FRONTMAN Danny Ings described as a “massive team performance” Saints’ 3-1 victory over Crystal Palace and insisted: “It’s important we finish the season strong.”

The England international netted twice on his return from injury either side of Che Adams’s second-half goal as Saints saw off the Eagles at St Mary’s.

Victory put Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men 14th in the top flight and ensured they hit the 40-point mark for the campaign.

But after a disappointing run of team form since the turn of the year, Ings admits Saints have been left wanting more.

Speaking after the win over Palace, he told Sky Sports: “It was great. A massive team performance.

“Everyone’s talking about ‘oh, we’re safe now’ but, for us, we demand a lot more from ourselves.

“Quite frankly, when we look at the table, with the lads we’ve got and the way we play, we don’t think it’s good enough.

“So it’s important we finish the season strong.”

Ings restored parity with his first goal on the night against Roy Hodgson’s men, when he fired in on the turn from Nathan Redmond’s cross.

It was his 100th senior goal in professional club football, having also netted for AFC Bournemouth, Burnley and Liverpool.

“I’ve been out for three weeks,” said the striker, who had been nursing a hamstring problem.

“The medical team have been unbelievable to get me back in good shape and ready for this game. I felt really good out there – that’s all I was thinking about.

“As a striker you do want to stay on, but I have been out for three weeks.

“It’s important that I get a strong run-out tonight, hopefully stay fit and help the team out as much as I can for the remaining games.

“It’s been a strange season for a lot of people. That goes all the way back to not having a full pre-season.

“There’s been players all across the board that have had small, minor injuries. Unfortunately, I was one of them and hopefully I can build on this performance and gather momentum.”