Peterborough United chairman praises the 'best fans he's ever known' and he'll need them in good voice for the visit of the best team in League One

MacAnthony bought Posh in September, 2006 and has overseen four promotions and three relegations in his 18 years at the helm.

And this season promises to be one of the best as Posh are in the thick of the race for automatic promotion from League One and have already booked a date at Wembley Stadium for the Bristol Street Trophy Final.

Posh are fourth in League One after beating Stevenage 3-1 at London Road on Wednesday night, ahead of a home game against leaders Portsmouth on Saturday, despite campaigning with the youngest squad in the division.

On the latest edition of his ‘Hard Truth’ podcast MacAnthony said: “The fans now are the best I’ve known in my 18 years at the club. They have bought into everything this season. One of the my favourite things this season has been the closeness the club has with its fanbase again. Even when we were losing games they have stuck with us, well apart from a few ‘DMac-Outers!’

“They are buying lots of tickets for Wembley, they are filling up the away travel and they are coming out for home games. I don’t even have to ask them for their support for the final few matches because I know it will be there. I couldn’t be more grateful for the support we’ve received.

“We don’t get everything right, but we learn from our mistakes.

"It’s been a fascinating League One this season and there’s another challenge for our young lads tomorrow when we play the best team in League One. That’s just a hard fact. Bolton and Derby fans might think they are supporting the best team, but they are not. When a team is top with eight games to go and they’ve been top for virtually the whole season then they are the best team. To be the best you have to beat the best and that’s the challenge for us tomorrow.

"If we do win and then win our game in hand on Portsmouth we could get to within three points of the leaders with a handful of games to go and if that scenario had presented itself in the summer we’d have been delighted. We won’t beat them with a Stevenage-type performance though.

"I’m pleased to see Portsmouth having a good season. The Eisners (Pompey owners) have had stick at times, but they have developed a very well run club with a lot of good people behind the scenes. They appointed a young manager who has stepped up impeccably. They have a clear identity and they have a Premier League fanbase. I’m sure if they could get 30k into home games they would."

John Mousinho is the manager who has steered Portsmouth to the top of the table in his first full season as a Football League boss.