WHEN he was asked to say a few words on the pitch at St Mary's back in October 2022, Saints goalkeeping hero Antti Niemi was honoured.

Niemi only arrived in England's Premiership at 30 years old, but he was plucked from Hearts by then manager Gordon Strachan for a sizeable £2million.

He went on to make 123 appearances for Saints, including in the 2003 FA Cup final, and is credited by some fans as the best in net since Peter Shilton.

Niemi labels himself a "not very emotional, boring guy" but admits returning to the stadium, at half-time of a 1-1 draw with Arsenal, was too much.

"I don't get too high or too low ever but for some reason, I was really emotional when I was on the pitch side," Niemi tells the Daily Echo.

"I was close to the goal and I was looking at how I used to warm up there, where I used to play and I was holding my tears back - I felt like, come on, grow up.

"It's still very much my club, they are warm memories. We had the third season we got relegated but I'm a positive guy and thinking about the good moments.

"Every time Southampton plays, if I'm on the road, I check how they've done. I had thought my chance to play at the highest level had passed. 

"Then I got an opportunity to join Southampton and in the previous seasons, they were always kind of flirting with relegation and just surviving.

"Under Gordon Strachan, those two seasons he was with us, we didn't win trophies but I believe that they are good years in any history of Southampton."

Niemi was a doubt to feature in his third cup final, at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, after a knee injury ruled him out of the semi-final win over Watford.

He had played a league match against Bolton a couple of weeks earlier but sat out of the last two games of the season as a precaution.

Niemi recalled: "We knew that straight after the last game, whatever game that would be, I would go and have surgery.

"I spoke to the club doctor, I said, you know, is there any chance that I could play? He said that he could put a needle in and make the pain go away.

"He also said that if it was any other game, he wouldn't do it, but obviously, most people don't get a chance to play in the FA Cup final. I don't care what happens." 

Niemi became the first goalkeeper to be substituted in an FA Cup final when he limped off with a calf injury to be replaced by Paul Jones in the 66th minute.

Arsenal's winner had already come via the right boot of French international Robert Pires earlier in the tie - but it was not the lasting memory. 

They might have been heavy underdogs but a sea of yellow painted half of the Welsh stadium long after referee Graham Barber had called time on the dream.

"I wasn't thinking that I'm going to do professional football or play in the Premier League, so everything that happened, I was enjoying the ride," said Niemi. 

"The FA Cup, obviously, it was special. I remember the days before the cup final, I did the press conference with the manager and one or two other players.

"The amount of microphones that were on the table, it was like, 'Oh my God', it was like all over the world, you know, Asia, so it's a massive, massive game.

"I remember walking on the pitch and thinking 'Wow, this is why we play football', and Arsenal were the clear favourite so we weren't much under pressure.

"I think the most pressure was because you kind of fancy yourself, but I think if you ask the Arsenal players, we gave them a good game."

Niemi is perhaps remembered best for a triple save he made in a 3-2 win over the Gunners earlier that season, featuring a James Beattie brace. 

"Everybody always talks about it, I'd love to say that it was my brilliance, but it wasn't really. The first one was a decent save," Niemi insisted with a smile.  

"After that, Patrick Vieira should have scored, let's be honest. On the third one, I was sitting on the ground and just waiting for the ball to go into the net.

"It just hit me, and I was the smallest target. It was a good moment, but it wasn't brilliant goalkeeping. It's probably bad finishing from Vieira and a little bit of luck."

Perhaps his top saves were instead against Alan Shearer, Michael Owen, Gary Naysmith, Simon Charlton or even a young Gareth Barry.

He definitely would have been best remembered - nationally, not just in Southampton - had his added-time volley at Fulham been an "inch lower". 

"It's a long time ago but that really bugs me sometimes... I don't think there are too many goalkeepers who scored in the Premier League," he said. 

"I'm telling you, if that ball went like an inch lower that would have been a goal, it would have bounced on the goal line, on the roof, that would have been a goal.

"At least I hit the target almost, and then Michael Svensson scored from the rebound, another bounce, and so it was a good one, but it does bug me sometimes.

