Nigel Adkins kept faith with the usual starting XI and made history.

It was no surprise that Nigel Adkins put out the same line up that won the previous two league games to take on Millwall at St Mary's and he was rewarded with all three points in a game that was by no means easy.

The londowners are known for being disciplined and keeping things tight and that was the case in the early exchanges but Saints broke the deadlock on 18 minutes for the only goal of the game, Guly has his detractors, some of them quite vocal, but he put in a decent display capped by the goal, it was a lesson in sharp neat passing started and finished by Guly himself, picking up the ball ten yards inside his own half he knocked it short continued his run and a couple of passes later he was put through by a sublime through ball from Jack Cork, he still had a bit to do, but under pressure he slotted home for what would be the only goal.

In the main Saints remained tight and did what they needed to do, but at times they were architects of their own downfall, Seaborne at the back perhaps emphasised this on the hour mark when he didnt deal with a ball into the six yard box and Kelvin Davis made a smart save as the ball ricocheted towards goal and this signalled the start of a period of pressure that saw Saints guilty of some sloppy defending, continually giving the ball to the visitors cheaply.

The plus points were that Adkins made a couple of shrewd substitutions that went a little way towards counterbalancing the Millwall threat and Saints closed the game off fairly comfortably.

However their are lessons to be learned, if Saints are to maintain this early form they have to cut out sloppy play at the back, at present we have got away with it but it could have been different, we have to learn to keep our composure a little more and we have to learn to mark up our opponents, Seaborne sadly was guilty of this at times, overall he had a reasonable game, but there were key moments when he made the wrong decisions, either by not attacking the ball and clearing it as in the aforementioned Davis save, or hoofing it under little pressure, he wasnt the only culprit in the back four, but he was the most noticable.

However t was a good three points and a win that keeps us well and truly at the top setting the pace, its been a great start to the season and we as fans should be very happy, hopefully so will Nigel Adkins as a manager, but he will know the dangers of complacency and know that we do need to bring in a quality partner for Fonte sooner rather than later.       

Photo: Action Images

michaeljoycetf added 10:45 - Aug 21 A very negative summary, Whats wrong with you? It seems that however well we play you will find something to gripe about, I expect Nigel will be really grateful to hear your advice about the dangers of complacency. here is some advice for you, Be happy, stop moaning, and try to stop sounding as though you know better than anyone else.
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lockseaf77 added 11:10 - Aug 21 I don't know what the above is all about, I thought it was a fair, balanced report of the game, and agree totally about the defending. It was heart in the mouth stuff at times. Hammond did nothing in the first half, and was rightly substituted for Shneiderlin at half time. Bringing on Fox and De Ridder were also correct decisions as Lallana and Conolly were not getting a sniff in the second half. Rather than getting either of those two injured through Millwall's tackling, he brought on a bit of bite and pace and closed the game out. A couple of great saves from Davis also helped.....

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bstokesaint added 11:18 - Aug 21 The fact is good teams play below par and win games 1-0. NA doesn't strike me as the kind of manager to get complacent. So let's not dwell on the negatives. We got 3 points, we kept a clean sheet, we beat a decent team (previously unbeaten) and we didn't pick up any injuries. If what NA says is true about some players being a little tired, then I am sure he'll make the correct decision in making the necessary swaps. I still think we'll get a new CB before the transfer market closes. On a slightly different note why did SFC let the Millwall fans leave the ground whilst Saints fans were also leaving? That was just sheer stupidity. When we went to their ground the season before last we were penned in like animals until all the home fans had been moved on. Anyone would think it was us that had a reputation!!

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tell101 added 11:23 - Aug 21 I thought Guly, Lambert and Cork all had a good game. It was always going to be hard. Dan Fox didnt have much of an impact in the game but its early days yet and hopefully he can fit in nicely. I thought that after the first 20 minutes we started to tire and the amazing work rate that we have sustained through 3 games dropped. Millwall took advantage of that and came at us. Whilst the defending wasnt bad we didnt do ourselves any favours as the balls out were just finding Millwall players and coming styraight back at us. Its was telling that in the second half all the distribution from Kelvin was back to the long kick. We held on very well but I do think that we reverted back to old ways and suffered a bit for it. Hopefully with a bit more rest and a regroup we can get our shape back in time for another hard game at Leicester

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SaintNick added 11:33 - Aug 21 I find it strange that somepeople take offence if i dare to say that everything wasnt perfect and we are the best side in the world ever, I swear some people sing that Lallana song and actually believe he makes Messi look shite (sorry being negative again) What i try to do with the match reports is lok at them from another angle, if you want gushing praise the clubs official site will do that even for a defeat, if you want descriptions and stats the echo will do that, what i try to do is look at it from a neutral angle and point out a few things I feel in my opinion are lacking. Its not a gripe, but Im sure it will e next game from our first poster if for instance seaborne fails to clear a ball and Davis doesnt stop it this time.

