Voting was locked for this match at midnight on Wednesday 29th December but you may still add your mini match reports. Note that members and non-members alike were able to vote.

Your Southampton v Tottenham Hotspur Match Reports

KriSaint added 18:49 - Dec 28 A great point gained - 1-1 with us playing 10 against 11 for about an hour! Playing 5-3-2 we got ahead with a nice first timer from JWP after Salisus throw in bounced off Alli into JWPs path just inside the Spurs box , and he hesitated not, firing the ball hard with outwards spin into the net to the left of Hugo Lloris. Salisu got a very soft first yellow (for nothing) early on :( , and then he brought down the top diver of the PL, Son, in the box, about 10 minutes before half time -> Salisu off with his second yellow :( and Kane converted the penalty :( . 1-1. In the second halt we played on in our new 5-3-1 formation with Valery, Bednarek and Perraud as centerbacks, KWP as RB and Adam Armstrong as left back (!!!) - and our team put in a very good fight to gain a point. We were lucky when Doherty was penalized for having pushed Forster in the 6 yard box when Forster lost hold of the ball which dropped to the ground where either Forsters or Dohertys heel somehow put the ball over our goal line. Bizarre situation. In slow motion it looked like we got lucky there. Apart from that, Spurs never looked really dangerous in the second half, and Forster took the few attempts that were inside his goal frame (apart from Kanes second goal, which was correctly overruled for offside). Well done to Ralph and the team. Yan Valery gets my MOTM for getting so well through such a difficult match - as center back :-D Shane Long battled hard up front and won some important air duels and Broja who replaced him with 20 minutes left had our only big chance of the second half when he broke into the Spurs penalty area from the right and saw his shot blocked to a corner. JWP and Stu Armstrong also had shots blocked, and many of us Saints supporters thought Dier hand balled Stu Armstrongs shot. Slo mo showed it was not a penalty. Well done to the home crowd who sang and made noise throughout the match. > 31.000 were at St. Mary's. :-)

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Block8 added 18:57 - Dec 28 Sterling effort from all for an extremely well earned point. Definitely not the side any of us would have selected which started very well and deservedly went in front. Salisu has to learn from the sending off as he was diving in a bit recklessly, especially with a ref anxious to give them an advantage (that's how it looked to me) totally different game after the sending off but compelling just the same. Difficult to pick anyone out for singular praise but Levy must have wondered how they have spent so much money on full backs that are not a patch on the one they sold us! COYR

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WestSussexSaint added 18:59 - Dec 28 We have seen a lot of draws this season which felt like points dropped but this felt like a point won. Saints were the better side when 11 v 11 and it was a great defensive effort after the sending off. MOTM was Yan Valery - maybe is conversation to centre back will rejuvenate his career with us.
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Sadoldgit added 19:04 - Dec 28 Excellent first half performance but Salisu was always looking at another yellow card after his constant fouls. Surely better to let a player through. Even if he scores we still have 11 men on the pitch. Hopefully he will learn from that but you really can’t dive in when you have a yellow already. It was always going to be backs against the wall in the second half but everyone put in a shift and we managed to grind out a well won point. Not sure many of us would have expected 4 points from these two games, especially with the amount of rotation used by Ralph but fair play to him and the squad. No Salisu or KWP for the Newcastle game so perhaps it will do us a favour if it is called off and they miss the Swansea game instead?

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DellBoyWally added 19:32 - Dec 28 Didn't realise the rules were changed to allow teams to bring their own ref!!! Only 5 fouls by Spuds? Their left back committed more than that in the first half including an assault in Shane which had to be at least a yellow but we didn't even get a free kick. The rules say a player jumping for a ball must make a legitimate attempt to win it. The Suds player ducked his head and jumped backwards into FF, a clear foul, there or anywhere on the pitch. For that decision I upped the refs rating to 1. At the game and on the Amazon rerun I thought Son was offside but it wasn't shown the usual 8 times. In fact never repeated. Suspicious!! Perhaps the ref had a fiver on Kane to score at that minute?? See how he kept delaying the pen by walking up to FF to make home stand on the line. He can stand where he likes. Only when diving to save (or not) must he be in contact. Another masterclass in tactics and team selection from Ralf. With 11 we were much better than the overpaid Prima Donnas of the song-stealing Shites!! They do need lessons in standing up when someone brushes their shirts like gossamer on a spring breeze. Oh, the game? Enjoyed what I saw; much of the second half I had my eyes shut when they were in our half!!

