A year ago to the week, a smug John Gregory provocatively grouped his Aston Villa players for a team photo in front of their fans at The Dell.

They were celebrating a 4-1 win which chalked up their best ever start to the season, sparking premature talk of titles and trophies while Southampton fans feared the drop.

Just 12 months on, Saints' well-deserved victory at Villa Park has heaped the pressure on the former Pompey boss who may no longer be in charge by the time the teams meet again in the Worthington League Cup three weeks on Wednesday.

Angry Villa supporters besieged radio phone-ins and booed their side off the pitch at the end of each half.

And when Gregory replaced Paul Merson with George Boateng ten minutes from time, the Holt End raised a deafening chant of: "You don't know what you're doing!"

Yet those same fans were streaming out of the ground well before the three minutes of injury-time - despite knowing of Saints' habit for conceding late equalisers!

This time though they got it right as they turned the clock back to their previous visit to the West Midlands when they won at Coventry on the opening day of the season.

This second away victory was almost a carbon copy display with the winner even coming at exactly the same stage of the game - seven minutes from the end.

It was a good time to score, both to deflate Villa whose fans were still moaning at the substitution less than three minutes earlier and to ensure there was not long to hold on!

It made a refreshing change for Saints to be the ones to score late on - and from the kind of well-rehearsed set-piece which has so often proved their own undoing.

Hassan Kachloul's left-wing corner was flicked on at the near post by Claus Lundekvam. As the ball flashed across goal nothing and no-one was going to stop Dean Richards as he thundered in with awesome power and single-minded resolve to nod in from close range.

After conceding three late levellers in their four previous league games, there was more trepidation among the travelling fans then than while their team were merely level!

But by now Saints' control was so complete and Villa were so woebegone that there was little likelihood of a slip-up.

In fact they almost extended their lead when Marian Pahars darted onto a clearance from Paul Jones and whipped in an angled shot which was too hot for David James to hold.

Substitute James Beattie powered in for a knock-in but the keeper remarkably diverted over the bar at point-blank range.

The priority though was to protect what they had and the team remained totally focused, showing they had learned well on the training ground last week by taking the ball to the corners to use up time.

But this was no smash and grab raid. It was a clinical, calculating display by Saints who realised the game was there for the taking against a shocking Villa side looking a pale imitation of last season's pretenders to the crown.

However it took an Alan Thompson free-kick against the bar on 18 minutes to fully rouse the Dell boys who started slugglishly.

After that though they got a grip and began to assert themselves against a wilting Villa side whose passes went woefully astray under pressure.

The slick one-touch football which destroyed Saints a year ago was just a distant memory as they continually gave the ball away or kicked it aimlessly into wide open spaces.

Saints sensed blood and clearly enjoyed the feeling of superiority. Jason Dodd and the recalled Patrick Colleter buttoned up the flanks with Steve Stone barely getting a sniff while the two centre-backs mopped up everything.

Dublin twice missed the target when well placed and generally looked a sad shadow of the player who terrorised Southampton last autumn.

Meanwhile Benito Carbone may as well have hailed another taxi for all the impact he made. He had one moment, an eight-yard blast superbly turned over by Paul Jones whose handling was immaculate all afternoon.

That save on 71 minutes seemed to sap what little remained of Villa's self-belief and they barely mounted a meaningful threat in the final quarter of the game.

With the bit between their teeth, the Southampton defence held firm, protected by a dogged midfield which kept the home side at a distance and their failure to make significant headway quickly alienated the crowd.

The more restless the fans became, the more uncertain and panicky Villa became. As desperation crept into their play, they put even more passes astray and their afternoon began to spiral in ever-decreasing circles.

Saints on the other hand grew in stature and belief with the wriggly Ripley maintaining his fine form to torment Alan Wright until a tight calf forced him off.

Southampton were so much on top it seemed almost as though they picked their moment to score to ensure that there was enough leeway before the final whistle but not too much for the nerves to set in.

Converted for the new archive on 25 January 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.