Peterborough United have been unfortunate rather than outplayed, although weaknesses are becoming obvious, a fantastic atmosphere and a new ref watch feature!

It’s sage advice though, especially when results aren’t reflecting the level of performance. Posh weren’t brilliant at Portsmouth on Saturday, as they weren’t at Derby County a week earlier, but did they deserve to lose either game against probable promotion rivals? Nope. They were the better side for chunks of both contests. Draws would probably have been fair and 14 points with just one defeat from the opening seven games, given the level of difficulty of the matches on the road, would be a perfectly acceptable start to a season.

As it is 12 points and sixth place in the table is hardly a disaster, especially with two very winnable home games now on the horizen.

But the opening exchanges have exposed the weaknesses in the current squad with others willl surely try and exploit.

Hopefully the return to fitness of deadline day signing Kell Watts will solve the issues on the left-hand side of the Posh defence, but there doesn’t appear to be a qyuck available fix for the problem of turning bountiful possession – according to the BBC the visitors had the ball for 58% of the game at Fratton Park – into clearcut chances and goals in away games against the better teams.

TALKING POINTS FROM POMPEY V POSH

1). The midfield two of Jack Taylor and Jeando Fuchs were both excellent in the 2-1 defeat at Portsmouth. They won the ball easilly and moved it forward quckly and accurately, but then the Posh problems start. Ben Thompson looks a good summer signing, but unlocking organised defences from a forward midfield position is not a strength. Posh found themselves in numerous advantageous positions with the time and space to unleash their deadly front two, but it rarely happened. Indeed, including the early goal, Jonson Clarke-Harris and Jack Marriott created their own chances. Posh have gambled on Kwame Poke or Ephron Mason-Clark playing successfully behind the front two. It may work and one of them should be given the chance to shine against Forest Green Rovers at London Road next Saturday.

2) And if the chances aren’t coming from midfield areas they need to be created from the flanks. The wing-backs are crucial attacking positions in the current Posh formation, but currently good crosses are only arriving from one flank. Joe Ward’s form has been strong on the right, but whereas Harrison Burrows at his best takes one touch and delivers, he now appears hesitant and unsure with several inaccurate crosses the results. He looks short of confidence, but it also looks like his natural replacement Joe Tomlinson has yet to convince his manager he can start at League One level.

3) Ronnie Edwards can expect to be targeted by big, strong strikers this season. Pompey were Lincoln-lite yesterday under former Imps boss Danny Cowley with their number one attacking tactic in the first-half using a goalkeeper to launch huge kicks towards Colby Bishop in the hope winning flick-ons or free kicks. Edwards battled gamely, but he was outmatched physically by an otherwise limited striker. Apparenty the long-ball tactic was employed for this game in particular, although Pompey’s winning goal came from a lovely finish from a talented 18 year-old after some neat and incisive passing in midfield as the left-hand side of the Posh defence was exposed once more.

4) Frankie Kent’s best form as a Posh defender came when playing alongside left-footed Mark Beevers in the promotion season of 2020-21. He’s clearky uncomfortable on the left of a three, He’s too easily beaten on the outside which may be why he often backs off when he should engage and possibly why he’s already picked up four cautions, one short of a suspension, in the opening 7 games of the season.

5) Do Posh have game-changer on the subs bench when they are behind in games? Not really. The difference on the respective benches yesterday was stark with Pompey’s full of seasoned Football League players, while Posh had inexperience, youth, a newcomer and a player feeling his way back from injury.

6) The atmosphere at Fratton Park remains brilliant. The stadium could with some care and attention, but the acoustics are fantastic and the home support exceptional.

7) REF WATCH. Samuel Barrott had the good fortune to follow the dreadful Bobby Madden into a Posh fixture so he was always going to be a step up in standard. And for the most part Barrott was even-handed, aside from a couple of howlers when awarding (or not awarding) a corner, both of which went against Posh. But in the final 10 minutes he lost the plot by failing to sanction a couple of cynical trips by home players properly and then by spoiling an entertaining late goalmouth scramble by inventing a foul against Posh when nothing untoward appeared to have happened. And he was ineffective in combating obvious timewasting. Dramatically chasing a Pompey player to brandish a yellow card in the 95th and final minute is not the strong look he perhaps thought he was showing, although he did at least add the additional time on.