Saints have completed their first summer signing with the arrival of former England under-19 winger Lee Holmes.

The club have moved quickly to snap up the 21-year-old attacking left winger with eight other clubs vying for his signature.Holmes has just been released from Derby where he set a whole host of records on his way to becoming one of the hottest footballing properties around.But new Rams Paul Jewell decided to release him when his contract expired as part of his mass clearout at Pride Park following relegation, sparking the race for his signature.However, Saints were able to convince Holmes and his family that their new style and set-up under Jan Poortvliet would give him opportunities to play regularly and in an attacking system using wingers that will showcase his talent.Holmes, who played for Derby's under-18s at just 14, became Derby's youngest ever player and the youngest ever to play in the Football League, when he made his debut aged 15 years and 267 days against Grimsby on Boxing Day 2002.Shortly afterwards he became the youngest ever player in the FA Cup.Under George Burley he started to become a regular in the side the next season and became Derby's youngest scorer at 16 when he netted against Coventry in 2003.He went on to make 24 appearances in the 2004/05 season and attracted interest from Chelsea that Derby managed to fend off.Holmes started off 2004/05 in the Derby team and playing and scoring for England under-19s, who he has scored seven goals for in 18 appearances, before he fell slightly down the pecking order at Pride Park.A loan spell at Swindon followed, along with appearances at the Euro 2005 under-19 championships, before 2004/05 back at Derby where he played 21 games, also earning him a contract that expired this summer.Having later slipped out of the picture at Derby he had a loan spell at Bradford and a trial with NAC Breda in Holland before not playing a game in 2007.Holmes spent last season on loan at Walsall where he made 19 appearances scoring four goals before returning to Derby who released him.There is little surprise though there was a rush for his signature as many feel he can realise his early promise with a fresh start somewhere else.