Saints recorded their best ever Premier League win and almost recorded the best ever Premier league result in the process.

For the first fifteen minutes of this game though there was no sign of things to come, indeed it could be said that Saints were playing badly and in their worst form of the season as they struggled to get to grips with the game, then came that own goal from out of the blue and things changed drastically.

On Match Of The Day Alan Shearer was asked the question as to whether Saints were really that good or where Sunderland really that bad ? his answer was that it was a bit of both, although he did qualify that by saying that Saints were undoubtably brilliant.

I don't think you can argue with that answer, Sunderland were sloppy and Saints punished them for it, the first goal was unbelievable, you just cannot understand why he would try and clear the ball in that manner and after that the Mackems fell apart.

The second goal saw poor defending and great work from Steven Davis to cross for Pelle to make it two, then came the games controversial moment when Steven Fletcher with only Forster to beat poked the ball wide of the keeper and wide of the goal and then jumped the onrushing Forster, was it a penalty ? I would say no but I can see why it could have been given, I would also say that if the ref had given the spot kick, Forster should have only been booked as with Fletcher having already got his shot away and wide of the post, he was not fouled in a goal scoring position, so it should have been a yellow card.

Fair play to Gus Poyet in the interviews afterwards though, he made no mention of the penalty or it changing the game etc, instead concentrating on his teams poor performance.

The third goal saw Jack Cork start and finish it, firstly he played a sublime pass to Tadic, who held the ball up and waited for Cork to appear in the space at the far post, Cork's finish wasn't the best but it was that sort of day for the Sunderland keeper and defence and the effort creeper over the line.

So the game was all but finished at the break and it would only be a question of how many would Saints get, although this being Saints you are never sure to the final whistle, for the best part of 20 minutes Sunderland were resolute then the floodgates opened, the big question on the fourth though was whether it is an own goal or not, personally I would give it to Pelle, his shot was on target and yes Bridcutt got his feet tangled up on the line and had the final three touches, but the ball was on target and should be Pelle's, hopefully the dubious goals panel will look at it and consider that to be the case.

The fifth was definitely Pelle though and another great finish firing across the keeper. Tadic then made it six with a lovely first time curling shot after the keeper had inexplicably failed to launch the ball into row Z and instead tamely passed it to Tadic who fired past him.

The seventh was Wanyama who smashed it home and the eighth Mane who made up for his miss at Spurs with a smart finish.

With four minutes of normal time plus injury time to go, Saints supporters were wondering whether their side could hit 9 or even 10 to set a Premier League record, the answer would be no, but no one could be disappointed with this display.

Certain players will get all the plaudits for this game, Dusan Tadic became one of only a handful of players to get four assists in a Premier League game and topped it off with a goal, Pelle again showed why we needed to move on from last season up front and indeed every player played his part.

But for me some of the unsung heroes deserve praise, Shane Long put in a good display and the very fact that we have a player of his quality to either come of the bench or to enable us to rest the likes of Mane when needed should be a cause for celebration of ho much we have improved and not a reason to moan that we over paid for him, Long has and will play a big part in this season and Saints fans should remember the reception Pelle got in the first couple of games.

Steven Davis again worked tiredlessly and his cross for Pelle's first goal was superb and likewise Jack Cork, he could walk into at least half of the other Premier league team's and its testimony to our strength in depth that we can rest the likes of Wanyama and see Cork put in such a great display.

Again Ronald Koeman deserves praise, he tweaked the side to make sure we weren't tired and had options and this enabled us to keep going for the full 90 minutes and reap the rewards.

The only real negative side of the day was the empty seats, 2,000 Saints fans could have seen this great display but didn't, if the Stoke match next week still sees those empty seats after a result like this then it will be a travesty.

A year ago people were talking about how great Mauricio Pochettino was and how there had never been a better time to be a Saints fan, I dont think many would disagree that Koeman is a much better fit for Saints manager and that as goodas last season was, this one is now shaping up to be much better, back in the summer I said that it wasn't about who was leaving it was all about who was coming in next, we have bought very wisely and that is being shown by our results on the pitch and the maner in which we are playing.

It is still early days yet and how long we can keep it up is yet to be decided, however if we can put away the likes of Sunderland as we did yesterday and continue to do so in the next few games against Stoke and Hull, then we will be in a good position for November when we start to play some of the tougher sides and if we can unlike last season get a few results against them, then perhaps we might just cause a real shock or two in 2015.

