Southampton v Burnley - Player Ratings

[ClaretTony]

Please leave ratings for all players who have played 20 mins or more.

Scoring is from 3 to 10 as follows:

10 - Out of this World
9 - Excellent
8 - Very Good
7 - Good
6 - Average
5 - Below Par
4 - Poor
3 - Abysmal

[Cubanclaret]

We shouldn't overlook the quality of the Saints team sheet. Would have been delighted with a draw today, thought we were so well balanced today and after keeping them at bay early second half, we seized the opportunity. It was a calculated gamble and it paid off superbly with a terrific goal. We might have had a second on the break too, but let's not be greedy. If Everton do come calling, Sean really has a dilemma now, this could be a historic season for us.
Pope 9*
Lowton 8
Mee 9
Tarkowski 9
Ward 9
Defour 7
Cork 8
Gudmundsson 8
Brady 7
Hendrick 6 (Barnes 7)
Wood 7 (Vokes 9)

[what_no_pies]

Pope 9
Lowton 8
Mee 8
Tarkowski 8
Ward 7
Gudmundsson 6 Recovered after a poor first 45
Defour 7
Cork 8
Brady 6
Hendrick 6
Wood 6
Barnes 7
Vokes 8 What a header

[FCBurnley]

Pope 8 A couple of small mistakes but good otherwise
Lowton 8
Mee 9
Tarks 9
Ward 7
JBG 7
Defour 7
Cork 8
Brady 7
Hendrick 6
Wood 5 100% fit ?

Barnes 7
Vokes 9 MOM goals win matches

Dyche 10 Genius

[Wilsdenclaret]

Pope 8
Lowton 8
Ward 7
Mee 9 MOTM
Tarkowski 8
Defour 8
Cork 8
Brady 7
Gudmunson 7
Hendrick 5
Wood 4
Vokes 7
Barnes 6

[careyclaret]

Pope - 8 - another very good performance, really used his height well
Lowton - 8 - a very strong performance
Mee - 9 - MOM - so many clearances and blocks
Tarks -8 - strong again today though some of his passing was off
Ward - 8 - so consistent
JBG - 7 - quiet in the first half, but another great cross that won us the game
Defour - 6 - quiet by his standards
Hendrick - 6 - tough role for him to play today given the lack of possession
Cork - 7 - another strong contribution
Brady 6 - not many chances to use him from set pieces
Wood - 5 no service
Barnes - 7 - help change the game
Vokes - 7 - see Barnes

[PhiladelphiaChris]

Pope 8
Lowton 9
Ward 8
Mee 9
Tarkowski 8
Defour 8
Cork 8
Brady 7
Gudmunson 9
Hendrick 7
Wood 6
Vokes 8
Barnes 6

[Vegas Claret]

Pope 8
Lowton 9
Ward 8
Mee 9
Tarkowski 8
Defour 7
Cork 8
Brady 7
Gudmunson 9
Hendrick 7
Wood 6
Vokes 8
Barnes 6

Dyche 10
Fans 10

[watsonsclarets]

The tanoy system is still hurting my ears

[Wadesawinger]

Lol @Watsonclarets. That tannoy was something else

[SalisburyClaret]

Pope 9* excellent again
Lowton 7 struggled in the first half
Ward 8 solid as usual
Mee 8
Tarkowski 7
Defour 7
Cork 8
Brady 8
Gudmundson 7
Hendrick 6
Wood 7
Vokes 8
Barnes 8

[Buxtonclaret]

Pope 8. *
Lowton 8
Ward 7
Mee 8
Tarkowski 8
Defour 7
Cork 8
Brady 7
Gudmunson 7
Hendrick 5
Wood 5

Vokes 7
Barnes 6

Classic 1-0 away win

[CnBtruntru]

TV
Pope 9*
Lowton 8
Ward 8
Mee 9
Tarkowski 8
Defour 8
Cork 8
Brady 7
Gudmunson 8 That cross, sublime.
Hendrick 6
Wood 6
Vokes 7
Barnes 7

We were in their half more in the last 25 minutes than the other 65, could have had 2 when Vokes and Barnes came on, but I think it always looked like one goal either way and if if you let us score first it is usually goodnight Irene

SD 10 for the subs absolutely spot on.

