Chris Whelpdale was on target against his former club as Peterborough United recorded a 3-3 draw against non-league Billericay on Saturday afternoon in a highly-entertaining pre-season friendly.

After falling behind early on, a youthful Posh side responded well with Aaron Mclean levelling the scores before Whelpdale finished off a fine move. Former Kettering Town striker Rene Howe added a third from a superb pass from player-manager Darren Ferguson who was making his first appearance. 'I didn't break sweat,' Ferguson commented. 'I just sat in midfield!'

Billericay bounced back in the second half and two goals in five minutes earned the plucky non-leaguers a draw. Chris Westwood came through 90 minutes unscathed on his return to action and has put himself in contention for a starting role on the opening day of the season against Rochdale.

'It was a good workout for us and the players that needed a game got one, which is obviously important. Billericay played well and came back well in the second half, but there were positives to take for us as it was a youthful side we had out,' Ferguson added.