Peterborough United, Leyton Orient and a referee delivered a dire spectacle

Posh lacked quality throughout despite employing three different formations. They ran out of ideas well before the end of a scrappy affair presided over by a referee who presumably didn’t get the memo about punishing timewasters.

To add on five minutes in total in this game was a dereliction of duty. Orient’s right centre-back Tom James regulary walked slowly 50 yards to take long throws on the other side of the pitch.

But Mr Tallis, refereeing his first match at this level, wasn’t the reason Posh didn’t win. It’s a racing certainty manager Darren Ferguson’s post-match press conference would mention a lack of a cutting edge and poor decision making in the final third.

Posh did take the lead through former Orient midfielder Hector Kyprianou following a corner, but the Londoners were level within 11 minutes as Omar Beckles finished one of the few moments of quality in the entire game by heading home Jordan Graham’s terrific cross,

Posh looked good either side of half-time, but failed to work visiting ‘keeper Sol Brynn. Indeed the best chance in the final quarter fell to Orient substitute who blazed over the crossbar.

Ferguson sprang something of a selection surprise by leaving on-loan Premier League teenagers Zak Sturge and Jadel Katongo on the substitutes’ bench.

There were three changes to the last League One starting line-up though with Jonson Clarke-Harris replacing injury victim Ricky-Jade Jones and Ryan De Havilland and Josh Knight starting with Joel Randall and Romoney Crichlow dropped to the substitutes’ bench. Recent striker signing Jacob Wakeling was also on the bench.

The biggest surprise however was the return of the midfield diamond with Kwame Poku at the tip. How it stayed in place for over half an hour of stodgy, slow football was another mystery.

Only when Peter Kioso was galloping down the right wing from the full-back position did Posh look a threat. There was no threat at all down the left where a lack of pace is an obvious problem, with the obvious solution kicking his heels on the bench.

Poku’s shot was well blocked by Beckles after an 11th-minute Kioso cutback after the right-back had been freed by a superb Kyprianou pass.

Posh did take the lead in the 21st minute with a scruffy goal from a Harrison Burrows corner. Josh Knight hooked the ball back across goal where Kyprianou delivered an improvised finish before declining to celebrate.

Posh didn’t improve much though and a couple of weak pieces of play from De Havilland enaled the visitors to equalise. The midfielder lost possession and then didn’t do enough to stop an admittedly fine cross from Graham which Beckles nodded home 12 minutes before the break

Ferguson’s vantage point from the stands must have been the same as the one from the press box as the diamond was instantly abandoned.

Poku and Ephron Mason-Clark were returned to the wings and the threat level immediately increased.

A neat header from Clarke-Harris freed Kioso in the penalty area, but while his shot was powerful, it was straight at Brynn.

Further evidence of Ferguson’s frustration was seen with a pair of half-time subs as David Ajiboye and Joel Randall were sent on for Poku and De Havviland.

And Posh improved again. Ajiboye added some direct running and decent crossing ability and Randall was lively if erratic.

Randall should have fired Posh back in front on 54 minutes after good work from Knight and Burrows, but his touch was bad and the shot blocked.

A deep Ajiboye cross was volleyed goalwards by Mason-Clark, but the save was simple and then the skipper wandered into an offside position rather unnecessarily and stayed there which annoyed Randall the most as his deflected shot hit the back of the net.

Other decent crossing positions were wasted by awful deliveries against an Orient side who’s main offensive tactic was for a goalkeeper to hoof the ball miles in the hope of the throwing the ball long into the area.

There was a run of crosses into the visiting area when Posh switched to wing-backs and belatedly sent Sturge on. It was much too little, much too late.

It was simply a dire spectacle which got the result it deserved with neither side wining.

Posh : Nicholas Bilokapic, Harrison Burrows (sub Zak Sturge, 82 mins), Ronnie Edwards, Josh Knight, Peter Kioso, Archie Collins, Hector Kyprianou, Ryan De Havilland (sub Joel Randall, 46 mins), Kwame Poku (sub David Ajiboye, 46 mins), Ephron Mason-Clark (sub Jacob Wakeling, 82 mins), Jonson Clarke-Harris

Unused subs: Fynn Talley, Jadel Katongo, Romoney Crichlow.

Orient: Sol Bryn, Tom James, Brandon Cooper, Omar Beckles, Theo Archiblad (sub Rub Hunt, 64 mins), Jordan Graham, Idris El Mizouni, Darren Pratley (sub Jordan Brown, 76 mins), Ruel Sotiriou, George Moncur (sub Ethan Galbraith, 59 mins), Joe Pigott (sub Aaron Drinan, 75 mins).

Unused subs: Sam Howes, Ed Turns, Jordan Brown, Aaron Drinan, Shaq Forde.

Goals: Posh – Kyprianou (21 mins).

Orient – Beckles (33 mins)

Cautions: Posh – Kioso (foul), Kyprianou (foul)

Orient – Pratley (foul), Graham (dissent), El Mizouni (delaying the restart).

Referee: Scott Tallis 4.

Attendance: 7,945 (1,189 Orient).