Southampton and Stoke City shared four first-half goals and the points as they drew 2-2 at St Mary's Stadium in the Premier League.
Rickie Lambert put the Saints ahead early on with a stunning free kick from a tight angle, but a first Potters goal for January signing Peter Odemwingie deservedly pulled the visitors level on 38 minutes.
In a spell of three goals within the space of five minutes, Steven Davis restored Southampton's lead when his intended cross sneaked inside the post, only for Peter Crouch to level things again before the break.
Below, Sports Mole analyses whether the result was reflective of the action on the South Coast.
Match statistics
Southampton
Shots: 17
On target: 5
Possession: 60%
Corners: 7
Fouls: 7
Stoke
Shots: 5
On target: 4
Possession: 40%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 14
Was the result fair?
The half-time scoreline was certainly fair, with the Potters cancelling out Lambert's moment of quality with a positive team response and they then each had a stroke of luck for their second goals. While the Saints had sustained spells of pressure after the interval, they did not once stretch Asmir Begovic, with the back four in front of the Bosnian proving very difficult to break down. Stoke's defending warranted them a point.
Southampton's performance
Lambert produced the one moment of class that their in-form front three could muster, with Jay Rodriguez largely uninvolved and Adam Lallana kept as quiet as he has been in a long time. Manager Mauricio Pochettino will be most frustrated by his side twice surrendering a lead and centre-back Dejan Lovren, who is absent with ankle ligament damage, was much missed. Davis was busy in the middle of the park and got up and down the pitch exceptionally throughout a match that was played at a very high tempo, but, with Jack Cork in the quarterback role, they did not have the lock to unpick Stoke's defence on this occasion.
Stoke's performance
Even after falling behind inside six minutes, the Potters pinged the ball around with confidence and immediately halted Southampton's momentum. They deservedly levelled through Odemwingie, whose pace gives them an outlet that they did not have before. The slight change of shape since his insertion into the team, with Jonathan Walters playing more centrally and the Nigerian breaking down the wing, gives Stoke more attacking options and their goal tally since his arrivals shows that. Charlie Adam played in a deeper role today but was still on the ball enough to play an influential role, setting up Odemwingie with one of the passes of the season. Once Southampton gained control of possession - Stoke did not register a shot on target in the second period - their defence, marshalled brilliantly by Ryan Shawcross, stepped up and were resolute and organised. Mark Hughes will be very pleased with this display.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Ryan Shawcross: The Stoke captain was a rock at the heart of their defence. Playing alongside an inexperienced and unfamiliar centre-back partner in Marc Muniesa, Shawcross was pivotal to the Potters successfully keeping Southampton at bay in the second period. Not only did he prevent them from scoring a winner, he helped limit them to only a few half sights of Begovic's goal. He won some crucial headers and made a couple of important blocks, but it was his leadership that was most noticeable.
Biggest gaffe
Southampton's defence should not have allowed Adam's corner to reach Crouch in the six-yard box for Stoke's second equaliser. Nobody at the near post attacked the Scotsman's delivery, and goalkeeper Artur Boruc then made a hash of things to gift the ex-England man an easy tap-in. Poor defending all round.
Referee performance
Craig Pawson did not have any significant decisions to make this afternoon, but he should be given credit for allowing a game that was played at such a high tempo to flow without constant interruption. It was a wet surface and there were a fair few crunching tackles, but the rookie official acted sensibly throughout.
What next?
Southampton: The Saints have two away games in the space of five days, as they travel to Hull City in the Premier League on Tuesday before facing Sunderland in the FA Cup last 16 this weekend.
Stoke: Having picked up four points from two difficult games, Hughes's men will fancy their chances of continuing their excellent home form when Swansea City visit the Britannia Stadium on Wednesday.
Joe Fish
