Winning another title would be a great way for Peterborough United to celebrate a 50th anniversary, a manager prepared to make the difficult decisions and the biggest obstacle to a Posh promotion

Posh are racking up such impressive numbers ambitions have increased from a play-off finish to automatic promotion, but why not aim to finish top of the whole pile?

A 2-1 win at Charlton, which started off as a cakewalk and finished off as a barmy bunfight, on Saturday means it’s one defeat in 20 League One matches, four away wins in a row and second place in the table, just one point behind wobbly Pompey with a game in hand.

Of course a lot can happen in the final 20 games – Bolton are just a point behind with two games in hand and Derby will go above Posh if they beat Burton by two goals at Pride Park on Monday for a start – but no-one at the top is playing with the mixture of verve and dash Darren Ferguson’s side are showing on a weekly basis.

Don’t just take my word for it. One of those number-crunching data sites that exist in the football world these days claimed ‘Peterborough are the best side in League One on the underlying data. They are one of the hottest sides in the country right now.”

TALKING POINTS FROM CHARLTON 1, POSH 2…

1) Darren Ferguson has never been a man to shirk the difficult decisions. He dumped Posh legend Mark Tyler for lanky goalkeeper Joe Lewis after he’d been a Football League manager for just a year. It didn’t go down well among the entire Posh fanbase, but it was a decision soon vindicated. On the surface axing a goalkeeper yesterday who had done little wrong in his last two Posh starts for someone who hadn’t played for 22 months seemed equally harsh, but Jed Steer’s save in the final stages at Charlton plus a very calm demeanour on the ball suggested Ferguson has made another good call. Steer talks and organises like a 31 year-old, something Tally (21) can’t be expected to replicate so soon into his career.

2) Steer’s excellent late save meant something as rare as good sense from the EFL was averted, that is Ronnie Edwards giving a goal away with a stray pass. Let’s just hope any Premier League scouts watching went away impressed with the England Under 20 captain’s general excellence, but with enough doubt to suggest he finishes a learning curve at League One level. Edwards also should have cleared the cross that led to Charlton’s goal, but his departure remains the biggest obstacle to Posh going up by some distance.

3) Another impressive number for Posh is 52 goals in 26 games. With some better decision-making close to the opposition goal and more ruthlessness that number could easily have reached 75 already. It happened again yesterday as complete dominance of the ball in the first-half and some rapid breaks in the second period should have led to three more goals at least. We were promised ‘Ruthless’ Randall prior to yesterday’s game, but instead we saw a gifted athlete with quality vision alongside the forward who can’t deliver precision when in the opposition penalty area.

4) Charlton’s tactics before the break were baffling. They stood off Posh and let them pass the ball about with complete freedom. That’s a suicidal tactic against this set of players who must have been kicking themselves at not killing the game off before half-time. Charlton’s pathetically passive performance saw them booed off at the interval and led to some aggressive long-ball football after the break which almost earned them an unlikely point. Defending deep and in numbers shouldn’t be a strength of this side, but the work in and around their own penalty area – often mopping up careless errors from teammates– was as impressive as the pretty passing patterns they weaved when in control of the contest.

5) Kwame Poku’s injury has to be more serious than Posh are letting on. I’ve seen a photograph of the awkward landing the winger suffered after challenging for a header and it wasn’t a pretty sight. Any absence for Poku would be a blow, but the best back-up player in the squad right now is David Ajiboye who happens to cover yesterday’s injury victim. Ajiboye was again a strong substitute at Charlton. He’s a different player to Poku, but a quick, direct runner and a decent crosser of the ball like Ajiboye is a decent asset. “We’re very pleased with what David has delivered this season,” Ferguson said after the game. “He is just so direct and quick and defenders don’t like that. He did well defensively as well today.”

6) Transfer talk was inevitable after yesterday’s game and it looks like Jonson Clarke-Harris has dithered over a move from Posh to Charlton for long enough to persuade the Londoners to look elsewhere. There also weren’t too many people buying Rotherham manager Leam Richardson’s assertion that Peter Kioso missed a match yesterday because of illness. Rumours swept social media before that game that Kioso had declined to sit on the subs’ bench. If true it shouldn’t be condoned, but it is interesting, especially if Posh can rustle up some spending money. Jadel Katongo, who is just 19, was much better at right-back at Charlton though. He’s a bright lad with talent who would grow into the role if he remains as first choice. “Jadel’s a very good footballer,” Ferguson said post-match yesterday. “He’s still a teenager and he hasn’t played much at right-back, but he looked much more at home today. He’s going to be a top player.”