Amidst all the rampant speculation, Albion's caretaker manager Frank Burrows has been in charge of preparations as the Baggies face a key bottom-of-the-table clash at the St. Mary's Stadium. The Saints are the only one point below Albion in the table in a relegation position. After failing to grab maximum points against Norwich and Palace, Albion could use this trip to the South Coast to pull away from the bottom - or end up bottom. Darren Purse is back from serving his suspension, and Albion definitely will need him. Should be no selection problems otherwise. Inamoto may be ready to go (and perhaps Sakiri or Contra, eh Burrows?) Meanwhile, Preston North End has agreed a £750,000 fee to buy striker Scott Dobie. Negotiations will likely progress during the weekend. While the former Carlisle man was sort of a fan favourite, he was never prolific in the Premiership the first time round, and not quite prolific enough in the First Division. Southampton: Niemi, Kenton, Lundekvam, Jakobsson, van Damme, Nilsson, Telfer, Delap, A.Svensson, Phillips, Blackstock, Ormerod, Prutton, Higginbotham, Best, Folly, McCann, Blayney. West Bromwich Albion: Hoult, Scimeca, Moore, Gaardsoe, Purse, Robinson, Gera, Clement, Johnson, Greening, Kanu, Earnshaw, Horsfield, Kuszczak, Koumas, Dyer, Dobie, Haas.
Re: Southampton vs. West Bromwich Albion Half Time [R] At half time it's 2-1 to the Baggies, with both goals coming from Earnshaw. Albion fell behind on 28 but equalised within a minute. Up The Baggies!
Southampton 2 - West Bromwich Albion 2 Should've known it was too good to be true... Earnshaw seemed to prove today that he belongs in the Premiership. But a VERY familiar sight: the Albion defending collapses in the final minutes. We came so close to beating a team that upended Arsenal last week. At least it was a point, but I'm not happy about the two given away.