Saints' new owner and manger will have learned a lot from this weekend's showpiece friendly againts Ajax as the Dutch giants claimed the Ted Bates Trophy...

SAINTS vs AJAX - MINUTE BY MINUTE REPORT - READ ALL THE ACTION AS IT HAPPENED >>>

Saints: Davis, Murty (Schneiderlin, 66), Molyneux (Thomson, 55), Wotton, Perry, Thomas (Lancashire, 46), Lallana (Paterson, 73), James, Rasiak (Saganowski, 46), Gillett (McNish, 83), Mills. Subs: (not used) Bialkowski.

Ajax: Vermeer, Emanuelson (Sarpong, 70), Sulejmani (Zeegelaar, 65), Silva, Suarez, Wielaert, Alderweireld, De Jong, Anita, Donald, Kennedy (Rommedahl, 46). Subs:  (not used) Verhoeven, Van der Wiel, Lindgren, Aissati, Sno, Blind, Ogararu, Luque.

Caretaker manager Stewart Henderson was in charge for one final match ahead of Pardew starting work on Monday and the Scotsman appeared to be enjoying the grandeur of the occasion...

Saints' opponents needed little introduction and did not let fans of the beautiful game down with a classy display that followed their 4-0 win against Championship side Bristol City in mid-week.

The Dutch giants are also in a transitional phase, having just engaged former Tottenham Hotspur boss Martin Jol to reassert their European credentials, and it was with at least a hint of trepidation that Saints fans approached this match in the hope that their side would emerge as unscathed as possible.

As it was, they needn't have worried, as Saints got the new era of to the best possible start by taking the lead after just 15 minutes.

During a bright opening spell that matched the colour of their smart new blue and yellow away kit, Saints had already forced a fine save from Ajax 'keeper Kenneth Vermeer on six minutes when Grzegorz Rasiak got his head onto the end of Simon Gillett's free-kick, although the whistle had already gone for a foul.

The hosts opened the scoring on the quarter hour mark with a superb example of a well-worked team goal as Paul Wotton and Gillett guided the ball up from the back and Joseph MILLS stabbed the ball into the roof of the net at the far post for his first senior goal.

Saints had lined up in a defensive 4-5-1 formation with Rasiak operating as the lone striker up front, with Lallana and Mills out wide and James and Gillett playing just in front of Paul Wotton.

Ajax's class was soon back on display, however, and their captain Luis Suarez was the man pulling the strings as he headed just wide from Emanuelson's cross just two minutes later.

With 23 minutes on the clock, referee Lee Probert awarded the visitors a penalty when he decided that Wayne Thomas had got more of Miralem Sulejmani than the ball.

A minute later, skipper SUAREZ again stepped up to the mark and drilled a low shot to Kelvin Davis' right to draw his side level.

With ten minutes to go before the interval Saints were awarded a free-kick when De Jong upended Paul Wotton and Chris Perry positioned himself well but headed the ball onto the roof of the net as the high ball was delivered.

Saints captain Kelvin Davis, whose own future at the St. Mary's has now also be secured, repaid the club's faith in him in the 37th minute with a fantastic stop to deny Swedish midfielder Kennedy and did the same two minutes later to tip a curling shot from Suarez over the bar.

Half-Time: Southampton 1-1 Ajax

Henderson made two half-time switches, with Thomas and Rasiak being replaced by Lancashire and Saganowski.

The visitors also made a change, with Dennis Rommedahl, who played under Alan Pardew at Charlton, coming on for Kennedy.

The Danish winger made an almost immediate impact as he unleashed a powerful shot that swung in from the left and beat Davis, but somehow bounced out after striking the left hand post on 49 minutes.

The Dutch side did extend their lead four minutes later in less spectacular fashion when Uruguayan SUAREZ was able to wrong-foot Lee Molyneux before slipping a low shot in at the near post from close range.

Saints responded by switching Molyneux for Jake Thomson in the 55th minute but were now being made to chase the ball more as Ajax turned on their passing style.

The introduction of Marvin Zeegelaar was followed by a more offensive move from Saints as Frenchman Schneiderlin replaced the solid looking trialist, Graeme Murty with just under 25 minutes to go.

The home side were not done yet though, and Gillett's goal-bound shot was well blocked by Robbie Wielaert two minutes later.

With a respectable 2-2 draw still looking a distinct possibility, Henderson removed Lallana and sent on young striker Matt Paterson, whose pre-season goal-scoring record has been nothing short of impressive.

It was the visitors, however, who were better able to up the ante in the closing stages, and Davis pulled off another fine reaction save to push substitute Sarpong's shot onto the bar and behind in the 78th minute.

With ten minutes left on the clock, Rommedahl broke free and went one on one with the Saints 'keeper but was denied the chance to shoot by a superbly timed tackle from Mills, which drew applause from his colleague Chris Perry.

The Dutch side the scored from the subsequent corner an minute later, as Mills again headed the ball away from goal only to see it met by the head of DE JONG who directed it home.

Saints final switch saw Henderson introduce Academy scholar Callum McNish and remove Simon Gillett in the 83rd minute, but the home side were punished once more as ZEEGELAAR made it 4-1 with a strong diagonal shot from the left of the area.

The Ted Bates Trophy was presented to the Ajax captain, on behalf of Markus Liebherr, by his advisor Nicola Cortese but today was always going to be a celebration for Southampton.

Despite the two late goals that gave the score-line a more emphatic feel, Saints new owner and manager will have seen plenty of promise on their first trip to St. Mary's and the future looks decidedly brighter as the new era begins.

Full-Time: Southampton 1-4 Ajax

Pre-season 2009-10