Peterborough United have overcome the loss of Ivan Toney impressively so far this season, but Hull City will present a massive challenge

The departure of Ivan Toney to the Championship with Brentford was seen as a huge blow to the chances of a Posh promotion from League One this season.

But, with Toney’s replacement Jonson Clarke-Harris claiming his third goal of the season as Posh made it four wins in a row at Wigan on Tuesday, Posh have moved into a challenging position despite a tough run of fixtures.

Ferguson’s side could even go top if they win at League One leaders Hull City tomorrow (October 24, 3pm).

“We are confident, full of belief, we look solid and we are playing well,” Ferguson stated in his pre-match press conference.

“It’s a tough game at the end of a tough week for us at Hull, but we took care of hard games against Oxford and Wigan and hopefully we take care of the third game as well.

“We knew we would be losing Ivan Toney when last season finished so it was important to me we got the other players who had helped us finish last season well back to the club.

“We’ve done that. Ten of the 11 who started against Wigan were part of last season’s in-form squad. The only absentee is obviously Ivan, but we’ve replaced him well with Jonson Clarke-Harris and I’ve been delighted with how he’s settled in.

“We were never a one-man team last season anyway. We knew what we had in Ivan and he’s proving how good he is in the Championship now. But goalkeeper Christy Pym kept the most clean sheets in the division last season. My teams have always been known for their attacking flair, but whenever I’ve had success as a manager I’ve had a very good defence. The last time we went up from this division I had Gaby Zakuani and Ryan Bennett as centre-backs with Joe Lewis in goal.

“We have had a good start, especially given the teams we’ve already played, but we are only 20% into the season and we are facing another big club tomorrow. I’m expecting a tight game, but one with plenty of good football played by both teams.

“League One is getting harder by the season. The clubs coming down from the Championship are getting bigger and we will have to more than match what we did at Wigan to get the result we want at Hull.

“My players look fresh which is often the case when you are winning games.”

Posh signed Sammie Szmodics on a permanent deal in the summer and Reece Brown returned on a season-long loan after they impressed on loan at London Road last season.

The only confirmed Posh absentee tomorrow is teenage striker Ricky-Jade Jones so it’s likely an unchanged visiting side will take the field at the KCOM Stadium.