Football Season Review

Going into the season that is now behind us, the main concern of Peterborough fans was whether the club would manage to replace Dwight Gayle, who left the Posh to join Crystal Palace for a club-record fee. Peterborough responded to the striker's departure with the capture of Britt Assombalonga, who became the club's record signing, and the former Watford man went on to enjoy an incredible season, as he scored 30 goals. His form was consistent throughout the campaign, and the early stages of the season saw the Posh looking as good value to move back into the Championship after only one year in League One, as they recorded ten wins in their opening twelve games and also recorded a famous 6:0 League Cup win over Reading. However, things suddenly changed in November, as Darren Ferguson's men went on a five-game losing streak which they ended with a 1:0 home win over eventual division champions Wolverhampton. The win over the Wolves was a beginning of a three-match unbeaten run, but the Posh soon had another crisis, as they lost four consecutive games between late December and mid January. Ferguson eventually managed to steady the ship in the second half of the season, but the abysmal form shown between November and January very much ended his side's hopes of ending inside the top two. Peterborough remained inconsistent in the second half of the campaign, but won more games than they lost, and eventually ended the league as sixth, setting up a play-off semi-final showdown with Leyton Orient. Their matches against the O's were rather tight, but Russell Slade's men eventually emerged as 3:2 aggregate winners, therefore booking a Wembley clash with Rotherham. One bright spot of Peterborough's season was their JP Trophy victory, but that did not prevent their chairman Darragh MacAnthony from describing their season as an "epic failure" following the play-off semi-final defeat. It currently seems that Darren Ferguson will remain in charge despite failing to guide his team to promotion, but it is clear that his reputation has been damaged by the season the Posh have had - significant portions of fans want him out, and he seems unlikely to get too much time to turn things around if his side remains inconsistent next season.

Player of the Season: Britt Assombalonga