THIS was the night when Gordon Strachan's fast-improving side finally came of age.

It was with some irony that moments after the final whistle the Southampton manager revealed how he feared his team might freeze on the night against a talent-laden Liverpool team looking to clamber back to the Premiership summit.

"I was scared tonight they would let themselves down," he admitted.

"But they didn't. They stood up and fought, and played well against an excellent side."

This was by far Saints' best performance of the season, even eclipsing the 4-0 victory at Leicester last month.

It was a night when the shackles and chains of 10 months of under-achievement on the field, combined with the off-the-field politicking which surrounded the Glenn Hoddle, Dean Richards and Stuart Gray sagas, were finally lifted off the overburdened shoulders of Southampton Football Club.

The cynics who expected the Southampton manager's brand of football to be a scrappy, dogged, somewhat unpalatable fare, plucked straight from the annals of the "Gordon Strachan Guide to Premiership Survival (Coventry edition)" are having to change their tune and reading matter very quickly.

What the Scotsman is consistently coaxing from his squad are a string of mature performances from a team brimming with confidence, prepared to play an exciting brand of high-tempo, passing football. They were nimble on the ball, dainty at times, and the movement was outstanding.

They weren't overawed by their United Nations opposition or intimidated by reputations.

Saints mixed it in midfield, were resolute in defence, while they harried and hassled up front.

Liverpool edged possession in the first half - the Sky stats gave the Merseysiders 55 per cent to Saints' 45, and Phil Thompson's side certainly had their chances.

Paul Williams marshalled Nicolas Anelka and impressive Jari Litmanen superbly, and when the Frenchman did give Williams the slip after 11 minutes, the Saints defender recovered well and outsprinted Anelka to thwart the forward, shepherding the ball back to Paul Jones.

Williams and team-mate Claus Lundekvam were awesome. Lundekvam made one superb block to thwart Danny Murphy's drive after Vladimir Smicer got behind the Saints' defence. And then when Litmanen had a sight on goal after 30 minutes, skipper Jason Dodd was there to block the effort for a corner.

However Liverpool's best chance fell to Anelka whose rasping half-volley from a tight angle after 36 minutes was brilliantly saved by Jones - he instinctively stuck out a hand and palmed the ball away for a corner.

At the other end, Wayne Bridge was enjoying his best game for months. The England under-21 defender got forward frequently and tested Liverpool goalkeeper, Jerzy Dudek with a couple of teasing crosses.

Marian Pahars too, was getting through plenty of running. He managed to nip ahead of Stephane Henchoz, saw his shot blocked and Paul Telfer's rebound was grabbed by the Polish 'keeper.

There was disappointment for Rory Delap who limped off with a calf strain after 34 minutes, to be replaced by Matt Oakley.

But as one door closes, so another opens, and Oakley, who has missed the last four games with an ankle knock, took his opportunity well.

"We were solid at the back and we were hoping something would break for us in the second half," said Bridge later. And how right he was with Oakley central to those breaks.

After 61 minutes, Anders Svensson collected a quick throw-in from Jason Dodd, he pushed the ball through to Oakley who was making a run inside the penalty area, and Sami Hyppia sent him sprawling.

"It was a fairly clear cut penalty," said referee, Graham Poll. "You could see the reaction on Sami's face. He looked at me and he knew the lad had wrong-footed him."

Up stepped James Beattie, he shot low and to the right, and despite Dudek guessing right, the ball found the back of the net.

"Once you make your mind up, don't change it," said Beattie, who celebrated his 11th goal of the campaign, and his fourth in the last four games. "If you change your mind, that's when you sometimes miss."

Moments before the goal, Lundekvam had seen a header blocked in the six yard box and when the ball broke to Chris Marsden, Dudek blocked his shot.

Dodd made an equally important block after 70 minutes, crucially denying Murphy. The play instantly switched upfield. Marsden sent Pahars flying down the left-wing, he was tracked by two Liverpool players but still managed to get in a cross which was aimed towards Oakley who had sprinted fully 70 metres.

But the cross never found the midfielder. Instead John Arne Riise, who had come on as a substitute moments earlier, intercepted, heading the ball over Dudek with his first touch.

Thompson, who was taking plenty of friendly flak from the St Mary's crowd, threw on Emile Heskey and Patrik Berger late on to salvage the game, but Saints were resolute.

"The changing room is a very happy place right now," said skipper Dodd. "If you want to beat the top teams, you've got to play well, and we did that tonight."