Russell Martin hailed his “relentless” Southampton side for finally blowing apart a Championship rival after thrashing 10-man Blackburn 4-0.

Samuel Edozie, Stuart Armstrong, Sekou Mara and Carlos Alcaraz all netted as Saints continued their best unbeaten run for 39 years and made it five home victories in a row.

Southampton’s single-digit goal difference and early-season slump had seen them fall behind pace-setters Leicester and Ipswich, but after 14 matches without defeat, they are starting to put pressure on the top two.

Martin said: “We’re not even halfway through the season and there is so much more room to grow.

“Hopefully we can have more days like today but even when we have only been winning by one goal in our eyes it has been convincing.

“You can’t always win convincingly, not even the teams at the top are leaving teams in their wake.

“I felt like we needed the second goal in the second half and always looked likely to get it even before the sending-off.

“I don’t know how you define a convincing win but we have got the goals we felt have been coming.

“We have been punished a couple of times for not scoring the goals but today we were relentless. The league is so tight and the goals might be really important at the end of the season.

“I’m really pleased we got the third and fourth goals as it is a fair reflection of the players’ mentality and creation. I enjoyed watching the team.

“That is five wins at home in a row and that is really amazing for the players. If we keep putting in performances like that we’ll see where it takes us.”

After dominating the first half, Saints finally led in the 44th minute when Edozie – on his first start for two months – diverted James Bree’s corner home.

Rovers defender Callum Brittain was shown a second yellow card for kicking the ball away in the 55th minute, having already been booked for pulling Kyle Walker-Peters’ shirt.

And from then on Saints turned on the style.

Stuart Armstrong stroked in after following in on Flynn Downes getting chopped down to make it 2-0 in the 64th minute.

Mara won a penalty, only for Alcaraz to chip over, but the Frenchman tapped in Ryan Fraser’s cross before Alcaraz thumped in a fourth deep into stoppage time.

Rovers boss Jon Dahl Tomasson revealed Brittain apologised in the dressing room after the match, but pinpointed his lack of discipline as the turning point at St Mary’s.

“It is a disappointing day. It is always going to be a difficult game against a team that is a Premier League squad,” he said.

“We knew that but we came with the intention of winning the game. In the first half we were quite solid and gave one chance away but we weren’t quite good enough on the ball today and the first goal’s timing hurts our game.

“The game totally changed after the red card and being a player behind against a Premier League side is difficult. We were still in the game after the first goal but after the second booking the game is over.

“Callum apologised to his team-mates in the dressing room immediately. A game where we could have got something out of it at 1-0, then suddenly the game is over.”

Samuel Edozie netted for the second time in a week as Southampton dispatched Blackburn 4-0 to extend their unbeaten run to 14 matches.

Winger Edozie poked in a corner before Stuart Armstrong’s third goal of the season, Sekou Mara’s tap-in and Carlos Alcaraz’s finish punished Rovers, who had Callum Brittain sent off after two yellow cards.

Alcaraz also missed a penalty for the hosts but they secured a fifth straight home win for the first time since 2014 and continued their best streak for 39 years.

Southampton boasted 73 per cent of possession in a first half in which Blackburn sat back and tried not to concede. But Saints had little to show for their domination until the 44th-minute goal.

Stuart Armstrong showed nifty footwork before whipping a shot past the post, while Edozie and Will Smallbone caused panic in the box with their quick feet and Sondre Tronstad was forced to head onto the roof of his own goal.

James Bree ran onto a volley, Adam Armstrong charged down goalkeeper Leopold Wahlstedt and Smallbone’s controlled finish from Stuart Armstrong’s cross continued the largely one-way traffic.

The only time that flow changed was in the 24th minute when the visitors won a free-kick on the edge of the Saints box.

Championship top scorer Sammie Szmodics smashed through the wall before Brittain followed up – with both kept out by Gavin Bazunu’s strong wrists.

Edozie had returned to the starting XI for the first time since October after scoring against Coventry in the week.

He rewarded Russell Martin, and capped the authoritative first half, by prodding in a Bree corner on the cusp of half-time.

After Wahlstedt had brilliantly denied Stuart Armstrong, Blackburn showed off their attacking pedigree for the first time as Bazunu had to be cute to save from Andrew Moran and Harry Leonard.

But that momentum was squashed in the 55th minute when Brittain needlessly received his second booking for kicking the ball away, having got his first for a shirt pull on Kyle Walker-Peters.

