NEW Saints striker Peter Crouch's first aim at St Mary's will be to win his new teammates over - "everything should fall into place after that."

That's the opinion of the man who was once Saints' record signing and who once trained alongside Crouch every day for months.

Gordon Watson was the most expensive player in Dell history when Alan Ball signed him in 1995 for £1.2m from Sheffield Wednesday.

Nine years down the line Crouch was on Friday unveiled as the 21st man to have cost Saints a seven-figure sum.

Only six players in the club's history have cost more than his £2m transfer fee - Aston Villa taking a £3m loss on the player Graham Taylor signed from Pompey on transfer deadline day 2002.

"I didn't feel any pressure due to how much I had cost," recalled Watson, who is now living in the Southampton area again after being released by Hartlepool last summer.

"The main pressure on me was that we were third from bottom and I was expected to score goals.

"The pressure will come from wanting to prove to your new teammates that you are worth buying.

"The lad will already know he has the manager's backing, and that's a good start.

"Fans pay their money and are entitled to their opinion, but if a new player can prove himself to his new colleagues then everything else falls into place after that.

"The only pressure you feel is the pressure you put yourself under.

"He will certainly feel under pressure playing against Pompey next season.

"It will be a good signing for Saints, it gives them an extra option and at 23 he can only improve."

Watson trained alongside Crouch during a spell at Portsmouth in 2001/02 - they never played a match together - and the man nicknamed 'Flash' said: "He was a quiet lad, but he was very young.

"He's very tall - he's even taller than he looks!

"He's great on the ground but surprisingly he's not great in the air - he doesn't attack the ball as much as he should.

"But Paul Sturrock was a very good striker, and if he can improve Crouch then he will be a very good player indeed."