Tayo Edun takes a bow. Not only has he been arguably one of the best signings in the Darren Ferguson era in terms of impact, but also he now has the tag of Cambridgeshire derby match winner.
The left back, who joined in January, has been earning rave reviews for his displays in the Posh starting line-up, but he added a touch of class in terms of a set piece to settle the latest local derby between Peterborough United and Cambridge United.
And after a string of defeats in a row, it could turn out to be the last derby for quite a while with the U’s now looking in real trouble in the relegation zone.
Edun’s memorable day was somewhat affected by a late second yellow card, which means he will miss a reunion with Charlton Athletic at the Weston Homes Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The first half was largely uneventful in terms of clear-cut opportunities on a tricky surface with referee Ed Duckworth ensuring that it had a stop-start feel to the contest.
Sam Hughes saw a header from an Edun corner kick headed away from danger by Michael Morrison while Kwame Poku curled a shot wide of the upright.
Jed Steer showed a tremendous ability to take the sting out of the U’s threat from wide areas by claiming crosses and corner kicks and produced a big save on the stroke of half time to deny Stokes.
In the second half, it opened up slightly with the U’s starting the half well without really looking like they were going to break the deadlock until Stokes wriggled past Wallin but fired over from the angle.
At the other end, two substitutions made the desired effect with Cian Hayes winning the free kick that EDUN superbly curled home on on 71 minutes.
Ricky-Jade Jones, another introduction, helped stretch the U’s back-line, he raced onto a Mothersille flick but dragged his shot wide of the target in the final 10 minutes.
Nlundulu took a heavy touch when well positioned while Steer continued to dominate aerially as Posh saw out the game despite a second yellow for Edun in stoppage time.
It meant a double over the U’s this season – the second season a row that Darren Ferguson’s men have taken the bragging rights, but with relegation looking a real possibility, the U’s have more pressing concerns than winning a local derby.