That only made Southampton’s task easier and nine minutes later, Stuart Armstrong stroked in after Flynn Downes had broken through and been chopped down.

Self-preservation was the name of the last half an hour for Rovers but they could not prevent Southampton’s fresh legs.

Alcaraz’s ‘Panenka’ penalty went over the bar, after Hayden Carter had downed Mara, and Wahlstedt stunningly denied Ryan Fraser.

Saints added gloss to the scoreline in stoppage time as Mara turned in Fraser’s cross and Alcaraz thumped in a rebound after Smallbone had been thwarted.

Saints went level on points with third-placed Leeds and closed the gap to the runaway top two to 10 points.

Mark Robins claimed Coventry are growing in stature after their 1-1 draw against Southampton.

The Sky Blues opened the scoring through Haji Wright before they were pegged back by substitute Samuel Edozie to stretch their unbeaten run to 13 games.

“You can see that we are growing in stature and confidence,” said Robins. “Four points from two tough home games is really pleasing.

“They had more possession in the first half. They are a quality team, but we worked really hard out of possession and there were not many chances in the first half.

“There was little between the teams in terms of chances created. We spoke at half-time about keeping the ball a bit more and we did that much better.

“We got more chances, grew in confidence, got the goal – a brilliant goal. Haji got into a good position, took the extra touch and you can see him growing in confidence.

“We worked hard in possession, out of possession, there were some good performances, but we were out of position for their goal.

“I think the way we played will give us a lot of confidence and it was a deserved point.

“The players are starting to look like they know each other now, they work really hard and they get that little bit of confidence.

“We try and keep people together and the performances have been really good, some play tonight was outstanding.”

Southampton boss Russell Martin claimed he and his team can only focus on themselves as they fell 12 points behind Ipswich in the race for the Sky Bet Championship automatic promotion places.

He said: “Just focus on ourselves and keep growing. I’m really proud of where the team is now, there’s been some frustrating results in that run, Rotherham draw, Huddersfield draw, then we’ve won games late.

“I’m really proud of the players, our job is to continue to grow, focus on ourselves and see where it takes us. Any other season, the last seven or eight, we’d be in the top two or within one or two points, so we can’t impact that. Two teams have made an incredible start.

“They score more goals than us, is the one thing they have over us at the minute. We don’t put games to bed, we should score a couple tonight but we don’t, and that’s the next step for us.

“I thought we were really good tonight, against a really good, well organised team. I felt their only chances were going to come from pouncing on a mistake, they scored from a goal that came from that and they had a couple of moments in transition.

“The reaction to going 1-0 down, because we haven’t been behind for a while, was fantastic. The subs had a brilliant impact.

“The last 10 minutes became really open because they’re trying to win, we’re trying to win, nobody was hanging on.”

Samuel Edozie scored his first goal since September to extend Southampton’s unbeaten run to 13 games with a 1-1 draw at Coventry.

The former Manchester City winger had been an unused substitute in the Saints’ last three outings, but came off the bench to cancel out Haji Wright’s opener.

Russell Martin’s men pushed tirelessly for a winner in the closing stages, but the draw keeps Southampton firmly in the play-off positions – 12 points behind second-placed Ipswich.

The Sky Blues were forced to withstand heavy pressure against the possession-hungry Saints in the first half as Adam Armstrong attempted to add to his 12 Sky Bet Championship goals this season.

The forward scored 20 goals for Coventry on loan from Newcastle in the 2015-16 season and forced home goalkeeper Brad Collins into action after 10 minutes when he cut inside from the right and fired a low effort at goal.

Bobby Thomas came flying out of defence to block Armstrong’s next effort after a smart short corner routine before Ellis Simms hooked off the line.

Ryan Manning almost put Southampton ahead when he met a Kyle Walker-Peters cross midway through the first half.

But Coventry withstood the pressure, seeing just 24 per cent of the ball in the opening 45 minutes, before Jamie Allen fired wide from the edge of the box.

Simms had scored in just one of the 21 appearances for the Sky Blues prior to the Saints’ arrival and Gavin Bazunu stood firm to block the former Everton man’s effort after he was played in by Tatsuhiro Sakamoto.

Coventry’s positive end to the half gave Robins’ men confidence after the break and they were inches from going ahead through Callum O’Hare, fresh off his first goals in over 18 months against Birmingham last time out.

