Graziano Pelle scored his first Premier League goal of 2015 as Southampton moved into the Europa League places with a 2-0 win over struggling Hull City at St Mary's.

Second-half substitute James Ward-Prowse opened the scoring with a fine penalty on 57 minutes after Alex Bruce fouled Shane Long.

Pelle, whose last league goal came back in December, then wrapped up the points from close range as the Saints boosted their hopes of European football next term.

Below, Sports Mole sorts the heroes from the villains on a comfortable afternoon for the hosts.

SOUTHAMPTON

Goal

Kelvin Davis: Had virtually nothing to do all afternoon thanks to his defenders, with the bulk of Hull's shots coming from range and sailing off target. (6/10)

Defence

Maya Yoshida: Considering he was included for his passing, according to Koeman, the Japanese defender looked a little nervy and conceded possession on quite a few occasions. (5/10)

Jose Fonte: Struggled to handle the lively Dame N'Doye at times in the first half, but barely allowed the Hull striker a sniff in the second half. Good performance overall. (6/10)

Toby Alderweireld: The Belgian looked as assured at right-back as he has done anywhere else across the back four this season. (6/10)

Ryan Bertrand: Refused to give Elmohamady a sniff down Hull's right-hand flank with another excellent performance. (6/10)

Midfield

Victor Wanyama: At times looked overun in midfield and was hauled off by Koeman at the break. Received his 10th booking of the season to earn a two-game suspension. (5/10)

Morgan Schneiderlin: Another solid midfield performance from the Frenchman, who also grabbed a fine assist to help Pelle end his barren spell in 2015. (7/10)

Steven Davis: First game back since getting injured on international duty and looked a little rusty in the first half, but gradually grew into the clash with a much better second half. (6/10)

Attack

Sadio Mane: Returned to the first XI this afternoon but did little to vindicate Koeman, having struggled to get the better of McShane regularly. Subbed on 60 minutes. (5/10)

Shane Long: Industrious performance against his former club, and it paid dividends when he won a penalty off Bruce which led to the opening goal. (6/10)

Graziano Pelle: Could have ended his barren spell with a first goal in 2015 but Harper kept out his point-blank effort in the first half. Atoned for the miss with a killer second goal, however. (6/10)

Substitutes

James Ward-Prowse: Replaced Wanyama at the break and picked up his first Premier League goal in a very assured performance by the 20-year-old. (6/10)

Dusan Tadic: Proved more of a menace than Mane - whom he replaced - and gave McShane some problems down Southampton's right. (6/10)

Eljero Elia: Did not have as much of an impact as his fellow substitutes, but also did not have as long on the field. (5/10)

Goal

Steve Harper: Pulled off a fine first-half save to keep out Pelle, and could do little about both goals. (6/10)

Defence

Michael Dawson: Perhaps guilty of giving Pelle too much room to tap home the second in the closing stages. Quiet other than that. (5/10)

Alex Bruce: Conceded a stupid penalty at a time when Hull were on top in the game, but the opening goal changed everything. (4/10)

James Chester: Dodgy first-half performance with a few errors, but almost produced a swift equaliser in the second half when Bertrand cleared his header off the line. (5/10)

Paul McShane: Enjoyed a surprisingly comfortable game against Mane on the wing, but struggled when Tadic replaced him midway through the second half. (6/10)

Midfield

Ahmed Elmohamady: Got through plenty of defensive work but did not add as much going forward as he would have hoped. Very, very quiet performance. (5/10)

Tom Huddlestone: Found himself in some good positions but his range of passing was remarkably poor this afternoon. Subbed for Sagbo on 74 minutes. (4/10)

Jake Livermore: Twice put his team in danger with a couple of dodgy back passes from over 50 yards - the first of which came in the first minute - with Long capitalising on them to no avail on both occasions. Like Huddlestone, a day to forget. (4/10)

Stephen Quinn: The only Hull player in the second with a bit of creativity, for which he deserves a bit of credit, but his final ball regularly let him down. (5/10)

Attack

Sone Aluko: For someone who hasn't scored a Premier League goal in 19 months, Aluko was comfortably Hull's biggest goal threat in the first half, but became invisible after the break. (5/10)

Dame N'Doye: Linked up well with Aluko but like his strike partner, faded very badly after the break to the point where we barely saw him. (4/10)

Substitutes

Mohamed Diame: Only his second game back following a troublesome knee injury and understandably looked a little rusty. Very little impact overall. (4/10)

Yannick Sagbo: Found himself isolated in Hull's attack throughout his 14-minute cameo. (4/10)

Abel Hernandez: Came on shortly after the second goal but Hull needed him before Pelle ended the contest. (4/10)

Written by
Shane Callaghan