Another cracking win and another three points lifted Saints out of the relegation zone and gave hope that we can stay out of it.

It couldnt have been a hard decision for Nigel Adkins in picking his starting line up, there is a lot to be said for keeping a winning side, although in truth when Saints visit Anfield Adkins has some thinking to do, but again for an attacking formation the 11 who started on Sunday again struck the right balance.

We shouldnt get too carried away in that we have just played two sides who are ravaged by injuries and poor form, but we still had to beat them and in this game we beat Newcastle well.

From the start it was clear that we were confident and at the back we looked a better side with Fonte and Yoshida starting to look like a partnership, the job was to cut out the lapses in concentration and although there were still the odd moment when we did lose it, in the main unlike other games were one error has been followed by another, the problem hasnt been compounded, but solved by some great saving play from someone else, this is called working for the team, it wasnt there a few weeks ago but its certainly there now.

Again its hard to pick out a man of the match in truth everyone was at least an 8/10 including the subs, but the stand out players for me were again Jack Cork and Jason Puncheon, Cork has added something to the team, he seems to have matured as a player over the past six months and its been his work rate and guile that has transformed our midfield, he doesnt do the spectacular, but he does lots of little things well and thats what good performances are built on, not one off spectaculars, but solid play for 90 minutes.

Jason Puncheon is a different man, lets be blunt two years ago he played 17 consecutive games for Saints at the start of 10/11 season and was below average in most of them, he went off and sulked at a variety of clubs on loan and in his brief returns never showed that he cared, indeed most opinions saw him as a player with potential but one who might struggle to even make his mark in League 1 with his attitude, whether this form and positive attitude will continue we will have to wait and see, but for now he is in great form so lets utilise it.

Again Nigel made the right substitutions in the right positions at the right times, Rodriguez for Lambert in a straight swap might not be popular with some fans, but we have to remember that Rickie will be 31 in January, 3 games in six days wont be easy, we needed fresh legs up front to keep the 2-0 lead and Rodriguez did just that showing why he will push our number 7 all the way for his place and that has to be good, Saints supporters though have to get off his back and realise that this is a squad game, when you play a certain way and a certain type of player in a position is key then it makes sense to have a ready made replacement, to give the player a rest in some games and if he is injured or suspended, Jay Rodriguez is a Saints player, not the enemy just because some see him as taking the place of their hero.

We now have a key game with Norwich City, for the manager it should be easy, pick the same starting line up and the players need little motiivation other than showing them the league table and where we could be come 10pm on Wednesday night, but the players like the fans have to be aware of complacency, in the past eight days we have met two of the poorer sides in the league, it wont always be like yesterday, there are some tough times to come, lets get the points where we can and remember that when we play the better sides its about working harder and ensuring we get the right results.

A great game on Sunday and a great performance, but lets remember Saints are still a work in progress and far from the finished article.     

Photo: Action Images

simmo400 added 09:50 - Nov 26 Nick although most played well GASTON should get a mention. Made things happen for Saints and chased everthing down. Top Class.
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SaintNick added 09:52 - Nov 26 Ramirez was in good form, but i try to point out one or two areas I see as being crucial rather than like the official site make sure i get in glowing praise for everyone
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saintgus added 10:45 - Nov 26 Good point about J Rod, personally i think he is a class player,for his age hes not far of the finished article
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ThereIn76 added 10:50 - Nov 26 I think it’s more that people get nervous when Rickie is taken off, with memories of the Man Utd match still fresh. A great afternoon. 2-0 was the least we deseved. Cork has made such a difference since his return and I doubt whether Puncheon has ever played better. He looks the real deal now.
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stmichael added 10:58 - Nov 26 Puncheon is out of contract in the summer at what point do we sort it out? Personally I think NOW.
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VeloSaint added 11:17 - Nov 26 J Rod's price tag is the problem, people expect a lot for 6-7M. Personally I think he's going to be a very good player and bringing him on for Lambert is a no brainer. His movement and running the channels caused Newcastle further problems and he was unlucky with the disallowed goal, another great finish.
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bstokesaint added 12:36 - Nov 26 Nick you mention "there are some tough times to come". Well Man City (away), Man Utd (home), Arsenal (away), Everton (away), WBA (away) and Spurs (home) haven't exactly been a doddle. I would suggest that now we can get excited because more grounded fans knew that we would have a tough start, and that our current run of games against similar level teams is where we'd be judged the harshest. Also Newcastle have some quality players and with Ba and Cisse upfront we can’t dismiss our achievement yesterday out of hand. The team have turned a real corner in my opinion. I think huge credit has to go NA. Tactically he sometimes looks a little lost at sea, but you can't fault his motivation or enthusiasm and that's what the players need after a run of no results. Jack Cork and Ramirez have made a huge difference in midfield and in Davis we have another quality, but different option available, which we didn't have before. Also fair play to the boys at the back. All of them did well and Gazzaniga's stop was brilliant. One save doesn't make a great keeper, but hopefully it'll do his confidence some good. I couldn't pick out a MOTM because it was great team effort. They need to take that forward against Norwich because that'll be a different type of game. I definitely can’t see it being as open.

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landsdownsaint added 14:19 - Nov 26 Would be good to see JRod or Mayuka start upfront with Ramirez pulling the strings
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IanRC added 15:20 - Nov 26 Starting to look much better now, the replacement of Fox with Shaw has in my mind been fundamental in changing our form, such maturity for a 17 year old - great to see him commit to Saints this week too. I take your point on Jay. My concern previously was that we seemed to want to build our team around him which meant that Rickie appeared to be playing a role that does not suit him. I had my doubts about Jay but the (wrongly) disallowed goal by Jay was a great finish and I do agree he is one to bring on for the future. Gaston was great but Adam too was superb, must be in line for a call up again. All told really looking forward to Wednesday and next Saturday.

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st_mike added 17:47 - Nov 26 Great Saints team performance against Newcastle. The confidence has returned and we're finally getting the results we deserve. Everyone played well but Gaston's ability shone through and had a positive effect on the whole team. I'm concerned about the referee's performances over the last few home matches, some of the decisions have been diobolical to say the least!
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zonehead added 20:02 - Nov 26 I think since Nigel had his chat with NC (I think it was a 2 way conversation as well) correct decisions are bieng made
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SingaporeSaint added 02:48 - Nov 27 This side and formation would be far further up the league if we'd played it all season - excellent performance albeit against a pretty poor side. Massive difference for me is Shaw at Full back - he is strong, quick, good on the ball and allows both the defence to look a better unit and allows Lallana to play further forward and not worry so much about defending. We could and probably should have put a big dent in our goal difference arrears. Great save from Gazza too. Keep this side fit and avoid suspensions (esp Spider) and we should keep climbing.

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