Milan van Ewijk created space for himself down the right and pulled back for O’Hare, whose sweetly struck effort crashed off the crossbar and away to safety.

The Sky Blues were ahead just two minutes later when Wright found himself in acres of space inside the box and shifted the ball inside before slotting home his sixth of the season.

The opening goal came following some good work from O’Hare, who held off Manning before calmly slotting in Wright with the Southampton defence all at sea.

Southampton’s search for an equaliser saw Stuart Armstrong force Collins into a low save to his left, whilst Martin introduced Edozie alongside Ryan Fraser from the bench.

Both substitutes were heavily involved in the equaliser just seven minutes later as Fraser’s cross was nodded on by Adam Armstrong to Edozie, who controlled the ball with his chest before finding the far corner.

From then on it was all Southampton as Joe Aribo’s left-footed effort whistled past the upright.

Thomas had his heart in his mouth when he diverted Fraser’s cross agonisingly wide of the post, whilst Adam Armstrong’s first effort was blocked and his well-struck follow-up brushed the top of the crossbar.

Samuel Edozie scored his first goal since September to extend Southampton’s unbeaten run to 12 games with a 1-1 draw at Coventry.

The former Manchester City winger had been an unused substitute in the Saints’ last three outings, but came off the bench to cancel out Haji Wright’s opener.

Russell Martin’s men pushed tirelessly for a winner in the closing stages, but the draw keeps Southampton firmly in the play-off positions – 12 points behind second-placed Ipswich.

The Sky Blues were forced to withstand heavy pressure against the possession-hungry Saints in the first half as Adam Armstrong attempted to add to his 12 Sky Bet Championship goals this season.

The forward scored 20 goals for Coventry on loan from Newcastle in the 2015-16 season and forced home goalkeeper Brad Collins into action after 10 minutes when he cut inside from the right and fired a low effort at goal.

Bobby Thomas came flying out of defence to block Armstrong’s next effort after a smart short corner routine before Ellis Simms hooked off the line.

Ryan Manning almost put Southampton ahead when he met a Kyle Walker-Peters cross midway through the first half.

But Coventry withstood the pressure, seeing just 24 per cent of the ball in the opening 45 minutes, before Jamie Allen fired wide from the edge of the box.

Simms had scored in just one of the 21 appearances for the Sky Blues prior to the Saints’ arrival and Gavin Bazunu stood firm to block the former Everton man’s effort after he was played in by Tatsuhiro Sakamoto.

Coventry’s positive end to the half gave Robins’ men confidence after the break and they were inches from going ahead through Callum O’Hare, fresh off his first goals in over 18 months against Birmingham last time out.

Milan van Ewijk created space for himself down the right and pulled back for O’Hare, whose sweetly struck effort crashed off the crossbar and away to safety.

The Sky Blues were ahead just two minutes later when Wright found himself in acres of space inside the box and shifted the ball inside before slotting home his sixth of the season.

The opening goal came following some good work from O’Hare, who held off Manning before calmly slotting in Wright with the Southampton defence all at sea.

Southampton’s search for an equaliser saw Stuart Armstrong force Collins into a low save to his left, whilst Martin introduced Edozie alongside Ryan Fraser from the bench.

Both substitutes were heavily involved in the equaliser just seven minutes later as Fraser’s cross was nodded on by Adam Armstrong to Edozie, who controlled the ball with his chest before finding the far corner.

From then on it was all Southampton as Joe Aribo’s left-footed effort whistled past the upright.

Thomas had his heart in his mouth when he diverted Fraser’s cross agonisingly wide of the post, whilst Adam Armstrong’s first effort was blocked and his well-struck follow-up brushed the top of the crossbar.

Walsall scraped past non-league Alfreton 1-0 as they nervously booked an FA Cup third-round trip to Southampton.

The League Two side got off to a flier when they took just six minutes to score what proved to be the only goal of the game from Jamille Matt.

Douglas James-Taylor’s menacing run down the left opened up the non-league side’s defence, skipper Donervon Daniels’ miscued shot fell kindly and Matt kept his cool to score from close range.

But there was no further breakthrough as Alfreton keeper George Willis made solid saves to deny Brandon Comley, Tom Knowles, Ryan Stirk and a James-Taylor header, while Matt twice should have done better in one-on-ones.

In a first half of six bookings, including one for visiting boss Billy Heath, the visitors were starting to threaten a lot more as half-time approached. And the National League North side stepped it up after the break.

