AFTER 38 hard fought matches, the perceived success of Saints' league campaign rested on one game - thankfully for them they won it.

Before the match, Saints could have finished anywhere between eighth and 13th and, with only their fourth away win of the season, it was the former and with it about £2.5m more than if they'd have lost.

That's a crazy statistic when a league season is played out between August and May but that was the fine line Saints were treading.

And, all things considered, it's a fair reflection of their campaign.

If they would have finished in 13th, the history books would have recorded it as an average league season - history books don't record squad limitations or long term injuries.

But finishing eighth will be remembered as a highly-satisfactory Premier-ship term and, with an FA Cup final and European qualification to boot, will be looked back on as one of their best ever.

When you look at the seven teams above Saints, you can't argue that they deserve to be that much higher. But look below and they don't deserve to be any lower.

Manchester United, Arsenal, Newcastle, Chelsea and Liverpool have all enjoyed varying degrees of success but have deserved their placings.

Everton and Blackburn secured sixth and seventh places, either of which could easily have been filled by Gordon Strachan's men had it not been for injuries and the need to protect his key players for cup games.

Strachan has said the football his team have played over the campaign has deserved a high placing and that it would have been a shame if a few lax weeks at the end would have seen them finish in lower mid-table.

That desire to ultimately be able to look back on this league season as a success because of a high finishing position may ultimately have been what motivated him to pick a full strength side for this match.

It was certainly a battling Saints display where they rode their luck at times and had to rely on the heroics of Paul Jones to keep the clean sheet as he staked a claim for a place in goal at Cardiff.

But, as has been the case with all four of their away wins this season, it was a single goal that decided it.

Unlike every other time however it was not James Beattie who got it - thus leaving him in third place in the Golden Boot tables with 23.

Instead, it was Michael Svensson who headed home the crucial goal on 34 minutes after finding himself unmarked in the centre of the goal from close range from Matt Oakley's left-wing free-kick.

Svensson was also a rock at the back as Saints fought hard for this win that meant a lot to the players.

But much of the thanks must go to Jones, who pulled out some great saves from his big Welsh locker - four of them from Nicolas Anelka.

As early as the sixth minute, Jones had to turn away Marc Vivien Foe's effort and, 13 minutes later, Foe turned provider for Anelka to be denied for the first time.

Just two minutes later, it was again Jones from Anelka and the Frenchman was kept out for the third time in the first half on 40 minutes.

It didn't get much better for Anelka on 65 minutes when Jones again thwarted his efforts and, when Robbie Fowler burst through with seven minutes remaining, the Welshman got down at his feet to stop him sending off Maine Road in style.

Peter Schmeichel looked fairly comfortable in his last ever match.

Aside from the goal, his only real action was catching Beattie's first-half free kick - later the Saints hitman was booked for diving in the area when he looked to have been fouled.

Brett Ormerod got through a couple of times and, in hindsight, may consider he picked the wrong options, but other than that, it was mainly backs-to-the- wall stuff for Saints.

Nevertheless, they held on for their richly-deserved reward for a season's hard graft - it was far from the best win but history will only remember they finished eighth - their best effort for 13 years.