"It would have been amazing, it would be nice to see it in the pub every now and then - but at least we got something from the game."

Niemi's spectacular chest and volley handed Michael Svensson the opportunity to head into an open goal and level at 2-2 from 2-0 down just 10 minutes earlier.

There is only one afternoon that Saints fans recall the unflappable Niemi letting the club down - a demoralising 4-1 defeat at Portsmouth in April 2005.

Niemi gave away a penalty in the first three minutes and was caught in no man's land for the third, as manager Harry Redknapp endured a miserable afternoon.

"On my behalf, I felt at the end of the season, because we weren't winning games and everything was going badly, I lost a bit of confidence as well," he explained.

"Before the games I used to be the way I am but because that was the time that we were struggling and it was the big derby, I was trying to be different.

"I was trying to talk to myself, I was like 'You have to do well today, we have to get some points from this game and turn it around', and it went over.

"So looking back at that game, I think it's a case of you're just thinking too much and trying to do things that didn't come naturally."

Niemi also willingly offered an explanation for his eventual move to Pompey in 2009 - and the reason is closer to home than you might guess.

David Coles, who had been Southampton's goalkeeping coach since 1997 before following Redknapp across Hampshire in 2005, made the call.

"I already stopped playing and I was out of football for six months because I was healing my wrist," Niemi said, having retired initially in 2008. 

"The reason I joined Pompey was David Coles. I was retired and he said that they got three senior goalkeepers. David James is clearly number one.

"Jamie Ashdown and Asmir Begovic want to go on loan and play somewhere. David said could you please, for your experience, could you do the job?

"David helped me so much during his career so I said yes. I fully understand it but at the end of the day, I was a professional - I didn't grow up in Southampton or Portsmouth."

The relationship between Coles - who played for Helsinki during his career, and returned to Saints to coach the under-18s last year - and Niemi is well-charted.

Coles still proudly displays a picture of himself and Niemi on his LinkedIn, with the caption: "One of the best goalkeepers in the world at the time."

Niemi recounted: "Unfortunately, when you're still playing football, you lose contact with a lot of people, but for the goalkeeping thing - we keep in touch.

"We send each other messages and call each other every now and then, so he's definitely one of those people that I'm still friends with.

"In a good way, he's kind of like an old-school British man, you know. He appreciates work and he was really pushing us hard at times - we had a few arguments.

"He's got a great sense of humour and he was my goalkeeping coach when I probably enjoyed some of the best years in my footballing career. 

"He is a great guy and he's never done it for money or anything. Some people want to be priests, pilots or doctors. David loves goalkeeping, that's his thing."

Niemi has also enjoyed a career away from St Mary's. He won the Finnish Cup with HJK Helsinki and the Danish Cup with Copenhagen in the 1990s. 

He was also part of the Rangers squad that did a domestic treble and was later named Finland's Footballer of the Year in 2004.

He has worked as a goalkeeper coach for Finland since 2010, in England's UEFA Nations League group this winter, and is assistant boss at Greek side Volos.

Niemi helped mentor Bayer Leverkusen's league-winning captain Lukas Hradecky to become one of the world's best and has seen how the goalkeeper role has evolved.

"I probably could have played the modern way but my training has been different. When I was growing up, it was shot-stopping and coming for crosses," he said. 

"I can't remember conversing with the coaches on how to create three against one, where your supporting player should be or how you can find a midfielder.

"It was more like put the ball down, kick it to James Beattie and then go from there in a 4-4-2. You now have to play with your feet and it's not only shot-stopping."

By this point in the interview, we had taken enough of Niemi's time. But we wanted to put to him a final few questions directly sent in by supporters.

What does he think of Saints signing Aaron Ramsdale? "I honestly think that Southampton have always had big goalkeepers," he responded.

Has he made up with David Prutton? "I haven't spoken to him since I left but I don't remember what happened so it can't be bad. I am sure we would be fine."

Does he ever think about saving Owen's penalty? "Michael was a fantastic, world-class striker but that was a horrible penalty. I definitely remember that."