Photo: Action Images

slynch added 11:41 - Oct 19 The difference between Sunderland and Southampton was that Sunderland had their chances and took 'em!
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A1079 added 11:50 - Oct 19 Nick a good report then you spoil it by going on about the empty seats, the very same week, that there has been a survey reported and a debate about the cost of football. I didn't go yesterday because I have to budget like most of us. I won't go on and make excuses. I chose go to the first home game - West Brom - hardly an advert for good football - ok, I was unlucky as clearly Saints have been fantastic since that game. As you say, we started badly yesterday and no one ever knows whether you will see a good game or a bad game - to some extent, it is the unknown and the unexpected that makes the game special, but for fans like me, it isn't because I don't want to go, it isn't because I am a fair weather fan, or it isn't because of who the opposition is, it is simply because I only have so much income a month and varying outgoings - that's life. On the match - brilliant result, simply brilliant and I so wish I had been there and whether I am there or not, long may it continue because I will admit, I was one of those who dreaded the worst at the beginning of summer. I was very wrong and I don't mind being wrong. Though I have taken issue on the empty seats comment Nick, I appreciate all the work you put in and your valued reports for people like me, who cannot always be there.

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schatfield added 12:05 - Oct 19 I watched the game. First half we did get a bit lucky, cos we were not goodat first, Sunderland all over us. I wasn't sure how we went 2 up! And then we got really lucky as that was a definite pen and Forster should have seen red. But second half, I dont think I will witness a team display like that in my life again, unbelievable!!!!
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Ddobsy added 12:09 - Oct 19 We've made the absolute most of a kind fixture list, and the core of the team has continued where they left off last season. Fantastic to see that the new players are hitting their stride so early. I hope that the return of Jay-Rod will offset playing the decent teams and the winter fixture Rush. I don't think we can step up our performances much more, so it will be interesting to see the season develop. A great time to be a saints fan, but I'm not getting carried away. Let's hope the Leciester game is played with the same confidence as its the first time I'm back from Denmark this season. COYRs

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felly1 added 12:33 - Oct 19 I was sat in the Itchen North very close to the Sunderland fans and it was great fun and quite fascinating watching there reaction to their mauling. Agree with A1079 in that its the expense of going that stops me going to more games.
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ItchenNorth added 12:42 - Oct 19 Hats off to the Sunderland fans, they were superb in the face of that debacle. Great support. I've seen us play far better but can't remember laughing so much and so often at a football match like that for years!
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ssxsaint added 13:04 - Oct 19 The vast majority of the 2000 empty seats were in the Sunderland area and the no-go zone. There were very few empty Saints seats that I could see.
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lockseaf77 added 13:47 - Oct 19 No mention of Schniederlin, who was class especially in the second half.
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SingaporeSaint added 13:54 - Oct 19 A bit of a slow start but we defended well. Second half was the most dominant I've seen any team in the prem. Amazing. Tadic will rightly get the plaudits but Bertrand and alderweld are incredible signings. We are strong in every area. The last thing Sunderland needed was the 3 subs we brought on! Is great to see a manager who makes effective changes off the bench. I'm heading to the UK this week and will go the stoke game - so I hope for the same performance!

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SonicBoom added 14:14 - Oct 19 It was great fun allbeit helped by the worst opposition performance I have ever seen. They seemed determined to give us goals. I thought Morgan was imperious and was totalled ununruffled all game. Despite what u say Nick, I've yet to see anything from Long. You say he's class but he needs to show something which is exactly how Pelle got everyone inside. Shame he didn't score though. He won't feel good that he didn't bag in a game with eight goals. Amazing day though and I'd be more than happy to follow it up with a one nil win over stoke!

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GeordieSaint added 16:17 - Oct 19 I heard someone saying we are only one point better off than after 8 games last season which I found interesting. Can't wait for games against the bigger teams coming up, arsenal and spurs dropping points, Liverpool looked vulnerable . If man city and Chelsea beat everybody and lots of teams draw with each other it could open the door for a dark horse to sneak into the top four. Possibly we are the third best team in the league.

