The Posh under 18s were held to a 1-1 draw by Leyton Orient.
The Peterborough United under 18s continued their excellent start to the campaign with a hard-fought 1-1 draw with Leyton Orient at the Nene Park Academy last weekend.
The O’s, who were managed by former Posh centre back Andy Edwards, provided a stiff test for Dave Robertson’s men, but the Posh youngsters put in an impressive display.
Robertson said: ‘It was an excellent game, very competitive and full of chances. We went into the game top of the table, while Orient were third. Both sets of players were fully committed and they are always good encounters when we play Orient.
‘The most important bit for me was it was a good tactical battle. They weren’t prepared for the formation that we started the game with and we changed the system twice to try and gain the upper hand. I think the draw was a reasonable result, but if I am honest, I think we created enough opportunities to nick it, definitely in the first half.
‘Jack Friend played well in the number 10 role. He is a good footballer and he can play in a number of positions. He is a clever player who is giving me headaches as a manager. There is good competition between Jack, Tye Phillips and Jonny Edwards in attack. They are all in form and have scored a lot of goals in recent weeks.
‘Jack is an exciting player and the three link very well if they are on the pitch at the same time. We have a lot of fixtures in the coming weeks. It is going to be key in how we manage them. Our players are learning a lot from the different types of matches that they are involved in, from the under 18 league, the under 21 Final Third Development League to the Premier League Cup and the FA Youth Cup campaign, which is just around the corner.
‘I am already watching games in the Youth Cup competition. There is a good variety of competition, which will challenge the players in terms of their learning development and I have to say, as a manager, I am very proud of my players in how they have stepped up to the plate and dealt with those learning opportunities.’
Tye Phillips scored the Posh goal, capitalising on a defence mix-up to slot past the keeper. Orient levelled from the spot after a harshly awarded penalty was given by the referee.
Posh: Henry, Marshall, Ward, Palmer, Worrall, Hood, Ompreon, Anderson, Friend, Trialist, Phillips.