MATTHEW OAKLEY revealed he has been taking tips from the top after ending a 15-month itch to seal a 2-0 win for Saints over Sheffield Wednesday at the Dell.

Five minutes from time the midfielder whipped in a scorching free-kick, the first Saints have scored since the final game of the 97-98 season when Matthew Le Tissier fired home at Tottenham.

And afterwards Oakley, recalled because of a hamstring injury to Kevin Davies, acknowledged he had drawn inspiration from two of the masters of the art.

He said: "I have been watching David Beckham and of course Matthew Le Tissier to see their style because you can't get better strikers of a ball than them.

"I have been a bit out of favour so it was nice to get a chance. The injury to Kevin changed things and suddenly I found myself taking free-kicks, "I went close with one in the first half and when I got clattered in the second half, Jason Dodd took it and hit the wall. I wasn't happy with that so when we got another I took it. I saw a gap between two players but it needed a touch to take out the wall. It was set up nicely for me and the ball flew in."

Oakley also revealed that the Saints players had received a pre-match boost when they heard that Wednesday's Italian ace Benito Carbone had stormed off before the game after he was named only among the substitutes.

He said: "I was in the treatment room and I heard a shout that there was a taxi waiting for Carbone. At first I thought it was a joke but it gave us a massive lift!"

It was a view echoed by Saints boss Dave Jones who was delighted by the contrasting response of new signing Luis Boa Morte when he was left on the bench.

He said: "I left Luis on the bench because he had only had one day's full training with us. I had a long chat with him on Friday and he felt it would be better if he sat out and watched how we do things first - similar to what we did with Trond Soltvedt when he signed.

"But when he came on Luis gave the fans a little taste of what he is all about. His pace will frighten defenders and with James Beattie, Kevin Davies and David Hirst to come back as well as Matthew Le Tissier we have a lot of options up front now."

"I was very relieved to see that Carbone was not in the Wednesday side but that is a matter for Danny Wilson not for me."

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