Wasteful Peterborough United suffer another defeat at the hands of Stevenage

That is what tends to happen though when you miss chances, make poor decisions when in great attacking positions and then fail to defend two crosses properly.

Posh should have been out of sight after 20 minutes after running the legs off cumbersome opponents, but they allowed Stevenage to make the game messy and paid the penalty. It was an unfortunate defeat if only because the visitors were so poor for most of the game.

Ricky-Jade Jones gave Posh an early lead and they should have been 3-0 up before Stevenage equalised on 18 minutes through Jake Taylor.

Peterborough lad Carl PIergianni headed the late winning goal which was remarkable in itself as Stevenage had shown little desire to try and win the game, spending most of the second period spoilin, niggling and wasting time. At least it would be an education in the harsh realities of professional football for a young Posh team.

Posh made nine changes for the competition few care about until Wembley Stadium arrives on the horizon. Only captain for the night Nathan Thompson and Harrison Burrows remained from the disappointment of Derby County, while goalkeeper Harvey Cartwright and latest signing Ephron Mason-Clark were handed their full Posh debuts.

Manager Grant McCann filled his bench with youngsters as well as David Ajiboye.

Posh fielded a flat back four with Thompson and Joe Tomlinson as full-backs. Mason-Clark was deployed in the middle of a front three with Kwame Poku and Ricky-Jade Jones on the flanks. Joel Randall and Burrows played well in advance of fellow midfielder Hector Kyprianou giving Posh a front five at times.

Stevenage made seven changes from the team that lost the club’s unbeaten record this season at Salford on Saturday. PIergianni skippered Steve Evans’ side and former Posh goalkeeper Aaron Chapman started. Ex-Posh man Michael Bostwick was left at home.

Posh selected a mobile unit which initially looked like running the legs off Stevenage. Jones was soon tearing down the left wing causing mayhem and it was no surprise when he raced past his marker to slot past Chapman to give Posh a ninth minute lead.

Randall should have made it 2-0 moments later when finding himself free in the penalty area only to shoot wide. Poku saw a shot saved by Chapman and Mason-Clark shot disappointingly well off target after a defensive slip had left him clear in the box.

Mason-Clark then saw a deflected shot slip past the post and inevitably those missed opportunities were punished on 18 minutes when Posh left three men unmarked at the back post enabling Taylor to score off the inside of a post.

The game then became rather messy which suited Stevenage, although the better opportunities still arrived when Posh attacked.

Poku twice sped to the byline with Tomlinson just failing to connect with one cross and Thompson fired over after the second centre had been cleared to him.

Poku took matters into his own hands by slamming a shot against the crossbar as Posh took complete control of the ball after the break, while the visitors were reduced to shirt pulls, niggles and shoves, moves that were rarely punished by sleepy officials.

Mason-Clark’s skill and cross was ruined by a sliced Jones shot and a superb dig out from Jones was just too high for Mason-Clark.

Posh should have re-taken the lead 13 minutes from time when Tomlinson’s superb cross was somehow missed by Jones with the goal at his mercy.

Posh were far less fluent in the second-half as Stevenage successfully sucked the life out of the game, helped by a referee who was never in a rush himself.

It was certainly an unfortunate defeat though, one which was confirmed after a corner was returned into the area for Piergianni to score with a firm header six minutes from time.

Posh almost equalised in the final minute when Randall’s fine header across goal was met by Thompson whose shot beat Chapman, but not Dan Sweeney who made a fine goalline clearance.

So Stevenage completed a quickfire double over Posh whose management won’t lose sleep over the result, but they might be kept awake by players who, Poku and Jones apart, didn’t demand a place at Portsmouth in a far more important game on Saturday.

Posh: Harvey Cartwright, Joe Tomlinson, Josh Knight, Charlie O’Connell, Nathan Thompson, Harrison Burrows (sub David Ajiboye, 65 mins), Hector Kyprianou, Joel Randall, Ricky-Jade Jones (sub Joe Taylor, 80 mins), Kwame Poku, Ephron Mason-Clark

Unused subs: Will Blackmore, Roddy McGlinchey, Ashton Fox, Gabe Overton, Harry Titchmarsh

Stevenage: Aaron Chapman, Luther James-Wildin, Jake Reeves (sub Jordan Roberts, 59 mins), Carl Piergianni, Terence Vancooten, Dan Sweeney, Jake Taylor, Dean Campbell (sub Arthur Read, 70 mins), Saxon Earley, Luke Norris (sub Kane Smith, 80 mins), David Amoo (sub Jamie Reid, 59 mins).

Unused subs: Taye Ashby-Hammond, Max Clark.

Goals: Posh – Jones (9 mins)

Stevenage – Taylor (18 mins), Piergianni (84 mins).

Cautions: Posh – Knight (unsportsmanlike conduct).

Stevenage – Reeves (foul), Earley (unsportsmanlike conduct).

Referee: Rob Lewis

Attendance: (to follow).