Southampton 0 Wolves 2 – Five talking points

Goals from Danny Batth and Donovan Wilson gave Nuno Espirito Santo's side victory on a memorable night at St Mary's.

Wolves rode their luck at times in the first half but controlled play after the break and were good value for the win.

But what did we learn from the game? Wolves correspondent Tim Spiers picks out five talking points.

Southampton 0 Wolves Reserves 2

Okay this wasn't quite Southampton's first team, but five of the starting XI also began Saturday's 3-2 Premier League win over Southampton, while the likes of Charlie Austin and James Ward-Prowse were brought in.

Wolves on the other hand made 11 changes and, unlike the Saints who could bring on Nathan Redmond, Manolo Gabbiadini and Shane Long as subs, named a bench full of kids plus Michal Zyro.

On paper there was only one winner but Wolves deservedly triumphed, enjoying as much possession and chances as their Premier League hosts.

They were on the ropes a bit towards the end of the first half but dominated the start of the second period in what was an impressive display of possession football in Southampton's half.

Danny Batth scored from a corner (somewhat ironic see as Wolves had been dreadful at defending set pieces, conceding three free headers) and thereafter they were pretty comfortable, restricting Saints to a few dangerous crosses before youngster Donovan Wilson took Michal Zyro's pass and beat Fraser Forster.

The scenes that followed at full time showed just how much this game meant to those who played.

Food for thought

After a poor performance in defeat to Cardiff on Saturday this was a great opportunity for a number of players to stake a claim for inclusion at Brentford – and a number of them impressed.

With Roderick Miranda enduring a shocker against the Bluebirds both Batth and Ryan Bennett put in timely solid performances at the back.

Jack Price did his chances no harm with a tidy midfield display and Ivan Cavaleiro was a threat throughout and set up Batth goal with a corner (Wolves' set piece deliveries have been average at best so far so this was good to see).

Connor Ronan enjoyed his best performance since returning from injury. In fact he almost single-handedly took the game to Southampton after being introduced for a rusty Ben Marshall at half time, using his pace, creativity and intelligence to get Wolves on the front foot.

All three subs made an impact, with Zyro teeing up Wilson for the second goal. It's been a long road back for the Polish international who featured heavily in pre-season but hadn't been named in a squad since the season began. Whether he goes out on loan before the window closes next week or not, that cameo will have done his confidence the world of good.

As Nuno said afterwards, this showed that there's no such thing as a Wolves starting XI. In fact, so impressive have been his training methods that last night's XI still produced the same brand of attractive passing football as the first team and for spells of the match bossed a Premier League team in the process. It seems everyone has bought into his ideas.

Nuno has named the same side for the first four league games but expect that to change at Griffin Park.

Ace Academy

No fewer than 10 of the 18-man squad had either come through the Wolves academy or are currently involved in the under-23 setup.

In fact take Cavaleiro out the squad and it was barely worth £3million in transfer fees.

We saw a number of academy prospects blooded by Paul Lambert last season and it seems Nuno is just as keen to involve them, saying after the game that he wanted proper 'wolves' in the Wolves team.

The legacy of both Sir Jack, who kicked it all off, and Steve Morgan, who invested wisely and heavily with a vision for the future, is there for all to see in what is rated as one of the best academies in the country.

Fosun are staying true to those ideals and this only bodes well for Wolves.

When Wilson scored the winner his under-23 mate Ronan was first to join in the celebrations and the picture of them together was pure passion.

It was a night for the whole club to be proud of and also a great experience for Connor Johnson, Pedro Goncalves and Dan Armstrong, with the latter pair on the bench for the first time.

Cup run

Anyone fancy a cup run? It's been 21 years since Wolves reached the quarter finals of the Rumbelows/Milk/Worthington/annoying-energy-drink-sponsor-making-people-get-up-at-4.15am-for-the-draw Cup.

They beat then-Premier League Coventry City that season, which until last night was the most recent occasion they had beaten a team from a higher division.

Wolves have had a laughable record since then but are now in last 32 for the third successive season and have been paired with the lowest ranked side left in the competition, Bristol Rovers.

As long as a few extra games isn't a distraction from the league then why not? If Nuno can continue to make 11 changes and Wolves can continue to progress then it's a win-win situation.

Fantastic fans

At least 1,500 (it looked like more) made what may be the longest trip of the entire season to watch what they knew would be a second string side, in a game where the odds were stacked against Wolves.

Cheaper tickets helped but that strength of support just shows you the excitement engulfing the club right now.

They certainly made themselves heard in what was otherwise a quiet St Mary's. Nuno made a point, as he has after every game, of praising them saying the numbers were incredible.

Tickets have already sold out for Brentford on Saturday. No one knows what the next nine months hold but after five wins from six matches these long-suffering supporters are daring to dream. After five years of mostly misery, they deserve it.