ON the day that Darren Ferguson applauded George Boyd for sneaking in to the top 20 of Peterborough United's all-time appearances, Middlesbrough boss Tony Mowbray suggested why his predecessor spent so long trying to sign him.

During Gordon Strachan's 12 months in charge, he had instructed Boro's former chief executive Keith Lamb to work on thrashing out a deal for the forward-thinking player.

A deal, ultimately, broke down because of Posh's reluctance to lower their valuation of a player that Middlesbrough are believed to have offered in the region of around £1.5m for.

Eventually Boyd went to Nottingham Forest on loan, but after it didn't work out as expected he returned to London Road and has recaptured the sort of form that made him one of the hottest properties in the Football League.

Mowbray said: "George is a very talented player. I know a lot about him. He can travel with the ball, has good balance, play off both feet and he is a talent. A lot of clubs have asked about him. He was priced too high for Gordon by the looks of things and that's worked out for Peterborough."

Boyd, who has played 234 times for Peterborough since joining from Stevenage, is just 26 and he has been used by his manager, Ferguson, across the forward line.

Ferguson has also enjoyed something of a renaissance back at his old club, after an unsuccessful spell in charge at Preston.

Mowbray said: "Football teams are about chemistry and the balance of a team, squad. For those reasons, I don't know why it didn't work out for either of them elsewhere, but it seems to be right at Peterborough. It is a marriage that seems to work."

And Ferguson, the son of Sir Alex, will not be worried about the threat posed by third-placed Middlesbrough, who dumped Peterborough out of the Carling Cup earlier in the campaign.

"We will have to perform to the very limit of our standards, but if we do we know we can beat anyone at home," said Ferguson. "I'm very happy with the five wins from our eight home games, but also disappointed because we deserved two or three points more.

"A lot is often said about systems, but it's really about how your players perform on the day. If we are on our game we can give anyone a run for their money."

Mowbray, meanwhile, has revealed how he used the visit from England Under-21s coach Stuart Pearce to Rockliffe Park this week as an opportunity to discuss the direction the English game is heading in.

Pearce was on Teesside to announce an Under-21s fixture with Belgium at the Riverside on February 29.

Mowbray said: "He watched training develop, he was not hear to watch our young players. I like Stuart, he is a grounded individual who knows what the game is about. He has found himself in a very influential position in the national game.

"We talked about how to get the next Paul Gascoigne? Are we producing enough highly individuals? There's a lots of questions to be answered in English football."