Footage of a football fan stepping on a safety net at St Mary's to hurl abuse at rival supporters has gone viral on social media.

The 11-second clip has been viewed 1.7m times since it was posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, during yesterday's Championship game between Southampton FC and Cardiff City.

A young woman can be seen shouting at fans on the other side of the netting surrounded by a group of young men, also throwing insults and making offensive gestures. 

At one point, she is filmed stepping on the net separating rival fans as a female friend grabs her arms to restrain her.

The video has attracted hundreds of replies from users remarking on the "embarrassing" scene.

One person said: "If anyone that really wanted to get over that netting they would.. All bark no bite."

"Time for some people to do some growing up," tweeted another.

Another user said: "If Ukraine had netting such as this the world would look different. Impenetrable"

Southampton beat Cardiff 2-0 yesterday extending their unbeaten run in the Championship to 11 games.

Captain Adam Armstrong fired in two goals to put Southampton ahead within the first 15 minutes.

Manager Russell Martin said he was pleased with the win but felt his team could have scored more.

Southampton will next play on Saturday, December 9 when they face Watford at Vicarage Road.