A tense afternoon at St Mary's with the right result eventually.

It was always going to be a tough game against Bristol Rovers  as they are fighting for their lives at the bottom and the longer the game went on goaless the harder they would fight as they saw a point within their grasp, it looked like they would get it as well untly Guly popped up with a little sublime piece of finishing.

To be fair to Saints they battered rovers especially in the second half when the away side couldnt get out of their own half for long periods, but woeful finishing looked to be going to cost Saints untll Guly's party piece,

It was a nice little piece of finishing as he controlled the ball burst past a defender and then slotted it home.

On the downside Lee Barnard was stretchered off with what looked like a bad ankle injury and another injury on top of the long term knocks we already have is not what we really wanted, however  with the size of the squad we have we should be able to cope, David Connolly is a quality players and if we can keep him fit for the last five games then he will be a great replacement.

But it was all about the three points and with the other two winning as well it was a crucial victory, but Saints kept going and kept believing even when it looked like it wasntgoing to be there day, they still kept creating chances and ultimately got the reward they deserved.

It was a weird game in the respect that no one seemed to play that well, there was no one outstanding player, but they all kept going and did their jobs and didnt lose faith that a goal would come.

Now for next weekend when the wheat will start to be cut from the chafe, Saints have to aim for four points out of the two games, it might not be enough to keep them in second place but it will be enough to maintain the challenge and keep the momentum with us.  

Photo: Action Images

131153 added 11:00 - Apr 17 Yet another game this season where the opposition play with just one up front. The statistics bear this out twenty one home games have seen opposing teams score just a dozen times. I thought when RL missed the header set up by DC it was not going to be our day. Looking forward to Brighton I heard a Brighton fan on the radio say how pleased she was that their keeper upset the opposition by time wasting. Bearing in mind it took him just under five miutes to use this tactic against us at SMS our planing for the game should take this into account. At least it gives time to organise our defence, but we will need to work out our best form of attack. No question we were the better team at SMS but could easily have lost without the penalty save. The one advantage we have is both Huddersfield and Peterborough play on Friday. I feel the Championship beckoning.

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splurty added 14:37 - Apr 17 Well done again to kelvin for his sweeping play ,I never thought I would see the day ! ,also fonte impeccable as ever ,Hammond battled hard as did Ricky and barny,who I hope is not too seriously injured ,but conelly was superb when he came on as his movement is not what this league is used to, also telling those around him what to do etc ..A massive win that puts us closer to the championship .COYR

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saintBob added 15:03 - Apr 17 A fair report. The side looked a bit disjointed but every player put in a decent shift. A big relief when Guly's goal went in! It seems though that we haven't an effective midfield as nobody seemed to be able to hold the ball up or take command. Bring on Brighton and let's get one step closer to the Champ. COYR!
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Spot51 added 19:21 - Apr 17 I assume it was the frightening pace of Kuffour that got Jaidi substituted. We did well to keep him quiet cos he looked useful. Shocking game, the result of the pressure both sides are feeling. Can't imagine any of the final 5 games will be classics but hopefully they won't be officiated by such a card-happy mong as we had yesterday. In the end, Adkins was rewarded for keeping Guly on the park when his performance deserved replacement. Tough job, football management. Bloody good job I don't have to make those calls.

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rjh added 20:18 - Apr 17 Great result, thought the crowd might have been a bit bigger though.
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felly1 added 00:12 - Apr 18 It's obvious we missed the pace and guile of Lallana and Chamberlain. Forte had a decent game and looks like he could be a useful addition to the squad and N'Guissan came on and had a brilliant long range effort saved but I do wonder whether they will have the same impact as Antonio And Papa did last season.Hopefully Chaplow will find his form again this season as we miss his attacking bursts and link up play with the attack, Dale Stephens looked steady but played in a similar way to Hammond .Good to see Connolly back as a previous poster noted, his movement off the ball is pure class.

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SeafordSaint added 00:57 - Apr 18 Barnard going off on the stretcher was a real concern as his injury looks bad. However, Connolly came on looked quality to me. Gully would have been the first Saints player substituted if I were the manager! Just as I'm thinking how poor he has been (again!) he goes and scores the sublime winner! What do I know about football management and footballers? Saints were not convincing Saturday which is disappointing but three points is three points; that's the important thing. I hope that Adam Lallanna, Alex Chamberlain or Spiderman recover from their injures soon as we will clearly need at least one of them to be back in time for the match at the Withdean next Saturday. SfS.

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darkangelv2 added 09:45 - Apr 18 I would presume Jaidi took a knock and came off - Seabourne doesn't have any pace either so wouldn't be an improvement in that sense (I think he's only just found his way out of Craig Mikael-Smith's pocket). Poor performance over all - Rickie missing a bread n butter header. But hey, we got the result. Worried about Barney but if Connolly can play the way he did on Saturday we may be ok.

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jehram added 10:45 - Apr 18 Fair comment, I have to say ugly wins are just as good at this end of the season. I just hope the Barney injury doesn't define the outcome of the season. While I think Forte did ok (when he didn't have time to think), I can't see we'll manage with just him and Guly if DC doesn't hold out. BTW Nick: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaff (FFS)
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bstokesaint added 17:23 - Apr 18 Will be putting on my metaphorical mk shirt on again this Friday (fresh after i wore it for the pb game). I know it's in our own hands and all, but this one is going down to the wire and any help we do get would be a blessing. I think I'm right in saying Brighton are undefeated at home this season. Wouldn't it be nice to be the 1st to beat them. Truth is at our place they cynically wasted time and got away with murder when upending lallana in the penalty area. I think we owe them.

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