BOSS Lee Bradbury admitted his emotions had lurched from agony to ecstasy during Cherries’ eventful 3-3 draw with League One promotion rivals Peterborough last night.

A stirring second-half comeback saw Bradbury’s men claim a potentially-crucial share of the spoils after they had clawed back a 3-1 half-time deficit at London Road.

Cherries were on the rack after free-scoring Posh had raced into 2-0 lead inside the opening 15 minutes thanks to goals from Craig Mackail-Smith and Tommy Rowe.

And although Danny Ings reduced the arrears with a 35th-minute effort, Mackail-Smith plundered his 29th goal of the season to put Posh in the driving seat at the break.

Predictably, the arrival of super hero Steve Fletcher as a second-half substitute galvanised Cherries, the 38-year-old assistant manager sparking an against-all-odds revival.

Fletcher’s exquisite header after 71 minutes gave Cherries hope before Adam Smith popped up with a dramatic injury-time leveller to stun Posh, his first career goal.

Cherries were aided by two howlers from Joe Lewis, the Posh goalkeeper flapping at a corner for the first goal and then allowing Smith’s drive to squirm through his grasp at the death.

Bradbury said: “A lot has been said about the group of players we have got and it was there for all to see. We showed tremendous determination and character to come back. Other teams may have just rolled over and got beaten, as has happened a lot against Peterborough.

“They are a real force going forward and I knew they would want to repay us for beating them 5-1 at the start of the season. I feared for us after the first 20 minutes but, once we knuckled down, I thought we were a good side. We caused them problems and I was just so proud of the way the lads played.”

Loan star Smith went from villain to hero, the 19-year-old netting in the dying seconds after he had earlier been culpable for allowing Rowe to get the better of him for Posh’s second goal. Smith also had a couple of other goalscoring chances.

The Spurs teenager said: “It was a good feeling to get my first league goal. My performance probably didn’t really deserve a goal but you need to be strong mentally. I stuck with it and got my rewards. I had a couple of other chances and could have scored a hat-trick!

“It showed great spirit to come back from 3-1 down. You don’t get that at too many places and it is great to be involved with it here.”

Striker Steve Lovell replaced Ings after 72 minutes – his first appearance in a Cherries shirt this season and his first for the club since August 1999.

Lovell said: “I was delighted to get on and the outcome was fantastic. We were chasing the game at the end and you have got to give the boys credit because it was a fantastic comeback.

“It was always going to be difficult to pull back a two-goal lead but we showed great team spirit and the boys were delighted with a draw.”

Cherries are sweating on the fitness of Danny Hollands ahead of Tuesday’s trip to Bristol Rovers. The midfielder was forced off due to a toe injury at London Road and may require an X-ray.