On The Ball written by Gareth Payne and Peter Rogers.
Southampton come out on top on penalties 6-5 after Wayne Thomas scored sudden death kick number eight. It finished 2-2 after normal time. Papa Waigo scored after 14 minutes, Gary Doherty levelled just after the half-hour mark with a stunning volley and Chris Martin put City ahead on 55. It stayed that way until the third minute of stoppage time when Papa Waigo swept home to send us to penalties, where it finished 6-5.
Penalties
NC - Grant Holt is first for City. Good first penalty sending the 'keeper the wrong way. 1-0 City!
S - Rickie Lambert scores to level things up, Forster went the right way. 1-1
NC - Russell Martin straight down the middle, the 'keeper went the same way again to his left. 2-1 City!
S - Papa Waigo scores high into the top corner for his third of the evening. 2-2
NC - Chris Martin goes the same way as the 'keeper, into the bottom corner and squeezes it in. 3-2 City!
S - Save by Fraser Forster from Lloyd James, advantage City. 3-2
NC - Advtange lost, Michael Nelson's kick is saved. 3-2 City
S - Adam Lallana levels it all up again with a confident kick. 3-3.
NC - Darel Russell sends the 'keeper the wrong way. 4-3 City!
S - Paul Wotton scores to take us to sudden death. 4-4
NC - Jon Otsemobor scores off a short run-up, tense stuff now. 5-4 City!
S - Dean Hammond just, under the body of Forster. 5-5
NC - Matt Gill sees his penalty saved by the arm of Bialkowski going back on himself. 5-5
S - Fraser Forster saves with a strong hand going to his left from Michail Antonio. 5-5 after seven.
NC - Cody McDonald's kick is saved by the 'keeper, low to his right. 5-5
S - Wayne Thomas rolls his kick to the right and Forster goes the wrong way and Southampton win 6-5 on penalties after eight kicks.
Full-Time - City kick off and the final whistle is blown and to penalties again we go like Swindon the last game and like the league match three-and-a-half weeks ago it has finished up 2-2 at St Mary's.
90+3 - Papa Waigo sweeps home a late, late equaliser to send this one to penalties. A bit of head tennis in the penalty box eventually arrived at the feet of Papa Waigo N'Diayo, who finished under the body of Fraser Forster with practically the last kick of the game from about four yards.
90+1 - Holt is floored over in the far corner but the referee awards a free-kick to Southampton and doesn't even want to speak to the culprit.
90th - There will be a minimum of three added minutes to be played, judging by the sound of the tannoy announcer, he feels there should be more added on. The added time is greeted by a loud blast of On The Ball from the travelling City faithful over in the corner of the stadium.
88th - Russell Martin is booked for some afters with Dan Harding. The referee failed to award him a free-kick and allowed a poor advantage to play out, which led to the coming together, where Harding put in a strong after the whistle challenge.
87th - Grant Holt is booked for debating the award of a very soft free-kick award to Southampton. If anything it looked like a foul by Wayne Thomas rather than the City front man.
85th - It's like a basketball match at the moment, possession changing hands all the time, each team taking it in turns to have an attack. Rickie Lambert blazes the latest effort high over the bar after the hosts had built an attack down their left.
83rd - The final change of the match, Cody McDonald replaces Wes Hoolahan. Another corner for Southampton, this time on the right, Lallana takes short but Adam Drury meets it with a big header away.
82nd - End-to-end stuff here at St Mary's. Nelson with a brilliant block on the ground to prevent a Papa Waigo N'Diaye shot.
81st - From Forster's throw out, City counter quickly, Holt feeds Hoolahan out wide right, the winger attacks the full-back but squares it back for Holt, the striker on the quarter-turn skies his shot though.
80th - Pressure coming from the hosts, Papa Waigo wins a corner on the left. Lallana to take. Otsemobor heads away, the ball is returned by Wayne Thomas but Forster comes to claim confidently.
77th - Wayne Thomas replaces Chris Perry for the last 13 minutes or so. He goes in at right-back with Lloyd James moving to centre-back, where Perry was playing.
74th - Dangerous delivery by Lloyd James, flicks off the head of Darel Russell and away to safety. Otsemobor can clear down the line for Chris Martin to chase who fouls Chris Perry and also enters the book.
73rd - Michael Nelson trips Antonio as he knocked the ball past him, two covering defenders so a yellow card for the centre-back.
72nd - Michail Antonio goes down in the box at the back post, referee Kevin Wright unmoved though.
70th - "817 on a Tuesday evening just before Christmas is little short of amazing." - fatty28uk - Fantastic isn't it, week in, week out!