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Del_Bianco added 11:45 - Aug 21 i think your report is pretty spot on Nick. It as always going to be a tought game. Lambert, Guly and Cork again were very good. We did look a little sloppy at the back at times a put ourselves under pressure. All in all a good 3 points against an decent Millwall side who were organised and strong. The type of team we have often struggled against in the past.
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COYRalex added 11:53 - Aug 21 Yeah not sure what the first post was about. We all disagree with Nick sometime or another but this report seems fair. Nick had said some positive things above. It is going to be interesting how we respond when we get beaten but Nigel appears to be so positive all the time i think we will be ok. What a great time to be a Saints fan! Enjoy this period in our club history! COYRs

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legod7 added 12:08 - Aug 21 I think your report is spot on Nick. Except you still have that knack of singling out certain players however they have played. You do it week in week out without fail. Usually it is Harding and Seabourne but for some unknown reason you left Harding alone this time and concentrated on Seabourne. Perhaps it is because NA has confidence in Harding by extending his contract. Seabourne was no better or worse than Fonte in the centre of defence and both were singled out by NA after the match for their wholehearted effort.As a season ticket holder I was there and saw a good game against a decent Millwall side who put us under a lot of pressure by playing direct football. So Nick in summing up, please carry on giving us your balanced view of the games but please don't single out players that you do not like however they have played.

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SaintNick added 13:36 - Aug 21 I singled out Seaborne because I felt that he was the weak link, ie in his failure to deal with the cross that took the ricochet and needed Davis to save us. I didnt single out Harding because in fairness he played well
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legod7 added 13:53 - Aug 21 Nick, As I said you single out certain players for criticism every week. You called Seabourne the "weak link " for ONE mistake.Each and every player during a game gives away the ball at least once by not controlling the ball or giving a wayward pass. I thought Jack Cork was by far and way the man of the match but I can remember him giving away the ball on at least one occasion. So by that context he could be called the "weak link" All I said was leave off certain players each and every week. It becomes a little boring after a while.

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saintBob added 14:18 - Aug 21 What a miserable bunch some of you lot are! No-one has to post their views on this site and what Nick says is his own opinion and at times we disagree which provides some good responses but at the end of it all, what does it matter? Saints deserved their win yesterday but at times they tried to play the ball out of defence when they should have just cleared their lines. They have played four games in 2 weeks and I think they'll be fresher for the game against Leicester next weekend after a week's rest.

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arfurdent added 14:30 - Aug 21 a fair report, thought the players looked tired after Tuesday Forget what the OS said I saw Lallana limping and rubbing his thigh before he went off
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scummerlou added 21:22 - Aug 21 Quite an accurate report from Nick...the defending on the second half was a bit heart in mouth, and for what it is worth, toatally agree that we need a CB...do not think DS is a Championship CB. Also thought the team looked a bit tired, and who could blame them after the excellent start they have put together...a few days rest and light training will do em good.... JC MoM again!! Lifes Bright when your Red and White...:-)

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ThereIn76 added 23:16 - Aug 21 I think Saints could have had few complaints if Millwall had taken a point. They had their chances but didn't show enough quality to take them. Saints looked tired in the second half. Connolly has been a big bonus in the first three games but his passing was off-target yesterday. Do Prado had an excellent first half but faded badly later on. I wouldn't moan too loudly about Seabourne - he was no worse than Fonte. Harding impressed though - Bouazza had far more joy against Richardson than him. Saints have signed four new full-backs since Harding joined and he's kep his place under two managers, which says quite a lot about him. Maybe there'll be one or two changes in the team for Leicester - it is a squad game and players need to be kept fresh and on their toes.

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tell101 added 09:20 - Aug 22 One thing I would like to add. At the risk of being nailed to the cross. I think that in past seasons Rickie Lambert has shown a poor workrate, a bit like Beattie of old, scoring goals but not putting in much effort. However the highlight of the season for me so far is that we are now seeing a RL mk2. I think its mostly down to fitness. Nigel is a man of science and data and has training the team to a very high level of fitness over the break. I have seen RL go get the ball, make runs, use quick feet, all on top of his skills of being a target man and a set piece guru. I have never seen him so fit and now I think he contributes as much as anyone in terms of workrate. This is a common theme in the team as they really all are putting in the effort. Competition for places helps as well and I believe our depth of squad will pay dividends big time in the long run.

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simmo400 added 09:41 - Aug 22 Saints looked tired after 20 mins. They battled hard and didnt give anything away. 3 points was the importaint aim and it was acheived. A hard game for us, a game we would hae drawn not that long ago but Saints seemed to have lost there soft touch. Re-charge for Leicester saturday. COYR
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SaintNick added 11:47 - Aug 22 With regard to the weak link comment, I agree with Le god that all players make mistakes, they cant complete every pass and win every tackle, but they arent the mistakes im looking for, its the key areas when it costs you dearly that i look for. Someone else mentioned that Adkins is a man of science and data and this is the sort of approach I try to apply when i single out players, last season I criticised davis for his poor goals against figure compared to shots on target and its this type of data that a man of science will look at as well, Adkins will know all the stats for every member of the team from the how far they ranon the pitch to tackles won and passes completed. But for defenders and goalkeepers data counts for nothing if they make crucial errors

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saintBob added 20:22 - Aug 22 tell101: On the face of it I agree that Lambert does look much fitter this season but I don't think his game has changed much in so far as to say he contributes as much as he always has. He's doesn't have pace but look at his game more closely and I include last season as well. His awareness is spot on and his passing superb. When he's not scoring goals a lot of fans feel that he's not doing anything at all!

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