Last night's match against AFC Totton was not just an entertaining encounter but a sign of what football should be all about…

That was the verdict of Saints manager Mark Wotte who, along with his players, took time out to mingle with the fans and share in their cautious optimism for the future.

Things ended all square in a 2-2 draw, but even a last gasp goal at the end of a second half and a torrential downpour in the first, did relatively little to dampen the spirits on a night that epitomised the term 'friendly'.

The close ties between the two club stretch back to the 1880's when both were originally formed and many Stags fans possibly found themselves with a wardrobe dilemma before setting off for the match.

Even Totton's last minute goalscorer Dean Faithfull, sheepishly declared his delight after netting against the side he has avidly supported since childhood.

Saints or Totton? Which shirt to wear? Both strips were on show in large numbers at a jam-packed Testwood Park, but the local community came away as the real winner on a night that seemed a possible prelude to something much more exciting.

"The thing I like about playing local sides like Eastleigh and Totton is that you see a lot of Saints fans show up and they are very close to the pitch and the players," Wotte explained.

"All the fans are so committed to the club and they are all part of the Southampton community.

"They are all waiting for good news, and I will be happy for all of them and the staff at the club to hear that we can sit down and make some proper plans for the coming years. It would be nice after three months of waiting and a big relief."

With the main topic of conversation dealt with succinctly, the Dutchman's thoughts turned to the match itself which he saw another good stepping stone in Saints' pre-season plans.

"In the first half we should have scored two or three goals and there was a 100% clear penalty that wasn't given," he continued.

"There were a few of our players who didn't put the ball in the back of the net, but the attitude was still good. Our passing was better than Saturday and we didn't give away a lot.

"In the second half the younger boys tried to play football like they did on Saturday against Eastleigh and took a few risks at times, but they are young boys and perhaps they switched off a bit when we went 2-0 up.

Totton delight!

"They were a bit naïve and we allowed Totton to score a couple of goals that were sloppy from our point of view. It was immature defending for their first goal and we allowed them to get a set-piece for the second so it's a lesson for the boys.

"They need to also understand that football is also about results and even if you are 2-0 up you still can't relax."

Wotte split his 22-man squad in half with a predominantly senior side starting the first half with the addition of Joseph Mills and Olly Lancashire.

The return of Norwegian striker Jo Tessem was also an added bonus to those fans who remember his Saints exploits in the dizzy days of the Premier League.

"I put Olly Lancashire in the first half because I want to build for the Millwall game. Olly has been good in training and I wanted to give him the opportunity to play with Chris Perry. I though they both did well.

"We asked Joseph Mills to come back from Scunthorpe and he has not agreed a new contract yet but he is fighting for the left-back position in the team.

"I just wanted to give Jo Tessem 45 minutes against an energetic opposition and he did some nice things. He was very efficient and is an experienced player but he was a little rusty because we did a double session yesterday.

"He was very keen on training with us and we said o.k. He started this week and we said we'll take a look and see if he can help us in League One.

"We will not take a quick decision though because if you bring in a player with his age and experience he has to be very close to the first team, otherwise you're better going with a younger player I think.

"It was still a training match for us but we have to sharpen up our defence and our finishing now and to build it up towards the Ajax game on July 18th."