can reflect on at the end of a career.”