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silverspringsaint added 19:49 - Dec 28 Heroes! The team played hard for each other, manager and fans. A good omen for the coming games! Salisu's habit of picking up cards through occasional rashness and poor judgement caught up with him (and us) today. Hopefully (as I expect) he will learn and improve on that. JWP continued his return to form, KWP was great as was Valery. Forster looked like calmness personified. Great shot stopping but still not commanding enough off his line. He got a bit lucky on the disallowed goal.

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SaintPaulVW added 19:59 - Dec 28 Another great game to watch. The usual omg moment when I saw the team sheet. However, some changes were forced in us, some players needed a rest and Ralph was proved right to use the benefit of a squad of players. Dominated the first half and rightly took the lead with a thunderbastard from JWP from ....a Salisu long or rather medium throw. Unfortunately, Salisu was probably right to go as he was doing some fairly robust stuff all over the pitch. A learning experience, although if Stephens had done it.... However, I know I'm biased, but how Spurs were let off the numerous bad challenges, I really don't know. Regilion should also have gone. Kane's goal was offside if Che's was off last season for the wrong coloured sleeve. Team dug in and fans watching the Amazon stream dug in to a second half of Southampton's heroic efforts being ignored by The commentators in favour of announcing that spurs still had a one in 5 chance of winning. A draw that felt like a win. 21 points at the half way point with Brentford still to play twice. COYR

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claus5 added 20:07 - Dec 28 At no point in the game did we play 5 at the back, what were you watching Krisaint?
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Monksway added 20:19 - Dec 28 This team, regardless of ability, plays for the shirt and the manager. Well done Saints!
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Bettwsresident added 23:15 - Dec 28 Great game, Salisu was a monster, playing brilliantly, but at the edge, taking Ali and Kane completly out of the game until he mistimes a challenge by 0.1 seconds. Felt like the world had ended, we were stuffed, but then KWP, JWP Bednarek and FF had blinders. Holding on to the point and the introduction of Broja was perectly timed. He was always going to make a chance and so nearly slotted it. 1 on 1 with a defender he skins them every time. What a player... sell Tino for the 25 buy out clause and buy Broja fo 40 if we can. He is a world class striker

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Bettwsresident added 23:18 - Dec 28 Ps watching on Amazon....Hoddle FFS, I wanted to lamp him!
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KriSaint added 23:32 - Dec 28 @claus5 Ok, 3-5-2 and then 3-5-1. Let's not argue on how we saw the formation :-D Happy new year to you and every Saints supporter.
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SanMarco added 00:11 - Dec 29 Great fighting performance - a well-deserved point. The ref was poor in the first half and certainly was keener to flash yellow at us than at them but no complaints over Salisu going. Silly decision - Son wasn't sure to score and even if he had 1-1 with 11 was surely preferable (unless you remember last year's match against this lot!!) To all the Spuds whining about refereeing decisions in the second half I point out a simple fact: Kane should have been watching that game from the stand, suspended after a straight red vs Liverpool. Also, all teams have suffered these marginal offsides - that's the way it goes. As for the FF incident, it was a 50-50 and fortunately for us the ref gave us the only decision he did all day. The worst refereeing decision of the whole game was the 'advantage' he played after the foul just outside our penalty area. A free kick and a ten second breather was to our advantage - not our man with nowhere to go surrounded by Spuds. A pretty impressive Christmas double for Ralph and the boys. Happy New Year to everyone on here!!

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Bettwsresident added 10:21 - Dec 29 Ps watching on Amazon....Hoddle FFS, I wanted to lamp him!
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KriSaint added 10:39 - Dec 29 Nice to see Ralph so relieved and calm going into 2022.
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TimSaint added 13:00 - Dec 29 Felt Like A Win With a weakened side we were up against everything - the ref, the odds, cheating, diving, screaming, whinging, the lot !! Well done all - dug in and ground out a well deserved result Let's follow this up with a win against Newcastle - which will hopefully go ahead. We were forced to play the kids last January, so why shouldn't they. The FA should tell them to play it, because technically they can sign and register a load of players on 1st Jan and have sufficient numbers, regardless of injuries and covid.

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