Youngster Scott Ginty scored the winner seven minutes from time as Peterborough United claimed a 1-0 victory over Stamford AFC in the opening pre-season friendly of the campaign at the Vic Couzens Stadium on Tuesday evening.

Ginty finished coolly with his left-foot to secure a narrow victory for a youthful Posh side which included just four members of the current first team squad. Striker Aaron Mclean came through over an hour unscathed after five months on the sidelines, while debutante Rene Howe played 70 minutes.

Scott Ginty scores the winner

Guy Branston and Trevor Benjamin were given run-outs and both earned praise from the management for their application, but it was the way the members of the youth squad performed, particularly in the second half that drew the most positive comments from boss Darren Ferguson.

'It was a good exercise, some of the young players did well and obviously it was important for Aaron to get over an hour of action. The older players applied themselves well and the young ones did well towards the end. We changed the formation to 4-4-2 and that suited them better.

'It was a fitness exercise at the end of the day and that is what we will take out of the match. It was the first game of our schedule, the last two or three friendlies I will look at it tactically, but from here on in it will be fitness stuff. The trialists did well, the lad at the back from Leicester acquitted himself well and it is always nice to win games - it is a good habit to get into,' Ferguson told theposh.com.

Mclean looked fairly sharp throughout the hour he spent on the pitch and created one or two half-chances for himself with his determined running. He saw a shot blocked in the second half after a forceful run and saw a downward header smothered by the goalkeeper in the first half.

Former Kettering Town front man Howe saw a snap-shot well saved and also caused one or two problems aerially for the hosts defence. Youngster Billy Crook, who was introduced as a first half substitute, cracked the outside of the post late on before Ginty slotted the ball past the goalkeeper with his left-foot to secure the win.