Walsall had chances to seal it a bit more comfortably as James-Taylor hit a post with a wide angled chip, while Liam Gordon went close with a left-foot shot.

But the closest either side came was a blocked shot from visiting skipper Shaun Brisley which span up over the bar – to ensure that it is Mat Sadler’s Saddlers who go to St Mary’s on January 6.

Watford manager Valerien Ismael praised the impact of his substitutes after two of them combined to earn his side a 1-1 injury-time draw against Southampton at Vicarage Road.

With his side trailing to a Che Adams goal, Ismael sent on Vakoun Bayo and Rhys Healey and the pair combined to maintain Watford’s recent improved form.

Ismael said: “The bench had a massive impact today. I’m pleased that the players came on the pitch to make a difference.

“Everyone is a part of the process. We are working with all the players. I tell them: ‘Your minute will come. You will get your chance’.

“Rhys surprised the keeper with the position he shot from. It’s important for him as a striker to score goals.

“It’s great for him to get that reward. It has been a difficult period when he wants to play more. But he contributed to get us a point. This will give him a great feeling and give him the confidence to know that he can do it.”

Ismael also believes that Watford are beginning to assume the mentality of a side that can push for promotion from their current mid-table position. Their next challenge will come against second-placed Ipswich at Vicarage Road on Tuesday evening.

Ismael added: “There is no doubt that we deserved a point. I am incredibly proud of the players and the evolution of the team against a team that was relegated from the Premier League. There was a big desire and the way that we reacted to conceding the goal.

“You can see how the team is evolving. To attack the top of the table we have to become more ruthless. That is the last step in our evolution. Then we will be ready to get more rewards in these games.”

“So we will take this as a learning step because our opponents today were very strong in possession but we had our moments in transition.”

Southampton manager Russell Martin couldn’t disguise his feeling that his promotion-chasing side had let two points slip away.

With Leicester, Ipswich and Leeds all picking up victories, Southampton now sit 10 points off the automatic promotion places.

Martin said: “I didn’t speak very long with the lads afterwards because I felt so disappointed when we came off the pitch.

“Ultimately it is a point against a team that is in really good form themselves and I really liked the second-half performance. The energy was much better. We had a lot of control still and limited them to one really good moment.

“The first half was OK. We had a lot of control but made too many mistakes in the final third, so we changed the shape a bit at half-time to try to help us.

“But with the amount of moments we had of four v three or three v two in the second half, they needed to come to more. We needed to get the second goal and then it’s game over.

“Sometimes you feel like you’re hanging on in games, but I felt that we were going to get the second goal today. We didn’t and then we conceded a rubbish goal, a really bad goal.

“They smash it forward. We should head it. Instead, we try and get under it and Bayo was athletic and heads it and then Rhys hits one of the worst volleys I’ve seen him hit having worked with him.

“I wanted nine points from the three games this week, especially when the teams above us keep winning.

“I also watched stuff that I’m proud of and that I have enjoyed, but we just can’t have too many slip-ups.

“If we win the next two games, of course I’ll be happy. A point here is a positive one but because of the way it happens, it’s a real disappointment.”

An equaliser from Watford substitute Rhys Healey six minutes into injury time sent rescued a 1-1 draw against promotion hopefuls Southampton at Vicarage Road.

Introduced just 90 seconds earlier, Healey struck with a firm shot from the edge of the penalty area to maintain the Hornets’ impressive form.

Until then, it seemed that a Che Adams goal would be enough for Southampton to keep pace with the three sides above them in the Championship table.

Instead, while the draw extended the unbeaten run of Russell Martin’s side to 12 games, it means that fourth-placed Southampton are now 10 points adrift of the automatic promotion places.

The opening 45 minutes largely entailed Southampton passing the ball around in triangles and Watford chasing shadows.

There was a brief flurry of excitement just before the half-hour mark when Ken Sema’s free-kick was beaten away by Saints keeper Gavin Bazunu and Yaser Asprilla then struck the visitors’ crossbar, but that was quickly quelled by an offside flag against the young Watford forward.

Sema’s next free-kick was curled invitingly in front of three onrushing Watford players but landed tantalisingly out of reach of all three.

The next opportunity fell to the visitors following a corner. After Jan Bednarek volleyed towards goal, Adam Armstrong attempted to lift the ball into the Watford net but scooped his shot just over the bar.

