A comprehensive performance that showed Saints are at long last on the right track and well placed for the final run in towards the Premiership.
In many respects this was the most pleasing performance of the season for Saints, it had just about everything, good team selection, a workmanlike performance on a tricky pitch with that fine balance between hard graft and guile and of course a vital three points on the road, if only Saints had been as clinical as this in a few other games in the past few months on their travels and promotion would already be in the bag.
Perhaps the biggest surprise on the day though was the inclusuion of Danny Butterfield at right back, although Frazer Richardson was expected to be missing through injury, most would have assumed that Dan Harding would again deputise, but Butterfield cam in for his first start in five months with the strange thing being that Harding didnt even make the bench, especially as Butterfield apart from being far from match fit has also been reported as being injured.
But from the off it was clear that Saints were up for it and have a new found mental toughness on the road honed from two difficult away trips in their last two games away from St Mary's, the first goal was fortunate with Watford on loan keeper getting caught in no mans land leaving Lambert a simple header, however the second was well worked with a clinical finish from Rickie Lambert and the game was effectively Saints as long as they did nothing silly.
Earlier in the season they might well of, but at Vicarage Road it was a different matter and they kept it tight looking for a third but making sure they didnt leave the back door open and give Watford a lifeline, the third was a somewhat fortuitous penalty, even Nigel Adkins admitted it was somewhat harsh, but from then on any lingering doubts the more cynical Saints fans might have had were doused and Saints cruised to an easy victory and back to the top of the league.
Although Rickie Lambert takes the man plaudits for a well taken hat trick and several other players should also be given a big pat on the back including Tandari Lee who put in a game full of high octane running, the fact was this was a team performance with a capital T, every man did his job and did it well and when a man was caught napping a teamamte was there to make sure it didnt cost us, from this point of view thia was why it was the most pleasing performance all round.
There is still a long way to go, but we took another big step in the right direction, if we make this two game winning run three and then four or five we could be on the cusp of promotion