Derby County should see Peterborough United v Cheltenham Town as a warning: View | OneFootball

It is set to be a crucial weekend for Derby County as they look to secure promotion from League One.

The Rams beat Cambridge United 1-0 at the Abbey Stadium on Saturday, but Bolton Wanderers' win over Port Vale and Peterborough United's victory at Bristol Rovers ensured that the battle for the second automatic promotion spot would go down to the final day.

Peterborough are now out of the race after their 2-0 defeat at Cheltenham Town on Tuesday night, but Bolton can beat Derby to second place if they win at Posh on Saturday and the Rams lose at home to Carlisle United.

Derby could not have wished for more favourable opponents than bottom side Carlisle, who have already been relegated, and a sold-out Pride Park will be rocking.

The Cumbrians must not be underestimated, and they have won away at Bolton and Peterborough this season, but the Rams should have too much for Paul Simpson's side, particularly with so much at stake.

Derby supporters may initially have taken comfort in the fact that Bolton face a tough trip to Peterborough, but Posh fielded a much-changed team in their defeat at Cheltenham, and should they do the same again on Saturday, an emphatic victory for the Trotters could not be ruled out.

Peterborough manager Darren Ferguson made seven changes to his team against Cheltenham, leaving key players such as Josh Knight, Ronnie Edwards, Harrison Burrows, Archie Collins, Joel Randall, Kwame Poku and Ephron Mason-Clark out of the matchday squad altogether.

It was a surprise to see Ferguson rotate so much, particularly as Posh still mathematically had a chance of automatic promotion, although it would have taken a big swing in goal difference for them to finish second.

Ferguson gave opportunities to a number of youngsters on Tuesday night, with the likes of James Dornelly, Emmanuel Fernandez and Harley Mills starting the game, while Charlie O'Connell, Jacob Wakeling and Pemi Aderoju were introduced from the bench, and they found it difficult against a Cheltenham team fighting for their lives at the bottom of the table.

The Robins would have been relegated with anything less than a victory, but they put in a dominant performance, and goals from Joe Nuttall and Matty Taylor gave them a two-goal lead after 21 minutes.

Only poor finishing prevented Darrell Clarke's men from extending their advantage, but Ferguson defended his team selection post-match, insisting that some of his players needed a rest.

"Tonight we had to rest players. Jadel has probably played a little longer than I hoped so we’ll have to assess him, but it was an opportunity for others. You don’t know what’s going to happen between now and the play-offs," Ferguson told the Peterborough Telegraph.

"The squad is the squad and all of the players might be needed. One of two might just have taken the opportunity a little better.

"It’s disappointing to lose because we don’t want to lose games of football. We just didn’t cope with the intensity of the opening periods even though we spoke about it to the players several times."

After a month which has seen Peterborough play eight games already, it could prove to be a shrewd move by Ferguson to rest players ahead of the play-offs.

It remains to be seen how strong a team Ferguson will field on Saturday, but after the makeshift Posh defence struggled at Cheltenham, Derby supporters will be fearing the worst if he names a similar line-up against Bolton.

Bolton are the second-highest scorers in League One with 83 goals, and with the Trotters having an inferior goal difference to Derby, Ian Evatt will demand an attacking approach from his side against Peterborough.

Wanderers won 5-0 at Peterborough last season, and if they face a weakened Posh team this weekend, an equally comprehensive victory is not beyond the realms of possibility, meaning Derby will need to pick up a point against Carlisle to seal promotion.