Peterborough boss Darren Ferguson was left delighted after his side claimed a 3-0 derby victory over MK Dons.

Jonson Clarke-Harris’ seventh-minute breakthrough, which saw him turn in a Joe Ward cross, was followed by a welcome brace from Sammie Szmodics, who snapped a goal drought of almost four months.

Szmodics struck for the first time in 17 games to double the advantage on the half-hour, before putting the result beyond doubt 20 minutes into the second half. Siriki Dembele was the architect of both of those goals.

Dons dominated possession for long spells but rarely looked like making it count. Regan Poole went closest with a long-range blockbuster that crashed against the bar late in the first half.

Posh boss Ferguson said: “Three points, three goals and a clean sheet, so I’m a very happy manager.

“It was an excellent start and I was delighted to then see Sammie back among the goals. He looks like he is getting back to his old self and scoring will give him a lift.

“He showed great composure to round the goalkeeper for the first one and was in the right place to get his reward again for the second one.

“We all know the boy is a good player and I always felt it was only a matter of time before he got going again.

“MK Dons had a lot of the ball but they didn’t cause us many problems throughout the game.

“The defensive part of our game – especially the communication and organisation – were excellent, as was the togetherness.

“We’re in a good place at the moment and hopefully we can go on a run.”

MK Dons manager Russell Martin said: “I’m obviously disappointed with the result, but not the performance that we produced. I think 3-0 is a really harsh scoreline.

“We knew we were coming to face the most potent front three in the league with a makeshift defence and conceding so early on made it even more difficult.

“But the way the players were still fighting for each other at the end of a second half they dominated is really pleasing.

“The frustrating thing is that we conceded and allowed Peterborough to get their third goal with the only shot we had to deal with in that half.

“That summed the game up. Peterborough had very little in terms of chances but took those that did come, whereas it was just a case of the cross or the final pass not quite being there for us.

“It is clear and obvious we need to get important players back fit as quickly as possible and also replace those that have gone out of the building with quality.”