Saints supporters stayed away in droves, but after months of Premier League defeats at St Mary's, those who remained faithful, saw a spirited performance that almost secured the 3 points.

The official attendance for this match was 29,366, but if Phil Parsons & Johannes Spors needed a reminder of what next season might be like if things continue as they are, then this was the night that they well and truly got it.

A full house these days is around the 31,200 mark, so if the official attendance is to be believed then there should have been only 2,000 empty seats, the reality was that a few thousand season ticket holders turned round and said "no more" for this game.

The problem is for Southampton FC is that if this translates to those not renewing next season, then our average crowds are likely to be around the 25,000 who actually attended the game last night, there were swathes of seats in all areas and our owners and board should take note.

Those who did turn up where not confident heading towards the ground, it was very much gallows humour and the starting line up didn't improve the mood.

But what they got was a spirited performance were everyone dug in and in the main stood firm, it was just a shame to give away that goal in injury time that once again cost us points.

The three contested selections in the team were the inclusion of Tall Paul, Sulemana & Jack Stephens, especially Captain Jack.

Tall Paul put in a shift, at times he was woeful but he never stopped battling and trying and he scored the goal that almost became the winner.

At times it was difficult to work out where Jack was playing, at times he was the left sided player in a back 3 and at others in the centre of a back 5, but although I have often been a critic of his performances, I am not on this occasion, he put in a shift, however he perhaps should have been a bit nearer his man on the equaliser.

Sulemana was his usual self, at times he looked unplayable, but too often there was no end product.

Saints started the game badly, almost going a goal down in the opening 90 seconds, the ball hitting the underside of the bar but thankfully it span out of the goal and not in.

This let off saw Saints start to find their feet and on 20 minutes we took the lead, great interchange play between Fernandes and Flynn Downes who played some quick one two's culminating in a Fernandes pin point cross that Tall Paul headed home.

Now we had something to defend and the crowd started to get behind the team, you could see some of the confidence returning, although it did take a superb save from Aaron Ramsdale to keep the scores level.

After the break Saints looked assured, although there was still the odd lapse in concentration, Palace had a lot of the ball, but struggled to get efforts on target.

As legs tired the worry was what substitutions would Ivan Juric make, his track record is not great, he left things late this time, not making his first till the 71st minute when Big Les Ugochukwu who had run his legs off was replaced by Joe Aribo.

The next on 81 minutes was enforced, the injured Manning being replaced by Wellington and Sulemana coming off and Tyler Dibling on, for once you felt that Juric's substitutions both in timing and personnel were spot on.

The last one at eh clock turned to 90 mins saw Flynn Downes who had also had a decent game replaced with Sugawara and Tall Paul coming off for Cameron Archer again wise substitutions and fresh legs.

The 8 minutes of injury time probably wasn't too far off given the number of injuries and substitutions, but only 2 minutes in and Palace were level, in truth as I have said, Jack Stephens who hadn't done much wrong all game, just got caught napping for a second and at this level that is enough.

Now the mood changed and there was the feeling that Palace might win it, but the team dug in and saw the final 6 minutes through with only one scare.

So a good result in relative terms, although disappointing given the late equaliser, but it did show those who turned up that there is a side in there somewhere, it just needed good management and for once Ivan Juric got it right.

It is disappointing that we couldn't hang on and get those 3 points that would see us overtake Derby County, but it does show that we can compete with good strong mid table sides in the Premier League and that bodes well to get those points in the remaining 8 games.

It is hard to pick a man of the match, for once there were some actual contenders and a few of them at that, Kyle Walker- Peters at the back never stopped running, Aaron Ramsdale kept us in it, Flynn Downes and Big Les anchored the centre of midfield and Mateus Fernandes showed why he is a class act.

The man of the match was the team as a whole and that included the supporters, who turned up and got behind the team and stayed with them, I have watched some awful games at St Mary's this season, but this is why I keep going, for the ones that buck the trend and perhaps turn the tide.