69th - Paul Wotton with the error, toeing the ball behind for a corner. Bartosz Bialkowski for it is he in goal for Southampton comes to claim Russell Martin's corner well.
66th - Tonight's attendance is 15,453 with 817 travelling Canary fans.
65th - Free header from a corner by Nelson but just over the bar. Southampton are playing with two up in this second half from the 4-5-1 they started the match with. Papa Waigo has been moved forward to partner Rickie Lambert. The pacey Michail Antonio is playing down the right and the creative Adam Lallana on the left. Dean Hammond, ex of Colchester and Paul Wotton the former Plymouth stalwart in the centre of midfield. City's midfield now reads, Darel Russell holding, Gill left of the diamon, Russell Martin right with Wes Hoolahan at the point behind the usual front two.
63rd - Two changes for City as Matt Gill and Jon Otsemobor replace Tom Adeyemi and Simon Lappin. Otsemobor has gone in right-back with Russell Martin moving into midfield and Gill is a straight swap for Lappin on the left of the diamond.
60th - "OMG.............................I LOVE CITY" - hamster456
59th - A second change for the Saints as Michail Antonio replaces Jacob Mellis in midfield.
58th - Lloyd James sends a free kick into the City box but Darel Russell is on hand to clear the danger.
57th - Chris Martin's name and 'On the Ball City' ring around St Mary's.
55th - GOAL 2-1 City! Chris Martin puts City in front from close range after Grant Holt's effort was blocked by Bialkowski.
54th - Forster has little trouble on collecting a long-distance effort for Saints sub Wotton.
52nd - Doherty is once again in the right place at the right time, this time to clear Papa Waigo's ball into the box.
48th - The Saints change has seen Wotton go into midfield with Papa Waigo now appearing to play in a more advanced role.
47th - A Simon Lappin free-kick is floated into the Saints' box towards Doherty but cleared by the home defence.
46th - Southampton get us back underway, City kicking towards their fans again like in the league match.
There is a change at half-time for Southampton, Paul Wotton replaces Morgan Schneiderlin in the centre of midfield.
That was another cracking half of football at St Mary's after the league match was enthralling. 45 minutes left (plus potentially a few penalties if required) for the chance to meet MK Dons in a two-legged final, they lead Hereford 4-1.
Half-Time - 1-1 at the break. Papa Waigo put the hosts ahead squeezing his shot under the body of Fraser Forster but Gary Doherty for the second time in four days equalised for City, this time with a stunning volley just after the half-hour mark.
45+1 - In the first minute, City with a swift counter. Lappin gets away down the left, feeds Holt inside, the striker is closed down by Chris Perry so lays it off for Tom Adeyemi to strike. Clean hit but wide of the target. City looking dangerous again, Hoolahan 25 yards from goal but Kevin Wright has had enough and blows for half-time.
45th - One minute of time to be added on.
42nd - Fantastic cross from Grant Holt, headed behind for a corner though with Chris Martin coming in on it. Corner delivered by Lappin but cleared out, comes back to Russell Martin who finds Lappin again with a neat back-heel. Holt wins the header but not troubling the 'keeper.
39th - The equaliser has stoked up the Saints who seemed to drop off slightly after taking the lead. City do well to force Southampton out of good attacking positions and Doherty is there again to get his head on a couple of incoming crosses.
35th - "Looks like we have a new contender for top scorer this season! ;-)" - chrisbetts18 - Three goals in four days, the free-scoring Doc.
34th - Doherty enters the referee's notebook. Allegedly catching his man late but I'm not so sure about that myself. Grant Holt obviously agrees and has a few words to the referee on the booking.
32nd- Free-kick to City, just inside the Southampton half, Lappin takes from the left. Headed up to Doherty, 12 yards out the Doc on the volley thumps home an equaliser with his right foot, what a strike! Three in two for the former Spurs man.
29th - City beginning to force the Saints back and ask questions. Hoolahan skips away from two challenges just outside the box and squares for Chris Martin. The striker didn't connect properly with his effort though and it was an easy gather for the 'keeper.
28th - Just as I say that there is a chance at both ends, Tom Adeyemi turns smartly inside the Saints box and forces a save from Bialkowski at full-stretch to his right. Just before that Adam Lallana exchanged passes twice on the edge of the City box but fired his shot straight at Forster.
27th - Dan Harding gallops away down the left and swings over a cross which Gary Doherty has to head away. After the flurry of early activity, the game has turned into a midfield battle. The five-man midfield of the hosts sitting in and deep, not taking too many chances.
