With their yellow-and-blue retro shirts, a strong defensive display to resist the pressure, and the man with number 11 on his back scoring the only goal, Southampton harnessed the spirit of their heroes of 1976.
Not Bobby Stokes against Manchester United at Wembley but Ross Stewart scoring a late penalty to topple Premier League Fulham and fire Tonda Eckert’s Championship team into the FA Cup quarter finals.
Marco Silva’s team were booed off by their own fans. Fortunes oscillated wildly through three games in eight days at Craven Cottage.
It started with victory against Tottenham, followed by defeat against West Ham but this was a great disappointment for Fulham because with their top-flight status safe, they had a glorious chance to tilt at their first major trophy.
Silva though rang the changes, tried to do it without some of his senior stars and Saints made them pay, with a brilliant rearguard display and a winner from a 91st minute penalty, awarded for a trip by Joachim Andersen on Finn Azaz.
Fulham dominated a goalless first half with possession close to 70 per cent, 20 crosses and 11 corners. All without really testing goalkeeper Daniel Peretz. Tom Cairney orchestrated things in midfield and Oscar Bobb fizzed on the right wing.
They squeezed Southampton back towards their own goal, but the visitors were solid in defence, well organised and sprang with menace on the counterattack. All of which made for a delicately balanced contest if not a thrilling spectacle.
Leo Scienza should have scored for Saints midway through the first half when he burst clear, dashed away from Ryan Sessegnon on halfway and had only Benjamin Lecomte to beat. With all the time in the world, Scienza rolled a side-footer past ‘keeper Lecomte and wide.
Another glimpse of goal came Scienza’s way before half time. Not as easy, although unmarked on the volley beyond the back post, this time the Brazilian winger sliced it out for a throw on the opposite side of the pitch.
Before all this, Rodrigo Muniz had the ball in the net when Saints made a mistake in their haste to punish Fulham on the turnover of possession.
Attempting to fire a quick goal kick towards pacy Scienza, keeper Peretz smashed it into the back of defender Ryan Manning. Muniz reacted quickest to turn the rebound into an unguarded net from the edge of the penalty box.
But referee Jarred Gillett had blown his whistle when Manning was poleaxed, presumably fearing it was a head injury.
Early in the second half, another Fulham goal was ruled out. Timothy Castagne bundled the rebound in this time after Peretz had parried a header by Andersen, who was offside when Harrison Reed angled a free kick his way.
Saints though were consistently dangerous, creating and wasting more clear chances on the break. Lecomte blocked with his left boot from Tom Fellows, then made a fabulous save with his fingertips, twisting in midair to reach an Azaz shot sent looping over the keeper by a deflection off Jorge Cuenca. Both attacks triggered by tackles won on Bobb in midfield.
At the other end, Muniz flashed efforts over and wide. Castagne shot wide. Taylor Harwood-Bellis threw his body in front of a shot by Sessegnon and nothing summed up the Saints mentality quite like Peretz saving with his face from the same player.
Then came the decisive moment, Saints on the move forward with a Stewart pass into Azaz, who was clipped by Andersen as he tried to twist onto his left foot. The contract was minimal but enough for Gillett to point to the spot and for VAR to keep out.
Up stepped Stewart for his third goal in four appearances and Eckert’s Saints go marching on.