[edwardianclaret]

Pope 9
Lowton 8
Ward 8
Mee 9
Tarkowski 9
Defour 7
Cork 7
Brady 5
Gudmunson 7
Hendrick 5
Wood 4
Vokes 9
Barnes 8

[maidenover]

Pope 8
Lowton 7
Ward 7
Mee 8
Tarkowski 9 MoM
Defour 7
Cork 7
Brady 5
Gudmunson 7
Hendrick 5
Wood 5
Vokes 8
Barnes 7

[IanMcL]

Pope 9
Lowton 7
Ward 7
Mee 8
Tarkowski 8
Defour 7
Cork 9
Brady 7
Gudmundsson 7
Hendrick 6
Wood 6

Vokes 7
Barnes 7

[Duffer_]

Pope 9
Lowton 7
Tarkowski 9
Mee 8
Ward 7
JBG 7
Cork 8
Defour 7
Brady 7
Hendrick 6
Wood 5

Vokes 8
Barnes 7

UTC!

[Paul Waine]

A wonderful day out at St Mary's Stadium. Been there on numerous occasions, first time to come back with 3 points.

Pope 9 - MotM - I think we can say today he was infallible. A number of excellent saves, never troubled however close they were. One moment of excitement - did Nick fumble the ball before retrieving it the other side of their forward? Or, was Nick just showing how he will deal with any ManCity forward next time we meet them?
Lowton 7 - hard working, generally very sound - Redmond was a "hand full." Would love a few more of the clearances to find - and stick - with a Burnley player.
Ward 7 - I was worried when he went down injured, but no sign of anything serious for the rest of the game. Another safe and secure performance.
Tarkowski 8 James T has been playing centre half in the Premier League for many seasons now, one of the very best central defenders - justifies all his international caps - at least that's what it looks like he's heading for.
Mee 8 - plays so well with Tarks and Jack Cork and Steven Defour - how many "diamonds" can you make out of 4 individuals? Looks like CD and CM have been playing together for ever. The beating heart of Burnley's team.
Cork 8 - seemed to be everywhere - obviously enjoyed showing the Soton fans how good he is.
Defour 8 - Another inspiring game. Not everything came off, but it doesn't matter. Steven Defour is in a different class and his fitness levels show how much he belongs in the Premier League.
JBG 7 (I think I'm marking tough) - a lot of hard work, a number of great crosses, growing more and more into the shirt.
Brady 6 (yes, I am marking tough...). A good game for Robbie, but I feel he can do a lot more.
Hendrick 6 - worked hard, things didn't quite come off, again, I feel he can do a lot more.
Wood 7 - pleased Chris was starting, was there for a lot of chasing down...

Subs:
Vokes 8 - lit the fuse, along with Ashley, came on with the purpose of winning the game, did exactly that. The header seemed to loop towards the net and beyond Forster's reach in slow-motion. Got in their penalty area with a run, earlier. Just a pity Sam couldn't find a claret shirt with his pullback.
Barnes 7 - not only "lit the fuse," Ash was there to remind everyone that it is "fireworks weekend" - throwing bangers into the middle of the Southampton defence.

Sean Dyche 9 - prepared the right team, picked the right players to start and the right tactics to contain the game for 60 minutes - then two great substitutions and 3 points in the bag. Thank you, for 5 wonderful years, Sean Dyche. Now let's "crack on" again for 5 more years.

UTC

[ClaretTony]

Pope 8
Lowton 8
Tarkowski 8
Mee 8
Ward 8
Gudmundsson 8
Defour 8
Cork 8
Brady 7
Hendrick 7
Wood 7

Barnes 7
Vokes 8

[KRBFC]

Pope 8
Lowton 7
Tark 9
Mee 9
Ward 8
JBG 8
Defour 6
Cork 6
Brady 6
Hendrick 5
Wood 5

[fungus_the_bogeyman]

Pope 9
Lowton 8
Ward 8
Tarkowski 8
Mee 9
Gudmundsson 7
Brady 6
Defour 7
Cork 7
Hendrick 5
Wood 5
Vokes 8
Barnes 7

Dyche 10* - a tactical masterclass. Completely outthoight and outmaneuvered Pellegrino all afternoon. Subs were perfectly timed.

[CaptJohn]

There's a certain confidence about this team that I haven't seen in a Burnley squad for a long time. Perhaps going back to the days of Dobson, Casper and Co it's that far back. All of the players know their jobs and each has faith in his team mates around him. I honestly didn't think they'd beat us yesterday from the KO. This is a very good Burnley team with some quality players who follow the Managers instructions perfectly. Long may it last!

