Southampton showed their intentions early on in the game, with Dave Griffiths slotting home a penalty after the home side failed to release on the ground. The first try came soon after when Adam Grogan, a constant threat at Number 8, drove over under the posts. The conversion was good and Saints led 10 nil after five minutes.

Saints kept up the pressure, with the forwards turning over some good ball in the Pompey half and Niall Casey constantly threatening to unleash his lightning pace at inside centre. A good line out fed Dave Griff, playing his one millionth game for Saints, and the wily old dog threw a trademark dummy and sidestep that carved a massive hole in the dog-legged defence and let him waltz in under the posts untouched.

But if Saints thought the game would be easy, they were wrong. A Pompey break was halted an inch from the line, before the supporting player somehow managed to fish out the ball and touch down on the tiny patch of try line that wasn't covered by bodies.

But the visitors maitained the pressure and much of the first half was contested in Portsmouth territory. A clever chip over the defence by Dave Ward was chased well by winger James Parks, who drove his opposite number across his own goal line and hauled him into touch in goal. From the resulting line out, the pack set up a solid platform that allowed Kev Simmonds to power over from two yards like a big ginger truck.

A second try from Portsmouth kept them in the game and ensured the second half would be highly contested. Although it lacked some of the excitement of the first half, the two sides both created chances and played some clever territorial rugby. The Saints defence held firm despite some threatening breaks and when a pack drive was stopped yards short, Adam Grogan was there to pick up and bundle himself over the line for his second try. Paul Brant, who had switched from flanker to scrum half for the second period, rounded things off with a trademark dash from a breakdown, sealing the victory and rounding off a fantastic team performance.

The final score of 13-34 confirms Saints' strength and potential for the current campaign and will give them plenty of confidence ahead of next week's home game against US Portsmouth.