Woods back in goal routine

The unwanted consequence of beating Manchester United 6-3, as Southampton discovered here, is that anything less than another goalfest in its wake is bound to feel like an anti-climax. Never to be forgotten days are all very well but Graeme Souness possibly believes that the quicker this one fades in the memory the better.

Last week's fantasy soon gave way to reality at Hillsborough yesterday, where Southampton had to rely on Matthew Le Tissier's penalty to wrest a point from a Sheffield Wednesday side without a victory of any sort since 2 September.

A scoreline, of course, conveys only part of the story and this was neither a poor match nor a poor performance by Southampton. Wednesday buzzed with attacking intent, so much so that Southampton probably felt they did well to reach half-time with only one goal conceded.

They began dreadfully, allowing defender Jon Newsome an abundance of space in which to head Orlando Trustfull's cross from the left past a hesitant Chris Woods after 14 minutes.

It was a moment to have Souness shaking his head and one Woods could have done without on his return Premiership action seven months after his last game for Wednesday.

The 36-year-old former England goalkeeper has joined Southampton for the remainder of the season after playing in America and the coincidence of a comeback against a club he left under a cloud may not have been one he wanted. He fumbled a couple but also pulled off three excellent saves, blocking at point-blank range from Scott Oakes and Andy Booth and pushing Mark Pembridge's well-struck drive over the bar. "He kept us in the game," Souness admitted.

Not that Kevin Pressman, who ousted Woods at Hillsborough, was inactive. He was beaten when Le Tissier's chip hit the woodwork a minute after Newsome's goal but revealed faultless reactions to deny the Southampton captain just before half time after Le Tissier had controlled Eyal Berkovitch's cross on his chest and volleyed it powerfully.

Berkovitch, the Israeli who tormented United, had a quieter time yesterday. Nevertheless, he produced several moments of quality, as did Trustfull and Benito Carbone for Wednesday in a contest which reflected well on the presence of foreign talent in the Premiership.

"I think, certainly at the start, that we played as if we believed some of the things that had been written about us after the Manchester United game," Souness concluded. A lifeline arrived, however, when Ian Nolan's outstretched foot brought Egil Ostenstadt crashing to earth five minutes into the second half. Le Tissier then put away his sixth goal in five games.