The clearest chance of the half fell to Sema, who sprinted through as Mileta Rajovic helped the ball into his path. Sema struck his shot fiercely but straight into the body of Bazunu as he raced out to cut down the angle.

The second half began in the same chess-like pattern until the game finally sprang to life in the 52nd minute with chances at either end.

First, Stuart Armstrong slipped the ball in front of Adams whose shot on the turn rolled just wide.

Watford went even closer at the other end as an Asprilla shot was beaten away for a corner by Bazunu.

Saints broke the deadlock in the 56th minute when half-time substitute Ryan Fraser turned his defender and crossed for Adams who shifted the ball to one side before firing a low shot beyond Watford keeper Ben Hamer.

The home side responded with an Edo Kayembe shot that was deflected just wide, but it was Southampton who went close again when Fraser was released by Adam Armstrong and drove in a stinging left-footed shot which was tipped over by Hamer.

That proved costly deep into injury-time when Healey steered home a fierce shot after fellow substitute Vakoun Bayo had headed down a hopeful Ryan Porteous punt forward.

Russell Martin enjoyed getting his revenge on Cardiff fans after Southampton stretched their unbeaten run to 11 matches.

Saints boss Martin was subjected to abusive comments by visiting supporters throughout the match.

After celebrating with Saints supporters he displayed four fingers at the Bluebirds fans after the match – in reference to the two back-to-back season doubles he secured against them as Swansea manager.

He said: “I had my time at the end. They had theirs over the 90 minutes so I enjoyed mine for 10 seconds at the end.

“I’m sure there will be people who disagree with that but I choose to feel everything and enjoy that.

“If you want to hammer me for 90 minutes then I’m allowed maybe 10 seconds at the end.”

Southampton claimed a two-goal lead inside 15 minutes thanks to Adam Armstrong’s brace and never looked back.

The striker’s first came at the end of a fine team move as he brilliantly curled into the top corner, before adding his 12th of the campaign by heading in after good work from Stuart Armstrong.

Martin said about his top scorer: “He has so much quality and also a load of attitude. The first goal is quality and the second is his attitude and desire.

“We love him in that dressing room for how he is and how he conducts himself and how he works for the team.

“The goals are a real bonus and he possesses so much quality but it is his intensity he plays at and his willingness to run.”

Southampton threatened to run rampant in the second half but missed a host of chances – with substitute Ryan Fraser failing to add a third despite having six shots.

Martin said: “I’m really happy. I thought we were good today. We started the game so well.

“We should score more goals, that was the only frustration. I thought the lads were incredible in the second half.

“I watched with so much pride and gratitude for what they were doing. It’s been a long week so to produce that level of performance in the second half… [scoring a third goal] wasn’t to be.

“Ryan Fraser has come off the pitch frustrated that he hasn’t scored. It’s not a coincidence that the chances fall to him because he runs at the goal relentlessly.”

Erol Bulut bemoaned Cardiff’s slow start to the match but is looking forward to January to bolster his side to be able to compete with the Championship’s big boys.

“The first 20 minutes was [what went wrong],” he said. “It was not what I was expecting.

“After those 20 minutes we woke up but we were already 2-0 down. We were good but not good enough.

“At the end of the first half if we had scored with [Karlan Grant] I think the second half would be very different.

“We have progressed from the start of the season to today perfectly and we will continue to work hard.

“I hope in the January transfer [window] I can get some quality players in and we can push for more.

“This is the difference between the top level and what we currently have. It is small details.

“We’ve played against relegated Premier League teams, they have quality but they show us where we need to go and how we need to work. We’ll look in January to get to that level.”

Adam Armstrong’s brace fired Southampton to a 2-0 victory over Cardiff and to Saints’ longest unbeaten run for 19 seasons.

Armstrong curled and headed in his 11th and 12th goals of the season to stay on the heels of Blackburn’s Sammie Szmodics in the race for the Sky Bet Championship’s Golden Boot.

Saints stay fourth but the 11 matches they are now without defeat has equalled the number they went unbeaten between December 1994 and February 1995 – though that run remarkably contained nine draws, in contrast to the eight wins in the current sequence.

The opener came in the 11th minute to complete a fine team move.

Saints had passed and moved their way down the left flank before Flynn Downes fired in to Carlos Alcaraz, who laid off to Adam Armstrong. The in-form hitman took a touch before bending into the top corner.

