Eckert: The boys were exceptional
Tonda Eckert hailed an “absolutely exceptional” end to the Sky Bet Championship season from his Southampton side after Saints’ 3-1 victory at Preston on the final day.
The result extended Saints’ unbeaten league run to 19 matches and saw them leapfrog play-off opponents Middlesbrough in the table, meaning the semi-final second leg will be played at St Mary’s rather than the Riverside Stadium.
Backed by around 5,500 travelling fans, Eckert was delighted to reward the club’s loyal support with three points and three goals in Lancashire.
“We knew how important this game is for us, it doesn’t matter so much where we land in the table, but just for us to have that feeling again,” he said.
“It’s such a long way to travel back home, and to give something back to the supporters who travelled with us, that game today was massive.
“The performance was outstanding. I think you can’t rate that high enough. To come here after this month in a difficult ground, difficult stadium, to have a performance like this over 90 minutes, I think the boys were absolutely exceptional today.”
Eckert refused to be drawn on whether he felt playing the first leg away against Middlesbrough would be an advantage for his in-form Saints side.
“We need to find a way either way, it doesn’t matter if you play away from home,” he added. “We needed to win this game today to go into the play-offs with a good feeling and the boys have done that in an exceptional way. Now we need to push all the way through.”
