A record-breaking crowd will pack into St Mary’s next week to see Saints bid to reach Wembley for only the fifth time in the club’s history.

With just over a week left to go, Saints have already shifted around 26,000 tickets for next Tuesday’s area final second leg against League One rivals MK Dons.

That is more than watched Saints beat Leeds at The Dell to reach the 1979 League Cup final and THREE times as many that saw the southern area final of the Zenith Data Systems Trophy against Chelsea when Saints last reached Wembley.

In the 26-year history of what began as the Associate Members Cup in 1983/84, the previous best crowd outside the final was Birmingham’s 24,002 for their southern final home leg in 1994/5.

With Alan Pardew’s men holding a 1-0 advantage from the first leg, the club are expecting a 30,000 plus gate to witness Saints reaching a major Wembley final for the first time in 18 years.

Next Tuesday’s record-breaking gate comes on the back of improved league crowds at the stadium this season even though the club are playing in the third tier for the first time in half a century.

“I can’t praise the Saints fans highly enough this season,” said Southampton Independent Supporters Association chairman Mike O’Callaghan.

“They have been absolutely fantastic.”

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