Four minutes later the same player doubled the hosts’ lead. This time it was Stuart Armstrong’s quick feet that earned space on the left side of the box before his cross deflected up off Dimitrios Goutas and onto Adam Armstrong’s head.

While chances did not come freely for Southampton, they kept the ball and toyed with the Bluebirds with incisive passes as freezing fog hovered over St Mary’s.

Adam Armstrong almost completed his hat-trick when Che Adams’ cross was pawed into him but his header lacked power and allowed Alex Runarsson to scramble back across his line to hold on.

Alcaraz headed over a Stuart Armstrong centre but the third goal should have gone to the visitors in first-half stoppage time. Perry Ng’s deflected ball into the box found Josh Bowler a couple of yards out and free at the back post, but he skied over the crossbar.

Cardiff had only been behind once before at the break this season, and continued their attempt to a comeback as Karlan Grant fired wide.

Che Adams replied in kind in his first start since October before substitute Joe Aribo squirted a shot against the base of the post.

Ryan Fraser had three good chances to put Saints clear but failed to put either on target before a third effort was deflected wide.

The hosts continued to slice through hapless Cardiff but Runarsson denied Adam Armstrong a third after a rasping drive.

Fraser continued to be frustrated in front of goal while Sekou Mara also had shots as Southampton could have justifiably won by a landslide.

Former Swansea boss Russell Martin continued his 100 per cent win record against Cardiff but saw their promotion position unmoved, with Leicester, Ipswich and Leeds also winning.

Southampton manager Russell Martin still wants more from his promotion-chasing Saints despite extending their unbeaten run to 10 games with a 1-0 victory over Bristol City.

Kyle Walker-Peters scored a second-half belter to give Saints a fourth victory in their last five, which included their first home clean sheet since March.

But despite keeping pace at the top of the Sky Bet Championship, Martin thinks there is still plenty more to come from his side.

“It can’t just be lucky for 10 games,” said Martin. “One game, two games even four games you can be a bit lucky but 10 games isn’t lucky.

“I am happy, I might not seem it as you always want more, but I am happy.

“We had two scary moments but were dominant without having any purpose with the ball but the second half was amazing.

“We just need to score more goals and we should have done tonight.

“I know the expectation here is to win and beat everyone by four goals, I want to as well, and tonight if we get a second then the game changes completely but we can’t do that at the moment for one reason or another.

“It took a brilliant goal to win but it shouldn’t have to, we should have scored more.”

Saints squandered several chances in the first half, and were indebted to their keeper Gavin Bazunu for two sensational moments.

Firstly, the Ireland keeper brilliantly clawed Mark Sykes’ close-range header off the line before quickly coming off his line and diving at the feet of Tommy Conway in a one-versus-one.

Saints scored 109 seconds in the second half to settle the match.

Adam Armstrong looked like he had run down a cul-de-sac but wriggled back down the right side of the box to find Walker-Peters.

The right-back took the ball inside before curling into the top corner with his left foot for his second goal of the season.

Liam Manning lost for the first time since replacing Nigel Pearson as Bristol City boss.

Manning said: “I thought in the first half the game plan worked and we frustrated them while still playing. We created some terrific opportunities and we needed to take them.

“It was a poor start to the second half, with in two minutes the ball in in our net.

“We’ll lose games but I can’t complain about my players. They gave everything.

“Momentum is big in football. We knew first five minutes they would come out and have a right go and we needed to see through that phase.

“We have lost to a moment of high quality so there are mixed emotions for me at the moment.”

Kyle Walker-Peters’ stunning strike sent promotion-chasing Southampton to a 1-0 victory over Bristol City and extended their unbeaten Sky Bet Championship run to 10 matches.

Right-back Walker-Peters rifled in the winner from the edge of the box just after half-time.

It condemned Robins boss Liam Manning to his first defeat since replacing Nigel Pearson and saw Saints keep their first home clean sheet since March 4 – thanks partly to two stunning pieces of keeping from Gavin Bazunu.

Southampton spent the majority of the first half attempting to break down two well-disciplined banks of City players.

But found a few moments to warm a heavy-coat-clad St Mary’s crowd.

Kamaldeen Sulemana was the biggest threat with his burst of pace down the left but his finish in the seventh minute lacked the ferocity to beat goalkeeper Max O’Leary.

Top scorer Adam Armstrong had a shot blocked before curling over, while Tommy Conway headed over when unmarked at a corner at the other end.