22nd - Chris Martin is fouled not once but twice by Chris Perry on the edge of the area but the man in black, Kevin Wright has other ideas and awards nothing.
19th - "Wouldn't you just know it, a man who looked like he had a career ending injury 10 minutes ago, scores!" - crabbycanary - It looked like Papa Waigo's night was done and dusted the way he went down clutching his knee in the early exchanges.
18th - Free-kick suwng in by Dean Hammond but Russell Martin heads away.
16th - "Southampton have set out to swamp the midfield lets hope that Rusty and Tom are on their game......they are one of the few teams that have paid no regard to out system and are playing their own game." - hamster456
14th - It's that man, Papa Waigo N'Diaye straight down the middle, holds off the challenge from Russell Martin and prods a finish under Forster who had come out to narrow the angle. Forster got contact on the ball but it still had enough pace on it to dribble over the line. Saints lead, City concede their first goal in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy this season.
13th - "I''ve got a feeling there are going to be a few goals in this game." - hamster456
12th - "Hello it's 3:30am Hong Kong time, just wake up to listen the commentary, pleased for Lambert go for it and hopefully we will beat Southampton by the penalty shoot-out!" - David Lee from Hong Kong - Dedication!
11th - Chris Martin draws a foul out of Papa Waigo - that man is everywhere. Lappin delivers from the right, in-swinger but the 'keeper jumps well to claim the cross.
8th - The hosts return the ball to Forster and Papa Waigo is back with us, chasing down Michael Nelson, appears to be moving freely again.
7th - Southampton hit a cross-field ball looking for Papa Waigo on the right flank but Drury is there to head home to Fraser Forster. The man on loan from Fiorentina crumples in a heap, clutching his right knee, that may be his night over.
6th - Rickie Lambert steals in back post and is able to connect with Papa Waigo's cross. The striker seemed to be caught slightly unaware and hurried, sidefooting high over the bar.
4th - Darel Russell's cross is blocked for a corner, which Simon Lappin takes. Bartosz Bialkowski (henceforth known as the 'keeper) punches off the head of Grant Holt. Darel Russell returns it back with a header from the edge of the box but the Saints can clear their lines.
2nd - Southampton work it up the other end and Fraser Forster stays big to block Jacob Mellis' close range shot after Papa Waigo slipped him in.
1st - City kick-off and win an early throw-in, on the left, deep inside the Southampton half. Russell Martin has the first effort of the match, drilling his shot wide after Hoolahan had worked the ball out to him on the right from Adam Drury's throw.
Here comes the teams out to a half-full St Mary's Stadium. Adam Drury, Russell Martin, Grant Holt and Wes Hoolahan are all making their JPT debuts this season for City. Both teams enter a pre-match huddle. City are defending the end where their fans are and get us underway kicking from right to left. The same as the league game.
Both teams head back down the tunnel as the big scoreboards at either end of the ground play out highlights and Alan Pardew's pre-match press conference.
The snow was there to greet us as we arrived in Southampton, but it has since abated, leaving us with just the cold and the Christmas tunes playing out. It's almost enough to make a guy feel like it's Christmas.
Only five subs allowed tonight and no extra-time, straight to penalties if required, like against Swindon Town in the last round. To reach the area semi-final, Paul Lambert's men beat Brentford, Gillingham and Swindon. Southampton received a bye through the first round, beat Torquay United on penalties and Charlton Athletic in the last round 2-1.
The question of how strong a side Paul Lambert would field this evening is answered by making two changes. Jens Berthel Askou and Korey Smith are the two to miss out, in come Michael Nelson and Tom Adeyemi. Alan Pardew makes three changes to the side that beat Tranmere Rovers 3-0 at the weekend. Out are Radhi Jaidi, Michail Antonio and David Connolly and in come Neal Trotman, Jacob Mellis and Papa Waigo N'Diaye (the N'Diaye part is optional so I'm told). The teams for tonights Johnstone's Paint Trophy Southern Section semi-final at St Mary's Stadium against Southampton is:
CITY: Forster, Drury, Nelson, R.Martin, Holt (c), Doherty, Hoolahan (McDonald 83), C.Martin, Adeyemi (Otsemobor 63), Lappin (Gill 63), Russell. Subs not used: Steer (GK), McVeigh.
Southampton: Bialkowski, James, Trotman, Perry (Thomas 77), Harding, Hammond (c), Schneiderlin (Wotton 46), Mellis (Antonio 61), Waigo, Lallana, Lambert. Subs not used: Forecast (GK), Holmes.
Referee: Kevin Wright
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