It was also good to see that former Saint Nathanial Clyne was given a good ovation when he was substituted, truth is we could do worse than sign him next season, he like Kyle Walker-Peters is out of contract, he will turn 34 on Saturday, but in the Championship could be a good experienced replacement for KWP.

Relegation could still be confirmed at the weekend, if we lose and Wolves win then we are down, it looks likely given that Wolves are at Ipswich and we are at Spurs, but it would be nice if we could get 3 points to both keep mathematical certainty away for another week and also get the 3 points that take us above Derby County's unwanted record.

Before this weekend I would have said that this was highly unlikely, but there was a fight and spirit in the team rarely seen under Ivan Juric, so perhaps it could happen.

All Photos Via Reuters

Bowlercow added 13:40 - Apr 3 Although I would have preferred ABK instead of Capt Jack we did at least have round pegs in round holes Capt Jack started as the left sided CB but early on stepped forward into a right sided m/f spot Twice in the first ten minute he gave the ball away and one of those led to Palace hitting the bar Tall Paul must have added to his value last night and I think any reasonable offer(£10m or more) should see him on his way On the other side we should close the exit door for THB,Fernandez,Downes and a few more

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halftimeorange added 16:06 - Apr 3 I venture to suggest that some of those empty seats were due to supporters being delayed in traffic following the accident that caused tailbacks for hours on the M27 and all other route approaching the city from the east. I didn't arrive until 8pm having taken two and a half hours from Lock's Heath. As for perfomances, I thought KWP showed how much we will miss him (should he go) with his wonderful display which put others to shame. Why, oh, why was there never anyone up with him on his mazey runs, or to support Tall Paul for that matter. Flynn Downes was rightly booked after several borderline tackles/fouls which he'd got away with in the preceding fifteen minute. If he'd have stayed on he probably would have been sent off before the eventual end. The biggest disappointment for me (yet again) was Tyler Dibling. He contributed nothing. Overall, a fighting performance signalling a possibility that we might get another two points.

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underweststand added 16:34 - Apr 3 Overall, one of our better performances under Juric. That first minute Palace shot against the bar was a bit of a shocker, but we grew into the game, and Onuachu scored the sort of goal we wanted in his first season, and almost made it through the whole 90 mins. whilst showing what a presence he can be when making life hard for the Palace defenders. Downes got stuck in for once but picked up his statutory yellow card, and one wonders if he is chasing Romeu's club record. Fernandes was outstanding in MF, and Les DAJFU in his defensive role. Bednarek's good work just about outweighs those horror passes he still makes out of the blue, but sadly Capt. Jack really is a handicap nowadays, and won't be missed if he leaves in the summer. Good contributions from Sulemana and KWP, but once again those well-deserved 3 points disappeared in added time.

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bryanK added 19:01 - Apr 3 I am no fan of Captain Jack but a better balance in regard to Harwood Bellis and Benerak who both made life more difficult for the team. Benerack was skinned by the Palace forward with a poor challenge that resulted in Palace hitting the bar plus his horrible back pass to Ramsdale which are mistakes he continues to persistently makes. As for Harwood Bellis look at his two defensive headers that led to the goal. Yes Stephen’s should have closed the Palace player down but Harwood Bellis should and could have put the ball into touch rather send his header direct to a Palace player who crossed to the Palace player.