The first time O’Leary was tested wasn’t until the 28th minute when Stuart Armstrong skidded a powerful shot at him. The initial effort was fumbled but the keeper quickly gathered.

City, who had mainly threatened on the break, had the best two chances of the first half but found Bazunu at his best in the Saints goal.

Firstly, the Ireland keeper brilliantly clawed Mark Sykes’ close-range header off the line before quickly coming off his line and diving at the feet of Conway in a one-versus-one.

Che Adams sliced a shot wide for the misfiring hosts but the fans saved their half-time ire for referee Keith Stroud having felt unfavoured by his decisions.

Saints have gathered a reputation of being slow after the interval but bucked that trend by scoring 109 seconds into the second half.

Adam Armstrong looked like he had run down a cul-de-sac but wriggled back down the right side of the box to find Walker-Peters. The right-back took the ball inside before curling into the top corner with his left foot for his second goal of the season.

Saints pushed for a second. Adam Armstrong bullied his way to a chance in the City box before Carlos Alcaraz bent wide in the 59th minute.

The same two attackers caused issues again seven minutes later, with O’Leary twice getting down low to keep his side in the match.

City thought they should have been awarded a penalty late on but Stroud disagreed that Taylor Harwood-Bellis had handled when sliding to block a cross.

Southampton boss Russell Martin said his team were “frustrated and angry” at their failure to hold on for victory over battling Huddersfield.

The visitors dominated the first half with 82 percent possession but only broke the deadlock just before the interval through Adam Armstrong.

A rejuvenated Town took the second half by storm and Ben Jackson’s 87th-minute equaliser earned them a point.

Martin said his team’s “mentality” cost them.

“Nowhere near enough energy and intensity. We looked tired towards the end, but there’s no excuse, we should win the game,” Martin said.

“The goal was coming, we just didn’t make enough of our moments in front of the goal, so it’s frustrating, an opportunity missed.

“The game was there for us. We had some brilliant moves in the first half and then we allowed the momentum to shift and the atmosphere to change.

“We became less brave. We were forcing things too much when we didn’t need to because the game was coming to us.

“Our mentality has cost us two points. We need to put that right on Wednesday. I’m annoyed we lost and so are the players, they’re frustrated and angry.”

Martin praised talisman Armstrong, who moved into double figures for goals this season.

“Adam was great, he was one of the ones who played with aggression and intensity. He just needs to keep it going, he’s a fantastic player.

“I want to be higher in the league. I want to have more points, but with what we’re building I can’t ask for any more. I’m angry and upset about the game but grateful for our season so far.

“I am really satisfied with the players who are doing what we ask them to do the majority of the time.

“Days like today are part of the journey, but I’m enjoying it and I’m excited about the future.”

Huddersfield boss Darren Moore hailed the draw as a “special result”.

“The way we went about the game, I thought the boys were unjust to go in at half-time a goal down,” Moore said.

“It’s just a lapse of concentration. I didn’t alter my team talk, it was just for us to get higher up the pitch.

“We could’ve capitalised better on some chances, but I can’t criticise the players because they are doing the right things.

“We had a glorious chance with Sorba Thomas and we had the momentum going forward.

“On the balance of the play, we deserved that today. We got the performance right today in terms of how we managed the game.

“We have had to tighten things up and we capitalised on the counter. How we used the ball during moments was a positive and it’s all credit to the work that everyone has put in recently.

“Today’s result is a special result because of the injuries and who we had available to us at short notice.

“Southampton are an outstanding team and they asked a lot of questions of us, so to set up like we did today we had to be spot on.

“We could have shown a little bit more composure with some of our chances, but that’ll come. Overall it’s a good performance.

“To see us all on the same page and to get that result, everybody can be really pleased with it.”

Ben Jackson’s 87th-minute equaliser cancelled out Adam Armstrong’s first-half opener to earn Huddersfield a 1-1 draw at home to Southampton.

The first half was largely lacking in quality and entertainment, but Southampton squeezed ahead in added time thanks to Adam Armstrong’s 10th goal of the season.

But the visitors could not hold out as Jackson’s late leveller rescued battling Huddersfield.

The hosts’ game plan to shut out Southampton from minute one was clear, with the majority of the first period being played in the Terriers’ half.

Despite having 11 men behind the ball for the majority of the first half, Town still had opportunities to work the goalkeeper but ultimately lacked quality.

