GLENN HODDLE and Dean Richards left the Friends Provident St Mary's Stadium yesterday afternoon with their pride severely dented and a chorus of boos from almost 30,000 Saints fans ringing in their ears.

It was the first time either manager or player had returned to the south coast since their acrimonious departures to Tottenham earlier this year.

And while Saints got the points in a 1-0 Boxing Day win, all Hoddle and Richards received was the festive bird.

"Words can't hurt you, can they?" insisted Hoddle who, along with Richards, had been subjected to a torrent of abuse from Saints supporters all afternoon.

Even chairman Rupert Lowe had caught the mood of the day in his programme notes by suggesting: "I cannot think of a better game to win in order to contribute to our points tally."

James Beattie, with his eighth goal of the season, settled the game with a brave 55th minute header for three valuable points which offers some daylight between Saints and the bottom three.

It was also the perfect pick-me-up after Saturday's 6-1 mauling at Manchester United for a fourth win in six matches.

Midfielder Chris Marsden admitted that the players were aware of how much the game meant to the fans. "We tried not to think about it in the build up to the game," he said. "But it was in the back of people's minds.

"Both managers harped on that this was just another game, but we knew, and more importantly, 30,000 people knew that it was more than that."

Manager Gordon Strachan said he had tried to not think about the personalities involved. His desire was to solely concentrate on the game, plus the need to pick up three points. "I have never seen anything in the press about this game," he said. "I just watch Teletext.

"I didn't want to get involved in all that. It is the media's job to create all the hype and fantasy, it is mine to try to deal with the reality, and the reality is that we have won the game."

Hoddle too was ambivalent about the hostile atmosphere at St Mary's. "It's a lovely stadium and one the Saints should be proud of," he said. "I am sure they are going to enjoy many years of football here.

"But other than that, I'm disappointed not to get the three points, that was the only reason why I was here.

"I think Dean Richards responded with an excellent performance. I thought he was first class and showed a lot of character."