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Southampton had thrashed United at the Dell the previous season. But rather than accepting the score, Alex Ferguson blamed the defeat on the grey shirts his side were wearing (apparently, they made it difficult for his players to see each other!).

Within 22-minutes Ferguson's day on the south coast started to collapse again. Israeli International Eyal Berkovic had given the Saints a 1-0 lead and Roy Keane had been sent off for two late tackles. Matt Le Tissier then danced around the United defence and planted a superb chip into the back of Peter Schmeichel's net.

To United's credit, David Beckham quickly replied with a brilliant free kick. But that was soon spoiled by a mix-up between Schmeichel and Gary Neville that allowed Egil Ostenstadt to tap in a third. Ten-man United pulled one back in the secong half through a David May header, and for a moment it looked as though they might pull off a famous comeback. But Berkovic had other ideas, and soon thundered in a volley from the edge of the penalty area. That gave Saints a 4-2 lead seven minutes from time, and it became 5-2 after Ostenstadt slid home for his second.

Paul Scholes managed to pull a goal back in injury time, but Ostenstadt had the last word. He strode through the United defence to complete his hat-trick and make it 6-3 to the Saints. A great game and a great result that made everyone except United fans smile!