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Colburn added 19:38 - Apr 3 Pretty good verdict. I would agree that the m27 accident had some say in the lower attendance. I agree that Jack should have got closer to his man for the goal but his first full game back.. No idea what THB was doing for the goal though, dreadful defending heading it straight to the crosser. So we were caught napping a bit. I thought Downes was actually motm, magnificent, brave, used the ball well. Fernandes his usual brilliant self and with Les, that is the best midfield 3 for me. My only criticism was how static we were at times, when we passed and moved we looked brilliant but other times you wondered what invitation they were waiting for to support a run, so we ended up turning round and going backwards. But this was a much better performance all round, we didn’t have holes all over the pitch like in recent months and for me the main reason for this was capt Jack. It isn’t a coincidence for me that, although he may have his shortfalls, we have had better, shape, organisation and balance when he’s been on the pitch so he brings something less obvious. All of our centre backs have been guilty of errors which make them look out of their depth in the Prem but they all have attributes which on their day are very useful. Fine, you can all mark me down for that but Jack does bring a togetherness and spirit which is vital. Juric and Martin see this and they are chalk n cheese.

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Colburn added 19:44 - Apr 3 Btw Dibling is just a nipper, he clearly has a bit to learn and really would benefit from a season in the Championship, not just saying that to keep him. He’s potentially a £80m player but he’s nowhere near that yet, we would gain more of a fee by keeping him for another year, despite the contract running down to 1 year. Keep him and Fernandes, we can win the Championship title.

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JoeEgg added 03:42 - Apr 4 A fair report Nick but I have to disagree with one point; I thought removing Downes and Onuachu from the play was a late mistake. That still left three centre backs on the pitch to help deal with crosses but our recent record shows that our defenders can be guaranteed to mess things up at least once as they tire and so it happened again against Palace.I understand that Downes and Onuachu were looking a little leg weary but we changed from looking as if we might just hold on to the victory to seemingly once again looking a side vulnerable especially in the air in the very closing stagss of a match. We didnt need fresh legs but just to continue what we were doing really well for nearly 90 minutes!. So a much better performance, a much better shape to the team, but a fatal mistake late on preventing us obtainin a winning outcome.

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JerryO added 07:24 - Apr 4 I don’t think that I am the only Saints fan who believes that Dibling is not worth a place on the bench at the moment let alone in the team. Whilst he undoubtedly has Le Tissier- like talent, he has no work ethic. Against Palace we needed subs to battle to see out the win, but yet again he contributed very little. Maybe all the talk about him being worth £100M has turned his head but in reality he has contributed very little since the New Year. He could learn a lot from Mateus Fernandes whose work rate matches his talent. I’m not at all sure that Dibling will flourish in the Championship unless he learns to work much harder.

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ItchenNorth added 08:35 - Apr 4 Downes was arguably MoTM (KWP aside). As soon as he was taken off, it significantly weaken our midfield and with Lesley off, our control of the centre started to slip and with 8 minutes of extra time, it wasn't a surprise pressure told. Disappointed to drop points, but a far better performance from Saints.
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Block8 added 09:55 - Apr 4 A pretty good performance & shows what can be done if the side has structure and balance. The two defensive midfielders were excellent, allowing the full backs to push on with impunity. Only downside was lack of support for Onuachu and his lack of pace. Strange that with all the stick Jack gets every manager has played him and if he could concentrate for 90 minutes would be a very good player. He actually had a good game, making less errors than his two other CB's. (I can take the markdowns, I'm a big boy now) I think many of us also forget that Tyler is still a very young man and does really need to be brought on slowly. His return from Chelsea after such a short time says something about his maturity and confidence, if we want to see a future star we need to give him a chance. Also can't believe someone earlier had Le Tiss and work rate in the same sentence 😂😂😂😂

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Farlow added 10:04 - Apr 4 If we did keep rall Paul i think he,d score a lot of goals in the Championship.Hopefully we,ll have Edwards back at Centre Half next year.
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SainteSimon added 10:12 - Apr 4 Unfortunately the subs had to be made for injury and tiredness reasons; the issue for me was the line up of the bench. Starting were 3 CBs and 2 FBs and in the bench were 2 more CBs and 3 more FBs meaning there was only room for 3 midfield and attackers combined. I would have had Lallana on the bench and brought him on or even Groenbeck. When it came to having to take Ugochukwu and Downes off we had only Aribo as a similar replacement. Why that bench combination to start??

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