All the information you need to know ahead of Peterborough United’s pre-season preparations for the 2019/20 season as we get the lowdown on our opponents.
Nottingham Forest
The Posh kick off their pre-season matches with a friendly fixture against Championship side Nottingham Forest. The game will take place at the Pinatar Arena in Murcia, Spain, on Saturday July 6th (6pm kick off).
After the departure of Martin O’Neill last Friday, it is Sabri Lamouchi who has been handed the reigns as manager at the City Ground. Forest have signed former Bolton Wanderers forward, Sammy Ameobi. Ameobi will replace Apostolos Vellios, who departed the Reds to join Greek side Atromitos. Forest have also lost the services of winger Hilal Soudani, who moved to Olympiacos for an undisclosed fee.
Posh will be Nottingham Forest’s third pre-season match, with the Reds set to take on Non-League side Alfreton Town, and SPFL side Dundee, within the next week.
Stamford AFC
Following Posh’s return from Spain, they will travel to the Zeeco Stadium to take on Stamford AFC. The fixture will take place on Wednesday July 10th, 7:30pm kick off.
The Daniels currently compete in the Evo-Stik Northern Premier League First Division East and will be looking to improve on their 11th place finish from last term. In their bid to do so, they recently announced the signings of five players: Sam Hill, Sean Wright and Cleveland Taylor – who have all had previous spells with the club – in addition to Charlie Ward who joined The Daniels from Lincoln United, and striker Tom Siddons, who signed from Grantham.
The Posh took on Stamford last pre-season and claimed a 5-1 victory over the Daniels. Siriki Dembele, Matty Stevens (2), George Cooper and Joe Ward netted the Posh goals, whilst Liam Adams put the hosts on the board from the penalty spot.
Kettering Town
Saturday July 13th sees the Posh take on Kettering Town in a 3pm kick off. The Poppies are preparing for life in the National League North, after winning the Southern League Premier Division Central, last season.
Kettering captained by defender Michael Richens, who came through the academy at the Weston Homes Stadium.
Kettering’s main goal threat is Aaron O’Connor, who has scored over 50 goals in over 80 games since joining the Poppies in 2016.
Stevenage
Peterborough United will travel to Stevenage for a pre-season friendly on Tuesday 16th July with a 7.45pm kick off as manager Darren Ferguson continues to shape his schedule ahead of the new Sky Bet League One campaign.
Stevenage finished 10th in the Sky Bet League Two table last term, narrowly missing out on a spot in the play-off positions. Posh have regularly included a visit to Stevenage in their pre-season schedule in recent years.
Barnet FC
On Saturday July 20th, the Posh travel to the Hive to take on Darren Currie’s Barnet, in a 3pm kick off. The Bees are looking to mount a promotion push following a 12th place finish in the National League last term.
There is a number of links between the two sides. Posh’s Director of Football, Barry Fry, managed Barnet in two separate spells. The first was between 1978-1985, and the second was 1986-1993.
The Bees have a number of former Posh players in their ranks. Ricardo Santos, Shaquille Coulthirst and Andre Boucaud have recently been joined by ex-Posh goalkeeper Scott Loach, who signed on the dotted line at the Hive last week.
Bedford Town
Following on from a trip to Barnet, will be a visit to Bedford Town. This match will take place on Tuesday July 23rd, kicking off at 7:30pm.
The Eagles currently play in the Evo-Stik League South, East, and will be looking to push on towards promotion after finishing in 4th place last season. They are managed by Jon Taylor, and his assistant is former Boston United goalkeeper, Nathan Abbey.
Grimsby Town
The penultimate game of Posh’s pre-season campaign will be against Grimsby Town. This fixture will take place at Blundell Park on Saturday July 27th, 3pm kick off.
The Mariners finished 17th in League Two last season and will be looking to improve on that in the new campaign. They have added target man James Hanson to their ranks, in addition to forwards Moses Ogbu and Matt Green and midfielder Elliott Hewitt.
Grimsby have one former Posh player in their ranks. Goalkeeper James McKeown signed for the Mariners shortly after departing Posh in 2011. He has gone on to play over 400 times for the League Two side.
Deeping Rangers
On Monday July 29th, a Posh XI will travel to the Haydon Witham Stadium to take on Deeping Rangers. The Rangers finished 2nd in the United Counties League Premier Division last term and are building towards another strong campaign this term.
Posh last took on Deeping ahead of the 2017/18 season and ran out 4-1 winners. Ricky Miller scored twice, whilst Danny Lloyd and Morgan Penfold netted the other Posh goals. Experienced forward Michael Gash scored the hosts’ consolation goal.
By Tom Lea