Now in his fourth spell with Peterborough, Ferguson has his sights set on winning the EFL Trophy and promotion from League One. Fourth-placed Posh are eight points shy of the automatic promotion spots but, crucially, have two games in hand on Derby in second.
Ferguson makes no secret of the fact that while winning the trophy on Sunday would be another feather in the club’s cap, a return to the Championship remains his principal goal.
Achieving such a feat with his current playing squad would also arguably surpass the four previous promotions he has achieved at Peterborough given the team’s youthful core.
The average of Peterborough’s squad is 22.9: the lowest in the whole of League One. Club captain Harrison Burrows, a homegrown 22-year-old left-back who has accumulated more goal involvements than some wingers, epitomises Posh’s current approach.
Ronnie Edwards, a 21-year-old centre-back coveted by several Premier League sides; Ephron Mason-Clark, a 24-year-old forward who has already sealed a move to Championship promotion chasers Coventry City; and 22-year-old winger Kwame Poku are just some of the other youngsters who have flourished during Ferguson’s latest tenure.
Ferguson is bidding to win the same competition a decade on (
Catherine Ivill)
Few clubs in the Football League are as shrewd as Peterborough in the transfer market and Ferguson has developed more than his fair share of talent who have gone on to be sold for big money. He believes his current crop of talent is the “most valuable” squad he’s ever worked with, though.
“It’s a very young squad – one of the youngest in the league. We know that. The group has got a lot of potential. We put together a squad very young with a three-year plan in terms which has maybe accelerated a little bit quicker [than anticipated].
“I felt at the start of the season, though, that this lot could fly. They just needed to show me they could cope with adversity and defeat and come back, which we have done.
“At the minute, though, it’s only potential. Can you get a promotion with this group? Can you win a trophy with this group? That’s the be-all and end-all. We’ve probably outweighed a lot of people’s expectations, but we haven’t outweighed mine.
Ferguson still has aspirations of securing his fifth promotion for Peterborough this season (
Kevin Hodgson/NurPhoto)
“It’d be great for the club if we went there and picked up the trophy again. I’d personally take a lot of pride in it being such a young group. There are so many players, managers and staff who will never get to Wembley. Realistically at this level, the only way you’re getting there is through this tournament of the play-offs, so I feel privileged to take such a young group there – but the most important thing is promotion.”
Like Ferguson, Mason-Clark will be treading familiar ground this weekend when he bids to pen a memorable final chapter in his Peterborough story. With a seven-figure transfer to Coventry signed off in January, Mason-Clark’s time in a blue shirt is limited until the end of the season.
