´We are not a charity case´ – Ferguson defends denial of father-son matchup at Everton

Peterborough United manager Darren Ferguson has defended his decision not to bring Tyler Young off the bench during their 2-0 defeat to Everton at Goodison Park in the FA Cup.

Posh had trailed 1-0 after a first-half goal from Beto before a penalty in second-half stoppage time from Iliman Ndiaye killed Thursday’s game as a contest.

But the build-up to the match had been dominated by the prospect of 18-year-old Tyler Young, who plays for Peterborough, facing 39-year-old father Ashley.

Had they both got onto the pitch at the same time, it would have been the first time in FA Cup history that a father and son had played against one another, but it did not happen.

While Ashley came off the bench with 17 minutes to go, Tyler remained an unused substitute and was not able to add to his solitary first-team appearance this season.

Instead, Ferguson used his final substitution to bring on forward Malik Mothersille with the score still 1-0 in the 88th minute.

GUTTED……

— Ashley Young (@youngy18) January 10, 2025

“It was very difficult to leave Tyler on the bench but I’ve got to do what I think is best for the team,” said Ferguson.

“As much as I wanted Tyler to get on, if the game had been 2-0 at that point I would’ve put him on but at 1-0, I had to get a forward on. I’ve got to try and get something out of the game and do what is best for my team.

“One of their [Everton] players had a pop at me, which was bang out of order. We are not a charity case.”

Tyler had not been named in any of Peterborough’s previous 14 matchday squads prior to playing Everton away, with his only appearance coming in the EFL Trophy in October.

Ashley, meanwhile, consoled his son after the final whistle and posted the word ‘gutted’ in block capitals on his X profile on Friday morning, indicating his unhappiness at Tyler not having got on the pitch.