Why the season is far from over for Peterborough United, selections that didn't work, passion-free and quality-lite performance, and how big is the Cobblers match now?

The table doesn’t lie after 17 games. Posh are nine points from the play-off places and just three points above the drop zone. They’ve just deservedly lost at home to the team who started the day bottom of the table. They can’t keep a clean sheet and last night they mustered one shot on target – and that was catching practice for an under-employed goalkeeper – even with 70% possession, a statistic achieved by continually passing the ball sideways and backwards.

It was scary stuff from a side that suddenly looked their age, inexperienced as well as rudderless. They were feeble in the tackle as well as far too negative on the ball.

Posh should of course have enough quality to steer clear of the bottom four, but all talk of a promotion push should cease for now. This is a mid-table team that didn’t even live up to that billing on a horrible night at the Weston Homes Stadium.

Posh could be 19th when they travel to Sixfields on Monday for what could now be termed a six-pointer. That should concern everyone this far into a season.

TALKING POINTS FROM POSH 0, BURTON 1…

1) Ferguson has had better nights. His team selection didn’t work. Sam Curtis tried hard, but he was a right footed right-back playing on the left while a proper left-back sat on the bench. And Abraham Odoh for Malik Mothersille turned out to be a bad move also. Mothersille isn’t a perfect crosser of the ball, but he is a direct running threat with speed and strength. Odoh was brushed off the ball too easily, hardly played a forward pass and looked lost in what looked like an advanced wingback position when Posh did change shape. Mothersille was far from brilliant when arriving as a first-half substitute, but he at least displayed some positive intent. When Posh went three at the back, Nevett, a left-footer, played in the middle with Jadel Katongo, a right-footer, on the left. I’m sure there was managerial logic at play, but to this layman it looked like a handful of players being asked to perform roles that didn’t suit them.

2) Burton media folk told me their team changed formation, style of play (apparently they usually play a passing game) and personnel for the game so maybe that’s what flummoxed Posh who were devoid of attacking ideas throughout. The visitors crowded midfield areas which meant Joel Randall was missing in action which in turn restricted the input of Ricky-Jade Jones who barely received a decent pass all evening. But Posh have played well against teams who packed midfield before this season, notably Rotherham, as they used the wide areas to cause havoc. Not on this night. When the ball was sent to the wings Burton employed impressive aggression to quickly win it back again. Posh couldn’t cope. Interestingly after 20 minutes of passing the ball without menace Katongo suddenly launched a long ball that freed up Kwame Poku to run at goal. It worked, but it was rarelyr tried again. Baffling.

3) You get results like this from time to time. A better Posh team lost at home to relegation-bound Carlisle towards the end of last season, but they did at least threaten a comeback in that game. Usually a struggling team will get a result at a much more highly rated side by riding their luck or by relying on a brilliant goalkeeping display. This was nothing like that. There was no pressure, no desire and no obvious leader urging fight to make up for an off-night in the quality department. Defeat was accepted meekly and Burton rather coasted to victory once they had taken the lead. I once had a report pinned on the training ground wall for daring to say Posh were in danger of going down with a whimper after a Championship defeat at Middlesbrough. The chairman and manager took umbrage. This performance reminded me of that game.

4) Forthcoming opponents will have seen how simple straight long balls unsettled the Posh defence. Oscar Wallin doesn’t win many headers for a centre-back so Manny Fernandez will probably walk back into the team against Cobblers. George Nevett should stay in. He might struggle a bit with the physical demands of League One, but he can play.

5) What a even bigger game it now looks against Cobblers. They catch Posh up if they beat them on Monday. One dreads to think what defeat in that game would do for Posh confidence. But if Posh win, no matter how scrappily, last night will soon be forgotten.

6) Posh have had little luck with with injuries this season. As Hector Kyprianou is scrubbed off the injury list so Kwame Poku is set to join it.