CHAMPIONSHIP basement dwellers Peterborough ripped Ipswich Town to shreds, during the second half, to heap more woe on manager Roy Keane last night.

Carl Marston

Peterborough United 3 Ipswich Town 1

CHAMPIONSHIP basement dwellers Peterborough ripped Ipswich Town to shreds, during the second half, to heap more woe on manager Roy Keane.

Daryl Murphy's early goal was not enough to subdue plucky Posh, and they eventually ran out deserved winners thanks to second-half goals Liam Dickinson, Lee Frecklington and Craig Morgan.

Now Town are in danger of sliding into the relegation zone tonight. If Reading win at Crystal Palace, then Keane's men will be in the bottom three.

It had all started so well for Town, with Murphy nodding home his third goal in as many games, since his loan move from Sunderland, after just nine minutes.

Grant Leadbitter floated over a high corner, which looped over a static Posh defence and keeper for Murphy to plant the simplest of headers into an unguarded net.

But unlike at QPR, a dominant Town could not find a killer second goal, and they were made to pay as Posh came back impressively from the half-hour mark onwards.

The equaliser arrived just two minutes into the second half. Damien Delaney was adjudged to have clipped the heels of the onrushing Reuben Reid, and Dickinson, making his debut following his loan move from Brighton, beat Arran Lee-Barrett all ends up with a cracking 25-yard free-kick.

Town were wobbling, and they duly fell behind when Frecklington ran onto Dickinson's lay-off to direct his shot beyond Lee-Barrett.

There was no way back for sorry Ipswich, and centre-half Morgan headed home an 84th minute corner to seal the visitors' fate.