PLAYER VERDICTS: A Rolls-Royce, a main man and a glorious debut

Forrester supplied the passes for the opening two goals - the second was a great ball to debutant George Cooper - to confirm a return to his best form after a long spell in the doldrums.

McCann was also delighted to see Cooper score eight minutes after coming on as a second half substitute and to see Junior Morias claim his first goal since September 23. He was absent for several months after picking up a serious thigh injury at Oldham on September 26.

“One of the reasons I picked Junior was I remembered the pain he was in after the Oldhama defeat,” McCann said. “I reasoned he would be desperate to make amends so I was delighted to see him score. To be fair he’s one of our main men anyway when he’s fully fit.

“I told him at half-time to stop receiving the ball and playing it backwards. I asked him to try and turn his defender instead and that’s how he scored.

“It was a good pass from Chris Forrester, but his pass to George Cooper for his goal was outstanding. When Chris plays at his best there are very few midfielders as good as him in League One. He’s like a Rolls-Royce and people don’t realise how fast he is. He’s one of the quickest men in the team.

“And what a tremendous finish from George. It can be difficult making your debut as a substitute, but he took it in his stride. He can play off both feet as he showed with the control and finish he delivered.

“We have serious competition for places up front now.”

Jonathan Bond: Well protected again by the men in front of him, but he is very reliable and safe when called upon 6

Liam Shephard: Terrible tackle to pick up a first-minute caution and almost gave away a goal with a poor first-half pass. Recovered to play pretty well in the second-half. Always willing to get up in support of his teammates 6.5

Andrew Hughes: Struggled to get to grips with a pacy full-back running at him before the break. Shored up his side of the defence up in the second half. Offered very little going forward, but then doesn’t need to in the current formation 6.5

Steven Taylor: A rock as always. Takes up great positions. Clears his lines with the minimum of fuss. I enjoy his no-frills, no-risk-taking style of defending 7.5

Ryan Tafazolli: This could be his most consistent run of good form in a Posh shirt. One sloppy pass out of defence in the first half can be forgotten amid some dominant defending 7.5

Anthony Grant: He patrolled the defensive midfield area with great skill and discipline as usual. Generally passed the ball quickly and efficiently 7

Chris Forrester: His manager reckons he’s back to his best and it’s hard to argue. Still a little flimsy in the tackle, but he’s the best, most consistent passer of the ball in the squad. Two assists and his second one for Cooper’s goal was a gem 8

Junior Morias: He tried to cover too much ground in the first-half and occasionally seemed unsure of himself in a slightly deeper position than he’s used to. Lovely turn and shot to fire Posh in front. As always his endeavour and enthusiasm were faultless 6.5

Danny Lloyd: He never stops running, but he was too often inaccurate until his substitution early in the second half 5

Marcus Maddison: Took some heavy challenges early on. Not at his best, but there were still a couple of sublime chipped passes before he made way for Cooper 5

Jack Marriott: Makes good runs which were too often not spotted today, but he never gets down and won and converted a late penalty to make it 24 goals for the season 6

Substitutes

Joe Ward: (for Lloyd, 60 mins).

George Cooper: (for Maddison, 75 mins).

Idris Kanu: (for Morias, 83 mins).

Michael Doughty: (not used).

Jack Baldwin: (not used).

Conor O’Malley: (not used).

Alex Penny: (not used).