Saints v Totton 2s

Southampton took to the field looking for a confidence boost before next Saturday's end-of-season decider. With a number of first teamers resting, the home side had something of an unfamiliar look about it.

Ryan Pickering joined Marcus Coffin and Ginger in the front row, while Pete Toland and Mark Mauger added the power from second row. Meanwhile in the backs, Dave Ward moved to scrum half with Ryan Keary and Doug Barrow in the centres. Phill Orrell returned to the side at winger, while Kevin Cant started in unfamiliar territory at full back.

The game started brightly for Southampton, with Doug Barrow scoring an early try straight from the kick-off. They could have added to their total so after when Phil Orrell chiped the ball over the defence towards the Totton line. The ball looked like it would bounce into touch, but instead it struck the base of the corner flag and stayed infield. Orrell reached the ball first and touched down, but the ref controversially judged the ball to be in touch and awarded Totton the line out.

Southampton's second try came following a break from Dave Ward, who fed Kevin Cant to cut through to score to the right of the posts. The conversion was missed, giving Saints a 10-0 lead.

Southampton continued to apply pressure and were controlling the ball well at the breakdown. The forwards went close but were stopped short, before Ward found Tony Cador crashing towards the posts. He offloaded to Marcus Coffin on his right, who powered over from close range. The conversion was a formality extending Saints' lead to 17 points at half time.

The second half continued in much the same manner, with Saints dominating much of the territory and possession. Doug Barrow notched up his second try of the match when he broke free from long range and showed good pace and stength to hold off the chasing defenders and beat the full back on the line.

Southampton didn't have it all their own way and had to endure a spell of continued pressure on their own try line. But a committed effort from the home side kept Totton at bay, before a handling error turned the ball over and allowed Saints to clear their lines.

The scoring continued when Kevin Cant broke through on halfway. He had Ward in support, who drew his man and passed back to Cant who ran in under the posts for his second try. The pair combined again for the final try of the game, taking the final score to an impressive 38-0.

Some great performances, with Dave Ward finding gaps around the park all afternoon. In the pack, Ryan Pickering had his opposite man in trouble at the scrums, while Jamie Hoque continually tested the offside line from flanker, keeping the Totton fly half under relentless pressure. Doug Barrow and Ryan Keary looked impressive at centre and combined well to open up gaps in the defence.

A great result for Southampton, ahead of Saturday's league finale against Romsey. If Southampton are to avoid finishing bottom, they must win and hope Farnborough beat Eastleigh. There is still a mathematical possibility of catching New Milton and East Dorset, but Saints will need to put plenty of points on Romsey and hope other results go their way.