QUE sera, sera, whatever will be, will be, we’re going to Barns-ley!

Without making light of what was ultimately a disappointing day at Peterborough, what else can we do now but put full faith in a team that could just as easily blast a path to Wembley in the next week, as it could implode under the pressure to perform?

If the Bolton Wanderers who blitzed Posh in the opening 45 minutes turn up at Oakwell, job’s a good’n.

That side is the one Ian Evatt refers to when he describes the ‘Best Team in the League’ – and in that sort of form, the engravers might as well save themselves some time and put Bolton’s name on the trophy right now.

But then there is the other team, the one riddled with nervousness and expectation, the one which misses key chances and makes poor decisions. That team showed up for most of the second half at London Road, and if it proves to be the prevailing influence over the next two games then it looks like another season spent travelling to Burton and Stevenage.

Everyone was praying for a miracle on Saturday lunchtime but instead we got a big fat dose of conventionality. Derby won their scrappy game – they always win a scrappy game – while Wanderers both thrilled and tormented a massive contingent of loyal travelling fans, who once again played their part to the letter.

Of course, the fact that the Rams were ahead in their game played its part in nullifying Bolton’s early vim and vigour. One can only imagine what the mood would have been like among the players at half time when they had played Peterborough off the park, only to learn that Derby were 1-0 up against Carlisle and their fans were already breaking out the Moet.

There was a desperate slump in the second half which ordinarily would be scrutinised as a manifestation of the problems which had seen the Whites fall short of their pre-season target. In this case, there doesn’t seem a need to read too deeply into events once it became clear Paul Warne had taken another unspectacular team into the Championship.

Indeed, there is no point moping around at all. Bolton go to a Barnsley side that has seemingly been in self-destruct mode since Randell Williams scored an equaliser at Oakwell at the start of March. That they made the play-offs at all was the true miracle.

If Wanderers cannot muster a two-legged win against a side in that sort of form then criticism that has drifted around over the past few weeks is warranted.

Evatt has put up his case for mitigation. The injuries his side suffered at the start of the year were indeed crippling – but then a glance at Portsmouth and Derby’s fortunes would suggest they had similar issues. They just managed to stay more consistent during the whole process.

Neither first nor second have won this race particularly convincingly. Wanderers’ highs have been higher. And having witnessed that the team can do at their best, it only makes it more frustrating to see what happens when they don’t play to that level.

The first 10 minutes of Saturday’s game were among the most scintillating of the season.

Kyle Dempsey, in for the poorly Paris Maghoma, put Wanderers ahead with a fine header from Randell Williams’ corner, and just a couple of minutes later Dion Charles doubled the lead from the penalty spot with his 18th of the season.

Getting Charles back in scoring form for the play-offs was one of the afternoon’s true delights. And there was much about his performance in the first half that harked back to his very best high-energy displays earlier in the season.

Unfortunately, Derby had seized an advantage against Carlisle at roughly the same time. Accounts suggest the Cumbrians were still fighting and the game was not done, but it must have been a demoralising thing to learn that those early efforts were in vain.

Peterborough’s young team are even more unpredictable than Bolton. For every brilliant touch and turn of pace they misplaced two passes, and their defensive negligence at times was alarming.

Even so, Ephron Mason-Clark looked a constant threat. Gethin Jones knew he had been in a game but lost sight of his marker just the once in the first 45 minutes, and the soon-to-be Coventry City player rolled a shot wastefully wide of goal.

Wanderers looked in control for the most part, however, and though the home fans aimed their anger at referee Bobby Madley – seemingly for awarding a marginal penalty for a trip on Williams – they need not have worried, as he didn’t come out for the second half because of a calf strain.

His replacement, Scott Tallis, took a slightly different approach, pandering somewhat to the Posh players whose first instinct was to fall, rather than to play.

Credit to Darren Ferguson’s side, however, as they took full advantage. Malik Mothersille put them on the scoreboard five minutes after half time – a goal Evatt later claimed should have been ruled out because of a handball in the build-up, and Joel Randall levelled after bursting through the middle and looking suspiciously offside.

Mothersille then put Peterborough ahead, with Bolton’s heads now truly gone and Derby two goals to the good. It seemed some awkward questions were on their way.

But then a rare moment of fortune. Nat Ogbeta, on as a sub, put a good ball in from the left and another replacement, Cameron Jerome, put the ball in the net with rather limited involvement.

A third goal in three games represented his best run of scoring form since 2021, and just reward for at least trying to impact the game when he came off the bench in such desperate circumstances.

How much you can take from the game is questionable, though both managers will probably jot down some notes on weaknesses in the event the two teams meet again on May 18.

Bolton have missed out on their primary aim. If they go on to win at Wembley, very, very few people will care. And if Peterborough are the toughest test they will face, there is every reason to be optimistic if the next match occurs on the plush flat turf of Wembley, rather than the cabbage patch served up on Saturday lunchtime.

All is not lost, dear Wanderers fans. Feel free to moan and groan over the next few days and pick out the points that have been lost over the last eight months, but you and I both know by Friday the dream will have started all over again. This is football, and why we keep coming back.