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Southampton At Swansea City The Verdict

Last week Saints equalled the 102 year old club unbeaten record, this week they went one better, but its wasn't a game of two halves, but more one of two thirds, the first two stunning and the third as bad as we have been all season.

At the end Saints fans celebrated with Russell Martin and his team, but there was a gut feeling that we had nearly thrown it all away, after a superb first hour where we played as well as at any time in the season, suddenly we lost all shape and organisation.

The game started well with Che Adams putting us ahead after only 6 minutes and it was no surprise when Will Smallbone added a second on 20 minutes, a well taken goal and hopefully it will make some appreciate him more, he does not have the swagger of Flynn Downes, the passing ability of others, but he does the fetching and carrying, the stuff that doesn't get the glory and everyone needs someone in the team like that.

Saints were in cruise control and Swansea and their supporters looked worried that it might be another drubbing as it was at St Mary's a few weeks ago, but just before the break the home side pulled one back.

In truth it was both offside and as TV replays revealed also hand ball, but it could also be argued that Stuart Armstrong was offside for our second goal, so it in truth evened things up.

But what wasn't evened up was the scoreline and the two goal cushion was restored on 45 minutes when Flynn Downes first home from outside the area.

It was 3-1 at half time but it could easily have been 5-1 !

This was perhaps the best 45 minutes of the season and we were gelling as a team, we were building from the back with both Kyle Walker Peters & Ryan manning getting up and down the line and supporting the forwards.

The second half saw Swansea try to up the ante but Saints handled it well and started to play the possession game and stroke the ball around to the delight of the travelling supporters who ole'd and sung songs about being undefeated and Pompey.

But then came a change in the game on the hour mark, our defence had been impeccable and were the foundation of everything that was being built going forward, but then came a strange change on 60 minutes, off went Taylor Harwood-Bellis and on came Jack Stephens.

It could be said that with Harwood-Bellis on a yellow card this was bout taking precautions, but in my mind it was far too early in the game to be making the change, we were in control and not being stretched.

For some reason Russell Martin seems to have a desire to give Jack as much time on the pitch as he can, when we consider that the manager barely changed the central defensive pairing during Stephens 4 month injury absence, even though both Mason Holgate and Shea Charles had put in some sterling performances, now we seem to break up the pairing of Bednarek & Harwood-Bellis every week and chop and change at the back.

Whatever the reason it broke up the rhythm of the side and the Swansea and their fans had begun to notice and sensed there was something to be had from the game.

A difficult time to bring in loan signing Joe Rothwell on for his debut, but he showed that he knows what is needed in this division and hopefully he will be an asset.

In truth they created little, they just pressed, but we gave them the ball too easily and they really should have scored on at least two occasions because of it.

Gavin Bazunu though came to our rescue and made sure that we didn't throw away a two goal lead.

One downside was, that at the very moment the team needed the fans behind them all they got was virtual silence, the ole'ing had stopped, the songs about being undefeated were stopped dead and it was if there was an air of inevitability about what would happen next.

In truth this was perhaps our worst 30 minute spell of the entire 20 unbeaten spell in the League and we saved it for the last half hour before the record was surpassed.

The team though dug in and got us through the 90 minutes plus injury time and at the final whistle the celebrations began.

It was a fine sight to see Ryan Fraser hoisted on the shoulders of Che Adams, the Wee Man has been a big part of our last four months and it was right he got some applause, Russell martin seemed more subdued than usual, when he took his now customary acclaim, he pointed at the squad as if to say it is all about them and not me, a show of humility that bodes well.

This feat shouldn't be underestimated and the entire squad and coaching staff came to take the applause of the fans and rightly so, the feature of this run has been the unity in the squad and indeed staff, the common goal and all for one, one for all attitude that Russell Martin has instilled.

Perhaps the last few weeks have been about the record, but now that is has been broken the heat is off and we can concentrate on promotion, perhaps that will add a few more games to the record, but now we have pulled back Ipswich, we have to focus on the main goal.

What we have to make sure is that we don't take our foot off the gas now the record is broken, we have to keep being relentless and we didn't do that in the final half hour and that was a worry.

The manager has learnt some harsh lessons as the season has progressed and perhaps he learned another on Saturday, this season might well depend on goal difference, to make sure our is the best we have to put sides to the sword, at Swansea we didn't do that, we took our foot off the gas, there was no need for that either, with an FA Cup game next week and no League game for a fortnight our first choice players will get a rest at Watford and the back ups the chance to show what they can do at Vicarage Road.

We have come along way in the past 4 months or so and we can go further.

Personally I count this as 20 games unbeaten not 21, I don't count cup games, we could easily lose at Watford next week, but we could go on longer undefeated in the League.

So for me it is 20 games undefeated and we go again at Rotherham, the cup is a separate issue.

So congratulations to Russell Martin who has truly written his name into the Southampton history books, I have said this before, in the last 102 years many great managers of Southampton FC have got nowhere near this record and that deserved not only praise, but also respect from those who said that he was never going to be the man for this club.

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