Martin’s super Saints make it 21 unbeaten…
Proud boss Russell Martin hailed his Southampton troops after they created a new unbeaten club record.
Saints broke a 103-year-old mark yesterday by extending their unbeaten run to 21 games with victory at Martin’s old club Swansea.
“It is a nice moment,” he said after his side completed Southampton’s best run in all competitions since joining the Football League in 1920, eclipsing the 20 undefeated achieved the following year.
“I’m really grateful to the players for what they’ve done, the courage they’ve shown. I’m immensely proud. The way they did it in the first half, it was one of the best performances I’ve ever been involved in as coach. They’ve written themselves in to the history books.”
However, Martin admitted that it won’t mean quite as much if they don’t go on to achieve promotion back to the Premier League this term.
“It will have more significance, importance and standing if we achieve what we want at the end of the season,” he said. “Otherwise it will be just something we’ve achieved.”
First-half goals from Che Adams, Will Smallbone and Flynn Downes – his first for Saints coming on his 25th birthday and against his former club – put Southampton 3-1 up at the break and that was how it ended.
“We were relentless in the first half and I was disappointed the way we conceded at the end of that half,” he added. “It was handball and offside, but we had one offside (goal), so it is what it is.”
For Swansea boss Luke Williams, it was a first defeat in charge.
“First half we were too deep, far too deep,” said Williams, Martin’s former assistant at both MK Dons and Swansea.
“Southampton could push the ball around, take their time and wait for the space and they did that brilliantly.”
