SIGNING David Brooks gave his new supporters a glimpse of what he is about as he made a Saints debut as a substitute. 

The St Mary's side climbed into second place in the Championship by sweeping aside struggling Rotherham 2-0.

Russell Martin's charges made it 23 games unbeaten with a dominant display at New York Stadium.

Goals from Jan Bednarek and Adam Armstrong did the damage. Here is how we rated each Saints performance... 

Gavin Bazunu - 8.

Called on for a big save towards the end of the first half and another before the final whistle. Otherwise not properly tested en route to a ninth clean sheet of the season. Good with his feet again and nothing to complain about his performance.  

Kyle Walker-Peters - 8.

Quieter game on the right for Walker-Peters but only by his own lofty standards - attempting just one cross all game. Had quite a few defensive actions but let one or two balls in from his side. Still very good from one of the Championship's best players. 

Taylor Harwood-Bellis - 9. 

Trademark ball over the top again for the second goal - he had one narrowly cut-out minutes prior too. Has been such a good weapon for Saints time and time again - you cannot give him that much space. Was beaten to one low ball in the box but headed everything else away.  

Jan Bednarek - 10. 

Immense on 200th Saints appearance. Great header to give Saints an early lead and played quite a few cutting low passes to take possession from the defensive third to the attacking third in one move. A goal, 95 per cent pass accuracy and 10 defensive actions in a clean sheet win. Perfect?

Ryan Manning - 9. 

Top defensive performance from the Irishman. By far Southampton's most busy player on transition, turning the ball over eight times. Good choice of pass and the only criticism of Manning was that none of his crosses were successful - although not always his fault. 

Flynn Downes - 8.

His loose pass set up the chance for a golden Jordan Hugill opportunity early on. However, more than atoned with several ball wins high up the pitch immediately turning into shot chances for his teammates throughout. Another impressive 73 minutes from the 25 year old.  

Will Smallbone - 9. 

Really good outing. Arrived in the perfect area to finish a move his drive helped create but was denied by a wonder save. A brilliant ball over the top for Armstrong but was not finished. Dropped into holding midfield after Downes went off and was just as handy. 

Stuart Armstrong - 7. 

His corner delivery knocked on and finished - although it was a bit of suspect defending. One-on-one saved by Johansson. Was involved in what seemed like everything but marked down to a seven for losing the ball with sloppy or dangerous passes on a few occasions. Booked for dissent. 

Adam Armstrong - 8. 

Lots of moments. Looked like he had a bit of knee in the opening goal. Good finish for his 15th strike of the Championship season. Should have had an assist for Smallbone too but for a brilliant Johansson save. Could have done better with a one-on-one in the second half. 

Ryan Fraser - 9. 

Vital. Won two early corners with drives to set the tempo, one of which was converted. Smashed one off the post with a sight at goal before a good touch and backheel set up for Armstrong's goal. Impact waned after but no errors and had already done enough to win the tie. 

Che Adams - 8. 

One of his most aggressive performances as a Saints player, getting in front of his man to use his strength and winning second balls. Had a lot of clever link-up ideas with backheels and flicks but a lot of them didn't come off. Strong eight and pushing a nine really. 

Substitutes 

Joe Rothwell - 7. 

Came on in the 74th minute. Picked up the ball and drove past two or three players with one of his first actions, as Blackburn Rovers fans often saw in the Championship. Only had one pass cut out and looked decent. Likely to be improving with each week in training. 

David Brooks - 8. 

Flicked the ball over a Rotherham man and nutmegged another with his first two touches. Looked sharp with his passing and played one really dangerous one across the box to Mara. Only played just over 15 minutes but gave plenty to be excited about.

Sekou Mara - 6. 

Played just over 10 minutes including time added on. Had seven touches in that time, including a snapshot from outside the area and just failing to get a proper connection on a ball into the middle from Brooks. Nothing standout. 

Shea Charles - N/A.

Introduced in the final minute of regulation time to help Saints keep control of the closing stages. Difficult to grade as only touched the ball six times but did not put a foot wrong and was tidy as expected in possession.