Pope 9* Outstanding. One of his great attributes is his height and you can see that the defenders know he'll deal with high crosses. One punch clear late on from a corner was a very good example of this.
Lowton 8 All of the back four were very solid.
Mee 8
Tarkowski 8
Ward 8
Gudmundsson 7 Bit wayward shooting wise in the 1st half but just sticks to his task and when they were a touch lazy 2nd half in closing him down delivered a lovely cross for Vokesy.
Defour 6 A 6 may be a tad harsh but by his high standards this was not his best game. Very wayward with his clearances.
Cork 8 Very good game. Seems to be enjoying his football.
Brady 6 Always wants the ball and combines well with Ward but his crossing was not up to his normally high standard.
Hendrick 5 A bit lost in this role but having said that worked his socks off.
Wood 6 Worked hard but was living off scraps and the clearances from defence and midfield went nowhere near him.
Barnes 7 A typical Ash sort of match where he is brought on to rough up their defenders and it worked.
Vokes 8 Fabulous header. Absolute class. You won't see a better headed goal this season. It was great cross but he had a lot to do. Reminded me of some of the Lochead goals from the 60s

[LeadBelly]

A very good team performance and astute substitutions at the right time by the manager.
Their fans to our left had a chant at some stage about us being s*** fans but it was them leaving before the end in silence & us staying behind to give out lads (& manager) the long applause.

Pope 8 - A couple of good saves and uses his height really well when dealing with crosses, getting better & better, a couple of duff kicks though.
Lowton 8- coped well positionally with all their flank possession and made the outside run off JGB to give him a bit of time for the decisive cross
Ward 7- Also coped well with all their flank plays.
Tarkowski 8- solid, strong & brave in defence. A few poor passes for him (incl one diagonal to the left which went way off target into the crowd).
Mee 9 (MOM)- as per Tarks with slightly more solid distribution in this game.
Cork 8 - Did a lot of covering and ball shifting (as per). A great acquisition for the club and would have enjoyed sticking one on Saints.
Defour 7 - Not much opportunity for the creative side of his game but worked hard and used his experience/ game reading skills well.
JBG 7 - (incl 1 for the inswinging cross for goal) still a bit more to come as he fits in but a valuable contribution already.
Brady 6 - Worked hard and did a lot of doubling up. More to come but playing his part well.
Hendrick 6 - Not playing in his best role but working hard and not shirking anything.
Wood 6 - Playing against a highly rated CH alone up front so had few opportunities, tried hard but I thought lacked a bit of movement the times we did move forward, maybe not quite 100%.

The double substitution could hardly have worked better. Increased the forward energy levels and changed the balance of the game.
Vokes 8 - A very skillful header for the goal. Looked like he really enjoyed scoring that against the club he historically follows, still grinning when the players finally trooped off.
Barnes 7 - As per Sam re impact on the game momentum but without the bonus of a goal.

[Woody9229]

Sat in amongst Soton fans so my view might be tainted a bit. 3 points away in the league is always massive but it was a dull old game and I felt we could have taken the game to a side totally lacking in confidence and devoid of ideas.Yet so much of the match was played in our half and overall felt that this was not one of our best performances but frankly I dont care as I would have been overjoyed with a nil nil and a point.
Pope 9
Lowton 8
Ward 8
Tarkowski 8
Mee 8
Gudmundsson 7
Brady 6
Defour 7
Cork 7
Hendrick 5
Wood 6
Vokes 8
Barnes 7

One of SD's faults over the last 5 years has been an unwillingness to use subs to change a game before we concede a goal. Soton were just starting to get a head of steam going when Vokes and Barnes were brought on and the game was turned on its head, we scored and Saints never looked like scoring. Great to see a young manager learing on the job. Will he contine to be our young manager when Swansea come to town? We are a club in dreamland at the moment and I'm desperately hoping it does not quickly become a nightmare.

[ClaretTony]

One of SD's faults over the last 5 years has been an unwillingness to use subs to change a game before we concede a goal

I'd hardly say an unwillingness for most of that time, more of having no options on the bench. Even last season there were games when our bench included a goalkeeper, two full backs and two central defenders because we had no other options.