Peterborough United were so poor they made Doncaster look like Barcelona!

Peterborough United manager Darren Ferguson blasted his players for an ‘unacceptable’ performance at Doncaster today (September 21).
Siriki Dembele of Peterborough United in action against Doncaster Rovers. Photo: Joe Dent/theposh.comSiriki Dembele of Peterborough United in action against Doncaster Rovers. Photo: Joe Dent/theposh.com
Siriki Dembele of Peterborough United in action against Doncaster Rovers. Photo: Joe Dent/theposh.com

Posh lost for the first time in seven League One outings as first-half goals from veteran James Coppinger and ex-Posh player Kieran Sadlier sealed a comfortable 2-0 win for the hosts.

Ferguson admitted the performance was unrecognisable from recent displays and felt the players let him and the fans down on his return to a former club.

Posh dropped three places to ninth after this defeat.

Peterborough United Manager Darren Ferguson alongside Doncaster Rovers manager Darren Moore. Photo: Joe Dent/theposh.com.Peterborough United Manager Darren Ferguson alongside Doncaster Rovers manager Darren Moore. Photo: Joe Dent/theposh.com.
Peterborough United Manager Darren Ferguson alongside Doncaster Rovers manager Darren Moore. Photo: Joe Dent/theposh.com.
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“That was an overall poor performance,” Ferguson said. “I didn’t see it coming. I was shocked. We were a million miles away from where we needed to be to win this game.

“We couldn’t get near to Doncaster. We made them look Barcelona today. There is no way you will win a game of football against anyone playing like that.

“We looked tired, but we shouldn’t be. We’ve only played nine league games. We had no energy and we were so poor I had to play three different formations just to try and get something going.

“The first-half was terrible. We had too many gaps. We couldn’t find the spaces we wanted to play in and were weren’t brave enough on the ball. I made two substitutions at half-time and it could have been a lot more.

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“I’ll excuse the substitutes as it’s hard to join a performance like that. We had a go towards the end, but a team 2-0 is always going to sit a bit deeper which gives you a chance.

“I’m going away to have a look at what went wrong and identify the reasons why. I’m scratching my head right now. I didn’t deserve that from the players coming back to a former club and the fans have also been let down.

“They’ve seen some great performances lately and travelled in great numbers today so we must all hold our hands up and admit that was unacceptable.

“We cannot ever repeat it. Players need to know they have to perform consistently to stay in this team.”

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Right-back Nathan Thompson, a half-time substitute, is thought to have pulled a groin muscle and could be doubtful for next Saturday’s (September 28) home match with AFC Wimbledon.

Midfielder George Boyd should be fit enough to return to action in that game and Ferguson hinted left-back Frazer Blake-Tracy and young midfielder Harrison Burrows could also start.

“Our full-backs really strugled from the first minte,” Ferguson added. “They were a problem for us today.”