Multiple counter-attacks broke down due to poor decision-making from the Huddersfield attack which laid bear the gulf in quality between the two sides.

Aside from the goal, Saints’ best opportunity came from Stuart Armstrong, whose strike from 20 yards crashed against the left post.

It was one of a succession of chances, with a Kyle Walker-Peters opportunity deflected away for a corner moments later.

The hosts looked like they would hold on to regroup at half-time but conceded just before the whistle.

A cross from Stuart Armstrong was won at the near post by Adam Armstrong, who slotted the ball across goal and into the far corner.

Huddersfield knew they had to commit more men forward and it almost paid off after the restart.

A cross from Sorba Thomas missed every Southampton player in the box and eventually went out.

The Terriers looked up for the fight and switched to a back four, providing more cover which allowed their attacking players to take more risks.

Josh Koroma’s audacious attempt in the area tested Gavin Bazuna for the first time, but he stood tall and collected it.

The away support was clearly the loudest, but that did not put off Huddersfield as they continued to look the more likely to score.

The perfect chance for a leveller came after 68 minutes. A ball over the top found Thomas alone in the area, but he opted for a diving header which went wide of the target.

With just one goal in it, Southampton boss Russell Martin, watching on from the stands as he served a ban, knew his side could not relax.

The test for them was to prove they could hold on and pick up three points against a team that made things far from easy.

And it was a test they failed as, with just minutes of normal time to go, Jackson’s ball into the area from the right flank evaded everyone and found the back of the net to make it 1-1.

It secured a well-earned point for Darren Moore’s side after an impressive second-half performance.

Russell Martin was proud that Southampton found a new way to win as they extended their unbeaten run to eight matches with a 2-1 victory over West Brom.

Will Smallbone and Adam Armstrong’s strikes maintained Saints’ promotion push, but it came in a much scrappier style than Martin would have liked.

The Baggies dominated the second half, equalised through Kyle Bartley and could have led but Darnell Furlong’s header came back off the crossbar.

Saints boss Martin said: “It was a different win to those we’ve had previously.

“I just said to the players it was built on character, spirit and togetherness. The energy from the crowd was amazing as well. It was that rather than dominance and control.

“They are one of the best teams we’ve played. I have so much respect for Carlos (Corberan). They make it seriously difficult for you. They have a lot of power and athleticism.

“In the second half the momentum swung and we were too untidy on the ball. Their goal was coming, we weren’t good enough in that period.

“We wanted the chance to fall to Adam, with his finishing abilities and mentalities.

“I enjoyed watching my players play and fight for each other. It is a big difference to the way we defended the goal at the start of the season.

“I can’t be entirely pleased with the performance but I can be proud of the way we won in a different way.

“I think the fans are now understanding the team and I hope they are starting to enjoy it. They stuck with it through a tough period.”

Saints took the lead in the fifth minute when Stuart Armstrong cut back to Adam Armstrong from the byline. His shot was saved but the rebound fell to Smallbone to convert from close range.

Conor Townsend thought he had cleared off the line but the goal-line technology confirmed West Brom had conceded the first goal in a match for the first time since September.

The visitors equalised after banging at the door for an extended spell. Brandon Thomas-Asante powered a header from Jed Wallace’s cross, with centre-back Bartley following up to bundle over the line for his second of the season.

The momentum continued when Townsend’s wicked cross was attacked by Darnell Furlong and crashed against the crossbar.

But Adam Armstrong went straight up the other end to calmly pull down Ryan Fraser’s cross and finish.

With Jan Bednarek suspended, Mason Holgate was given a rare start and Martin said: “Mason gave a brilliant performance today.

“Mason has had to wait for his opportunities. I put him in too early and he’s bounced back perfectly. The crowd were brilliant to give him man of the match.”

West Brom boss Corberan thought his side deserved a point for their second-half endeavour.

“I am not happy because we didn’t win,” he said. “We need to keep growing and attack better in their box and defend better in our box.

“If you analyse the way we play you will see how well we played in the second half. The volume of attack in the second half was more than the first.

“The fair result would have been a point for both teams.

“Every time we have lost the game before the international break but we have improved afterwards. If we can have those good performances as standard then we can be a competitive team.

“We need to do it against every type of opponent.

“We needed to be perfect today against a team like Southampton. We weren’t perfect in the first half and we weren’t perfect in finishing in the second half or how we defended their winner.

“We are frustrated because we go home with nothing.”

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