Peterborough United Under 21s started their pre-season schedule on Saturday afternoon with a tightly contested fixture against Wingate & Finchley in the capital.
Two young Posh XI’s took to the field as they took on their Isthmian Football League opponents, with each side having a 45-minute runout. Ryan Semple named several new faces, as well as four trialists amongst the two squads, which was made up of players from both the U21 and U18 groups.
It didn’t take the hosts long to find their rhythm, with a succession of opportunities falling to them in the early stages. The Posh backline dealt with everything thrown at them comfortably to remove any danger. Jenson Sumnall, in particular, showcased his defensive prowess on his first appearance in Posh colours since making the move from West Bromwich Albion in the summer.
Posh responded with a notable chance of their own; Joel Odei-Larbi ventured forward and won a corner, which was very nearly converted by Sumnall who diverted his headed effort goalwards, before a Wingate defender blocked the attempt behind for a consecutive corner, this proving to be the last noteworthy chance of the first half for Posh.
Despite signs of encouragement, the young Posh side were unable to find a breakthrough in London and now turn their attention to a second-successive trip to the capital next Saturday, where they face Crystal Palace in their next pre-season outing.
Ryan Semple shared his thoughts with Posh+ following the game, he said: “The first half we had a lot of control, we played through our shape reasonably well, found where their weaknesses were and looked to exploit that in the first two thirds of the pitch.
“The patterns that we look to work on, that we’ve worked on through last season, and pre-season so far, certain patterns came out which is good, and we take it forward to the next game”.
Posh First Half XI: Blackmore, Freeman, Mendonca, Sumnall, Gbajumo, Trialist A, Challinor, Beech, Odei-Larbi, Trialist B, Kamara Sub (unused): Changunda
Posh Second Half XI: Sakalas, Holley, Trialist C, Gilbert, Fitzpatrick, Unwin, Trialist D, Fox, Sykut, McWilliams-Marcano, Davies Sub (unused): Changunda
Half-Time: Wingate & Finchley 0 – 0 Peterborough United U21s
Full Time: Wingate & Finchley 0 – 0 Peterborough United U21s
Attendance: 301
Referee: