REPORT: Saints ease past ten-man Posh

Southampton 2-1 Peterborough

Two early goals from Richard Chaplow and Jos Hooiveld allowed Saints to saunter past Peterborough, who had Lee Frecklington sent off before the break.

The home side had more chances to extend their lead in the second half, but Paul Jones made some good saves to deny Rickie Lambert on several occasions.

Southampton got off to a flying start when Chaplow took advantage of some questionable Peterborough defending and beat Jones with a low drive.

Three minutes later, a quick free kick caught the visitors off guard and Hooiveld finished from close range. Posh were stunned and it got even worse when Frecklington was given his second yellow card, reducing the visitors to ten men before half time.

Southampton kept the pressure on Posh after the break. However, they couldn't find a way to extend their lead. Lambert could have had a second-half hat-trick but spurned several good opportunities.

A good move from Peterborough allowed Emile Sinclair to pull a goal back, but the home side didn't panic. Substitute Steve De Ridder turned the screw late on, and was unlucky not to score - but shot wide of the mark.

BLOG: Saints Still Cruising

Saints hardly broke sweat as they brushed aside Middlesborough.

Before Saturday's big clash between two of the best teams in the league, no-one could have predicted Saints winning so comfortably.

However, it was one of Southampton's most accomplished and confident displays of the season, and Boro were lucky they only lost by three goals.

Three factors seemed to produce the 3-0 win. Firstly, Southampton are incredibly comfortable at St Mary's. The last team to beat Southampton at home were Manchester United - who defeated Saints in the FA Cup in January.

It has been years since Saints had a belief that they can win every game. Even last season's promising campaign in League One didn't produce this sort of feeling throughout the whole squad.

That aside, the decision to play Guly Do Prado up front with Rickie Lambert worked wonders. The Brazilian is best used down the middle, and was effective in the air, scoring with two headers.

When Guly is confident, he is a completely different player - and hopefully he can go from strength to strength. His partnership with Lambert isn't an obvious one at first glance. Although Lambert couldn't find the net against Boro, he did everything but score. He played very important roles in two of his side's goals - and is looking hungry.

Boro's defending at St Mary's was almost laughable. I'm all for attacking football, but Boro neither looked solid at the back or produced much to trouble Kelvin Davis. When West Ham visited St Mary's a couple of weeks ago, they were playing for a draw.

OK, it didn't work as Saints scored before half time. However, they at least had a plan, and understood the threat Saints pose at St Mary's. Southampton will have to get used to teams sitting back against them at home, and will have to be at their best in every game.

It is still very early days, but Southampton are looking incredibly strong at home. The next team to try their luck at St Mary's is Peterborough. Posh shouldn't be under-estimated, though, and don't find goals hard to come-by themselves.