Steven Davis says Saints showed a lot of character to progress in the Capital One Cup, after a 3-2 win against Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium.
Having led 2-0 at half-time thanks to goals from Graziano Pellè and Shane Long, Saints looked to be on course for a routine win, but the Potters fought back in the second half to level proceedings.
Pellè was to have the final say, smashing home a loose ball moments after Peter Crouch had been sent off for a tackle on Davis, as Saints made it into the Capital One Cup quarter-finals.
Midfielder Davis was pleased to have come out on top against tough opposition. He said: “We’re all delighted to go through because it was a difficult game for us.
“First half I thought we played well, we got the ball down and created some good opportunities. Second half, Stoke did what they do best and they made it difficult for us.
“I think it was a striker’s challenge [from Peter Crouch], it was a bit late and we managed to capitalise on it from the free-kick. It gave us the opportunity to get a good delivery into the box.
“I think Victor [Wanyama] got a good head on it and it fell nicely for Graziano [Pellè] to put it away. We were delighted to see the game through in 90 minutes and we’re looking forward to Sheffield United.
“We showed a lot of character and we’re delighted to go through. The dream is silverware, but it is a long way away. We have to keep going, take each game as it comes and show the same sort of quality and desire we showed against Stoke.”
The win made it nine wins from Saints' last ten games in all competitions, and Davis says the squad are full of confidence going into every game.
“We are not prioritising, every game we go into we want to try and win. You could see that in the manager’s selection,” Davis added.
“We’ve got good competition for places at the moment, everyone is fighting for their place in the team. We have a lot of quality with the signings that have come in. It is a good place to be at the moment.”
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