Peterborough 2

Bradford City 2

Dean Windass almost didn't get the chance to score his wonder goal.

City's red-hot hitman blasted them level with a volley which would have stunned the Premiership, let alone Peterborough.

But it nearly didn't happen after Colin Todd threatened to haul off both his strikers.

Todd gave Windass and Andy Cooke 15 minutes after the break to buck up their ideas following a disappointing first half.

With City somehow trailing 2-0 to poor opponents, Todd felt the frontmen were not pulling their weight - and a half-time rocket made that very clear.

"I told them to improve quickly or they'd be coming off," said Todd. "I just felt they weren't working hard enough to make things happen.

"They were on the back foot and weren't helping the team. The message got through that they had to be better."

A few harsh words were flying - and Windass couldn't have agreed more.

He said: "I've had a good season but when you do drop below those standards then the boss is going to come down on you like a ton of bricks and rightly so. If he calls me names, he knows I'm going to respond in the right way. I'm no different to any player in that changing room and if I'm not doing it, then I've no right to carry on playing.

"I was frustrated with myself in the first half. We weren't getting a lot of service andd when we did, we kept giving the ball away.

"But I knew it couldn't get any worse. The only way is up and you've just got to play your way out of it."

City's record in front of small crowds is poor. In their eight previous games when the attendance dipped below 5,000, they had managed to win only once.

True to form, Posh's lowest league gate since 1991 saw the home side gifted an unlikely lead by a blooper from Paul Henderson.

City had found life almost too comfortable up to that point, knocking the ball around without seriously worrying Mark Tyler's goal.

Then came the first chance for Windass, whose glancing back header from Marc Bridge-Wilkinson's cross flicked against the far post and clear of the unsuspecting goalkeeper.

But straight away Peterborough found themselves in front as Steve Thomson's hopeful volley from way out slipped through Henderson's hands and into the net.

It was a shocking lapse from the usually solid stopper and completely knocked the wind out of City's sails.

They should have been level within a minute as Windass worked an opening with Cooke, only to shoot straight at Tyler's legs from close range. And worse followed after referee Paul Melin awarded a harsh free-kick against David Wetherall, who had appeared to win the ball from Calum Willock. Up stepped 38-year-old player-coach Andy Legg to curl it home. That was two goals in three minutes and suddenly half-time couldn't come quick enough - even if it meant a riot act from City's fuming manager.

Despite the two-goal cushion, City just needed a foothold to get back into the match.

And once again it was left to their scoring machine. Receiving a throw-in, Windass fired in a left-footer which gave Tyler no chance from 18 yards, especially with the deflection off a Peterborough heel.

Posh were now hanging on and Tyler did well to hold a fizzing low cross from Nicky Summerbee.

But he had absolutely no chance with the spectacular equaliser in the 72nd minute.

Windass went through his dying duck routine ahead of Steve Schumacher's free-kick, holding his back and hobbling around like an old man. We've seen it all before, of course, and as soon as the kick was taken he peeled round the back.

Mark Arber was alert to the threat and got the ball half-clear but after a spot of head tennis, it dropped back to the lurking Windass who lashed the sweetest of volleys past the unmoved Tyler. The keeper never smelt it as the ball smashed against his net.

"It's one of those that often ends up whacking someone in the face in the stand," said City's top-scorer. "I knew as soon as I hit it that the ball was on target and to see it in the top corner was just brilliant."

City poured forward looking for a winner, with Windass only denied a hat-trick by a great tackle from Sean St Ledger in the penalty box.

Posh looked finished but there was real danger on the break when St Ledger found himself off to the races. But Bridge-Wilkinson sealed an impressive performance with a potentially goal-saving tackle before the young right back could shoot.

A draw was not a great help for either side and out-of-form Hartlepool must be beaten at Valley Parade to keep the play-off bid bubbling.