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landsdownsaint added 16:44 - Oct 19 I can't see a great deal of difference to last season...so far !? We are taking points from the lesser teams
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SanMarco added 18:30 - Oct 19 Whatever happens this season or further ahead it is days like yesterday that make it all worth while. I liked the way we kept going after the game was won. I think the penalty was a 50-50 one that we maybe got away with but I agree that there would have been no need for a red as the scoring chance had gone
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TimSaint added 20:01 - Oct 19 Great win after a sloppy start to the game. I was thinking back to when i was much younger and that 8-2 win over Cov with Moran and Wallace both getting hatricks. I believe 2 seasons later, the same fixture was 5-5. Anyway, at half time, I asked my daughter what the most number of Saints goals she had seen in a game was and she said only 4 (this is her 4th season supporting and 3rd season as a season ticket holder), but was hoping for 5 today. The boys duly obliged with interest, but please bear a thought for the bloke 2 rows in front of us, who was hopeful of a 5-0 win and had a fiver on it at 50/1. He was almost willing us not to score but succomed in the end and I'm sure he had a great aftrernoon, even if at one stage he was 250 quid better off :0) Finally it was definitely not a penalty. Just watch motd and all their angles. These confirm 3 important factors. 1. Forster's commanding presence made Fletcher panic and totally miscue his shot. 2. Forster did NOT MAKE ANY CONTACT with Fletcher, who dived up over the advancing keeper to avoid making contact / harming him. 3. Fletcher knew that the chance had gone, that there was no contact and that it was not a penalty. He was not appealing, unlike his animatred team mates and manager. He even gave Forster a pat which was basically saying : well done / good job etc. So there we have it, analysis over and verdict reached is No Penalty. Re the attendance, there were some empty seats scattered around the ground, but the majority of them were from the segregation nettings on both sides of the away fans (which takes up at least 500 or more}, in the away section itself and in the corporate section. Still, fair play to Sunderland fans for making the journey, constantly singing and celebrating the winning of a corner like they had scored !!! My worst defeat was a 7-0 away trip to the astro turf at Luton, which was Glenn Cockerill's Saints debut. Think that was the 85-86 season. So now onto Stoke back to back. Hopefully we can get another 2 great results against a team that like Sunderland, we tend to not get the best results against.

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TimSaint added 20:08 - Oct 19 Attendance wise, those that were thinking about going but didn't will regret their decisions, but that is always the same in hind sight. May as a result of this game, we will sell out v Stoke.
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swatzy added 21:12 - Oct 19 A fantastic result and it must be worrying to other teams, that Sunderland are not that awful a side (although they had enough set-pieces to threaten more than the one effort they had). Nobody in the media has mentioned the tackling, which really was something to behold, it was just amazing to watch. Tempted to nominate the entire Sunderland defence MOTM. Saturday will keep me smiling for weeks to come. Sunderland fans were excellent too!

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SaintNick added 21:22 - Oct 19 A1079 I appreciate that not everyone can afford to go for various reasons including cost, but look at other premier attendances and compare say Everton with 39 549 , that is a club we are trying to emulate and we had 10k less, if prices had been say £10 cheaper yesterday would we bridge that gap. We are having our best start to a season in the top flight ever with a lot of optimism yet we have 2000 empty seats in the home section (mainly in top corner of chapel end) I want to see them filled

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SalisburySaint added 10:54 - Oct 20 Thing I particularly liked on Saturday was with us already 6-0 up Keoman was urging the players forward ato keep it going, his attitude is superb
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GNSaint added 13:39 - Oct 20 Adrian Durham (talksport) was presenting from St Marys he came out with 2x quotes laughing he said "watch Sunderlands first goal and I promise you you will laugh out loud" after the game he said "I would genuinely put this Southampton performance in my top 5 premiership performances ever" dont get me wrong, he's still a numpty, but I did enjoy those comments!
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BoondockSaint added 14:03 - Oct 20 The internet feed went out when it was 3-0, so imagine my suprise when I saw a snowman on the scoreboard later!! Admittedly it was iffy at the beginning. The difference between this year and previous years is we didn't take our foot off the gas. This really helped the goal differential which could be very important (ask Fergie). While we played well, Gus was right, a lot of his players just gave up.

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trotsky added 17:27 - Oct 20 Re.: the "penalty", the whole (non-) issue is rendered irrelevant for me by the fact that Sunderland actually gained possession for that move courtesy of a blatant handball by Cattermole in his own half. Extraordinary that the sport supports so many journalists and broadcasters and yet none of them manage to identify these things. They are as good at their jobs as the Mackem defence. To be fair to Nick, he may not have seen MOTD2 at the time of writing, but Poyet did make a fuss about the decision after the match (unsurprisingly): it just wasn't broadcast on Saturday night (surprisingly). He was happy to ignore the handball that happened right in front of him, too.

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aceofthebase added 06:52 - Oct 21 Ok two more tickets sold for Stoke game. Half my pension used up as well as a day of my remaining life. If we don't get nine, well, I hope the team will be offering me compensation. Seats ( no standing!) so far back that not sure my eyesight can cope. Hope the bladder can last out, so much easier the missus pouring tea in me and then rushing to the loo and then back to this marvelous internet. Does Brian Flood still play at right wing and why has Christie been dropped?

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