A look ahead to Wednesday night's Vertu Trophy Semi-Final against Wrexham as we look to secure a return to Wembley for a second year in a row.
Peterborough United are in Vertu Trophy action on Wednesday evening with another trip on the road to the STōK Cae Ras to face Wrexham, kick-off 7.30pm.
Last time out we secured a massive three away points against Huddersfield Town thanks to a Hector Kyprianou header deep in first half stoppage time. No further goals were added meaning we left West Yorkshire with a 1-0 win and three points.
We have faced Wrexham twice this season in Sky Bet League One. Back in August Wrexham visited PE2 winning 2-0 thanks to first half goals from Jack Marriott and Max Cleworth. In the return at the STōK Cae Ras in January a late goal from Steven Fletcher secured a 1-0 win for the Red Dragons.
Wrexham were last in action on Sunday as they faced Mansfield Town away from home live on Sky Sports. Max Cleworth's 58th minute strike saw Wrexham win 2-1 and take the points back to North Wales, after an early own-goal from Mansfield's Calum Macdonald was cancelled out by the player himself for the Stags.
TEAM NEWS
For Posh Emmanuel Fernandez is back in the squad as his current ban does not apply in this competition. Long-term absentee Rio Adebisi is out as are injured pair Gustav Lindgren & Kwame Poku who will travel but not be involved in the matchday squad. Jadel Katongo is also expected to be missing.
Wrexham are unable to call upon Luke Bolton, Callum Burton and Will Boyle, while it remains to be seen whether Elliot Lee will be ready to feature. Midfielder Andy Cannon was stretchered off with a knee injury in Sunday's win over Mansfield and will not be involved.
MANAGER QUOTE
Ahead of the game Darren Ferguson said: "If we can get to the level of performance we did on Saturday that will give us a good chance of winning regardless of the opposition. It’s an exciting game, it’s one game from Wembley. I think it would be great for the fans, in what has been a difficult season, to get a trip to Wembley again."
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ONE TO WATCH
Jay Rodriguez
Rodriguez (pictured below) is yet to register a goal or assist for Wrexham since joining the Red Dragons during the January transfer window but the 35-year-old forward is one to watch in Sky Bet League One for the remainder of this campaign and will be eligible for the Vertu Trophy having not featured in the competition before this season.
Starting his career at Burnley he worked his way through the youth ranks breaking into the first team for the 2006/07 season under Steve Cotterill. He spent five seasons at his boyhood club taking in loans at Stirling Albion and Barnsley, and scored 41 goals in 128 appearances for the Clarets.
In the summer of 2012, with interest from a number of Premier League clubs, Rodriguez joined Southampton and took the step up to the top division on the back of a season in which he scored 21 goals in 42 appearances across all competitions for the Clarets.
After a solid first season, he impressed massively in his second campaign with the Saints scoring 15 Premier League goals and securing his first, and only, full international call up for England. He was capped for the only time in a friendly against Chile at Wembley Stadium.
The striker continued at St. Mary's for another three seasons before taking in two years at the Hawthorns representing West Bromwich Albion. In his first year they were relegated to the Championship but in his second campaign Rodriguez netted a career best 22 league goals. At the end of the campaign he moved back to boyhood club Burnley where he made a further 182 appearances for the Club before moving to North Wales in January.
ON THE NIGHT
The tie must be decided on the night and will go to penalty kicks if the score is level at the end of regulation time. There will be no period of extra-time.
TICKET NEWS
The fixture is ALL TICKET, no tickets will be available on the night.
WATCH THE GAME
You can watch the game LIVE on Sky Sports Football. Posh supporters abroad can stream the game on Posh+ if in a territory where the game is not being broadcast.
KIT COLOURS
We will be wearing our home kit for this fixture. You can now get 35% off all home replica kit both in store and online.
MATCH OFFICIAL
Lewis Smith is the match official assisted by Joe Simpson and Thomas Cooke. Edward Duckworth will act as fourth official.
INFORMATION FOR TRAVELLING FANS
Stadium Address: STōK Cae Ras, Mold Road, Wrexham LL11 2AH
Capacity: 13,341
Distance from the Weston Homes Stadium: 160 miles
Posh Allocation: 700
Away Pubs: The Rockin’ Chair is the dedicated away pub for visiting supporters. This is located at 17 Hill Street, Wrexham, LL11 1SN.
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