Peterborough 0-1 Preston: Late Archer strike gives Lilywhites win
- Published
- comments
Preston's late winner means they beat Peterborough for the fifth time in a row in the league.
A late Cameron Archer strike gave Preston North End all three points and kept Peterborough United inside the Championship relegation zone.
In a game of few clear-cut chances, Preston's Emil Riis Jakobsen sent an overhead kick wide, before Kwame Poku shot over for the hosts.
Archer curled the ball into the top corner 10 minutes from time to delight the visiting fans.
The result sees Posh remain two points adrift of safety, while Preston move up one place to 11th in the table.
Ryan Lowe's team were in the ascendancy from the first whistle and could have had an early penalty kick when Alan Browne tumbled inside the box.
Referee Tim Robinson called for play to continue, which led to Andy Hughes' cross from the left cannoning off the top of the bar.
Another sustained spell of Lilywhites pressure saw Daniel Johnson's powerful shot saved, with Jakobsen's acrobatic follow-up flashing across the face of goal.
Peterborough gradually grew in confidence when midfielder Ollie Norburn drove a long-range effort into the hands of keeper Daniel Iversen.
Poku then wasted a great opportunity by blazing over from close range after the break, before his team-mate Joe Ward hit the bar with a free-kick.
Posh were ultimately punished when Archer unleashed a beautiful strike that gave keeper Steven Benda no chance, with Darren Ferguson's side having little time to find a leveller.
Peterborough United manager Darren Ferguson told BBC Radio Cambridgeshire:
"A game we didn't deserve to lose. My goalkeeper's not had a shot to save.
"The one real bit of quality in the game won the game.
"We just need a little break. Ward hits the bar, they go up the pitch and score.
"But in terms of what I'm looking for - a committed performance and a determined performance and one with intensity - we got that today."
Preston North End manager Ryan Lowe told BBC Radio Lancashire:
"I'm not really too bothered about the performance. I'm more interested in the win.
"The performance was not as great as we would have liked, but who cares? We have played better and lost or drawn.
"It was going to be a moment of brilliance from either side [which won the match]. The conditions didn't help.
"Luckily enough, that moment of brilliance came from us."