Saints' Marsden strikes against Ipswich

Chris Marsden may not have been born with a silver footballing spoon in his mouth or endowed with the same superstar gene as Dennis Bergkamp, but he rustled up a gilt-edged wonder goal to stir the souls of the unsung everywhere - as well as Southampton manager Gordon Strachan.

The journeyman midfielder's touch of the Clark Kents - gliding past four Ipswich players and goalkeeper Andy Marshall before directing a shot inside the post - sparked an attack of the Barry Frys in Strachan, who sprinted 50 metres down the Portman Road touchline to celebrate a memorable finale to an emphatic victory over relegation rivals Ipswich. Along with fellow goalscorers Rory Delap and Brett Ormerod, Marsden struck a blow for the average bloke, underlining how those with skills hewn from the spit-and-sawdust battleground of the Nationwide League may be more suited to a relegation scrap, when compared to those whose application sometimes wavers in the pampered comfort zone of the top flight. Republic of Ireland midfielder Delap, whose deflected free-kick set up a win which should go a long way towards ensuring Southampton's Premiership survival, said: 'Managers should take a gamble on players who have worked their way up from the Nationwide League. When I was playing for Carlisle there were a few players who had the potential to do well in the Premiership.

'Of course you don't expect teams like Manchester United and Arsenal to go for Nationwide players - they want superstars. But teams like Derby and Leicester should stick their necks out. The fact that our three goals were scored by former Nationwide League players proves the point.' It was a point well taken by Martin O'Neill when the Celtic manager was in charge at Leicester, bringing in the likes of Neil Lennon, Matt Elliott and Robbie Savage to turn the Filbert Street outfit into a bunch of Premiership stayers. Strachan has followed suit and, as a result, should rest a little more easily for the remainder of the campaign. With key strikers James Beattie and Marian Pahars missing, Delap stepped in to score his first Southampton goal, and Ormerod, who cut his teeth at Accrington Stanley before joining Blackpool, notched his first in the Premiership.

Even former Chelsea defender Dan Petrescu is struggling to get a look-in at St Mary's these days, leaving the restless 34-year-old ready to quit the club this summer. Marsden, meanwhile, simply stunned himself with his contribution and said: 'I was in shock. I have never scored a goal like that in 33 years and I'll never score one like that again in another 33 years.' Ipswich were aggrieved that claims for a second-half penalty for an alleged handball by Paul Williams were turned down just moments after Finidi George pulled a goal back in the 82nd minute. Ipswich defender Jamie Clapham said: 'It would have got us right back in it. But how you play also depends on how the opposition plays, and Southampton battled really hard and are in good form. 'We are making it harder for ourselves but our destiny is still in our hands. We will go back to the drawing board to make sure we get it right against Leeds on Wednesday.'