Luton Town Football Club

• Place in third round at stake

• 2pm, Sunday kick-off

• Town lost twice in 12 visits to Peterborough

• Posh sixth in L1, country’s leading scorers

• Hatters lost last two matches in L2

• Peterborough won five of last six in L1

• Number of links between the two clubs

WHO? Posh currently lie sixth in League 1 and are managed by former Stevenage boss Graham Westley.  There are plenty of connections between the two clubs with John Still a former manager while Mark Tyler, Craig Mackail-Smith, Josh McQuoid and Scott Griffiths all former Posh players. Former Town player Barry Fry is director of football at London Road while striker Lee Angol joined Posh this summer after a year on the books with the Town.

WHERE? London Road has changed since the Town’s last visit with the once popular away terrace now replaced by an all-seated stand behind the goal. Seating for Hatters fans is available in this recently-opened construction, as are seats in Posh’s main stand beside the pitch. 

TICKET NEWS. As we sit here typing this story (10.45ish on Friday morning) the Luton Town ticket office had sold just under 2,000 tickets for Sunday’s tie. Tickets remain available up until midday on Saturday. The game is ALL-TICKET and none will be available on the day at London Road. All the info you need on ticketing for this match can be found right here.

HOW TO GET THERE? A trip to Peterborough isn’t particularly stressful – it should take no more than an hour to complete the 60-mile trip up the A1. Simply leave the A1 at the junction with the A15. Take the A15 towards Peterborough, you will eventually come to the ground on your right. The postcode for London Road is PE2 8AL. You can also go with the Bobbers who leave Luton train station at 11am. Their fare is £20 for adults and £18 for concessions.

HAVEN’T WE MET BEFORE? The Town will be making their first trip to London Road since a 2-2 draw in League 1 in January 2005. The Hatters have only lost twice in 12 visits to Peterborough – their last win came in February 2004 when goals from Ahmet Brkovic and Steve Howard secured a 2-1 win. Only once have the two clubs met in the FA Cup, with the Hatters winning 3-0 in the third round in 1983. Posh’s last home win over the Hatters came in a December 2000 meeting in the LDV Vans Trophy (now JPT), but you have to go all the way back to February 1965 for the last (and indeed only time) Peterborough have beaten the Town in the Football League at London Road.

HEAD-TO-HEAD. The overall record for the Town v Posh reads: Played 24, won 9, drawn 11, lost 4; scored 37, conceded 26.

HOW ARE THEY DOING? Very well. Posh have surged up the League 1 table under new boss Westley and have snuck into the Play-Off places following a run of five wins in six league matches. Posh are also the country’s leading scorers with 46 league goals. Posh have hit 12 goals in their last three games (4 v Scunthorpe, 3 v Barnsley, 5 v Crewe), and have averaged exactly three goals per game in their last 10 matches (that’s 30 goals for the non-math savvy). In the 10 games prior to that Peterborough scored just 16 goals.

TOWN TEAM NEWS. The Town remain without the services of the suspended Paul Benson who serves the final match of his three-game ban. Nathan Doyle is in contention for a starting place after coming through 90 minutes for the development squad on Wednesday. Defenders Magnus Okuonghae and Stephen O’Donnell also had 90 minutes in the same match but are likely to need another development match before competing for a first team spot. Luke Guttridge is back in training and could be involved, but while Dan Potts and Pelly Ruddock are improving fitness they are unlikely to feature.

 

REF WATCH. Nigel Miller is Sunday’s man-in-the-middle. The County Durham whistler oversaw three Town games last season, the wins over Carlisle (away) and Stevenage (home), plus the FA Cup second round tie at Bury which ended 1-1. So far this season Mr Miller has dished out 47 yellow cards and three reds in 14 games.

 

LIVE AND ONLINE. As ever, we’ll be reporting live from London Road. Build-up starts at 11am, so get on our early blog on the Wall for all the latest updates.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for photos, videos and all the behind-the-scenes action. Hatters Player subscribers will be able to listen to live commentary from just before 2pm with Simon Pitts in the press box. 

Post-match, remember to check out the official website, YouTube channel and Player for reports, interviews and photographs and don’t forget to tune in from midday on Sunday for all the highlights in glorious HD!