FORMER Newport County AFC striker Conor Washington believes he can fire Peterborough United to promotion – one year on from his move to Posh.

The 22-year-old left Rodney Parade for London Road 12 months ago and has scored 12 goals so far for Darren Ferguson’s men.

Now Washington is targeting 20 goals to seal a League One play-off place.

And he credits Justin Edinburgh and his former County teammates for teaching him everything there is to know about becoming a professional footballer.

“The manager wants a 20-goal striker and I can be that man,” Washington told the Peterborough Telegraph.

“Now that we’ve stopped the bad run hopefully we will get back into the mix for the play-offs.

“It’s been a tough season so far for me as the manager has tried different combinations up front, but hopefully I’ve now done enough to get a run in the side.”

And a year after leaving Newport, the former St Ives Town ace says County helped him grow from a boy to a man.

“When I moved to Newport I was living with my mum in St Ives at the time so it was interesting to go and live on my own,” he told the Cambridge News.

“I was 19 at the time and it helped me grow up a bit.

“It was all a massive whirlwind. Looking back now I've got really fond memories of it all but at the time it was a case of taking each day at a time.

“I was working as hard as I could to get up to the standard Newport wanted me to be at. Luckily it didn't take me too long but it was a tough process.

“I had to learn fast. Football is a very strange environment. It's a man's environment, there was a lot of banter flying around, more so than anything I'd experienced anywhere before.

“It was a very tough first few weeks and I didn't feel I was quite up to the standard.

“I was working as hard as I could but fitness-wise I was well off, and maybe technically I was as well.

“Luckily for me I got my head down and managed to make the step up.

“I've got nothing but fond memories of Newport,” he added. “The club was great, as well as the manager and all the lads. The fans were brilliant.

“It was a good club for me to go into as they were on the rise. It's nice to see them doing well still. It was a very good grounding for me.”