Southport 2 Sheffield Wednesday 5: Morrison at the double to ease Wednesday's worries

That, however, did not prevent the Lancashire coastal town from providing the kind of pulsating drama that the FA Cup has become famous for down the years.

After a tepid first half in which Gary Teale had opened the scoring for Sheffield Wednesday against a non-League side who seemed inhibited by the national spotlight, the game exploded into life after the break with six goals inside 12 chaotic minutes.

Twice, Wednesday surrendered the lead to raise the hopes of the millions watching at home on ITV that they were about to witness an almighty upset on a par with two years earlier when Leeds United had been humbled by the minnows of Histon.

That the viewers didn't get their wish as Southport failed to emulate the Cambridgeshire outfit is to the huge credit of the Owls, who responded in admirable fashion to being pegged back for a second time.

Clinton Morrison, the striker who before yesterday had only netted twice since moving to Hillsborough in the summer, was the hero with two goals inside 84 seconds.

His double broke the spirit of the part-timers from the Conference, whose lingering hopes of an upset were killed off when Tommy Spurr netted his first goal of the season.

It ended any hopes Southport had of marking what was their 100th Cup tie since being voted out of the Football League in 1978 with a major scalp.

More importantly for those from Yorkshire, was that the flurry of goals meant an improvement to what still remains a shocking recent record for Wednesday in the FA Cup with the win being only their second since 2001.

Manager Alan Irvine, who lives in Southport, said: "What pleased me most about our performance was the attitude we showed.

"We went about our jobs in a totally professional manner from the start.

"People came expecting an upset and if we hadn't shown the right attitude then the chances are there would have been an upset.

"To come back like we did after Southport equalised twice was a great response."

Progressing to the second round and a home tie with Northampton Town was a fitting reward for the efforts of the visitors, who set the tone for much of what followed in a hard-working first-half display that should have brought more reward than just the one goal for Teale.

The Wednesday midfielder had been on hand at the back post to apply the finish after the Southport defence had failed to cut out an attempted shot by Morrison that squirmed across the six-yard box.

It may have been a slightly fortuitous and scruffy opener but it did the trick of calming any nerves Wednesday may have felt ahead of a game that screamed 'potential banana skin'.

Giles Coke then came close to doubling the visitors' advantage with a left-foot shot that crashed against the crossbar before Neil Mellor was guilty of dragging a shot wide at the end of a sweeping move.

At that stage, there was little hint of the fireworks that lay ahead in the opening 17 minutes of the second half.

All that changed, however, on 52 minutes when a deft ball over the top by Liam Blakeman allowed Paul Barratt to scamper clear and lift the ball over Nicky Weaver.

Wednesday's response came just 124 seconds later when Morrison's shot crashed against the post and Mellor was on hand to make amends for his earlier miss by shooting past Steve Dickinson.

Southport, to their credit, hit back once again when substitute Matty McGinn, only on the field for a matter of minutes, drilled a low shot through a crowd of players and beyond Weaver's grasp.

Any hopes, though, the home fans in a crowd of 4,490 harboured of their side pulling off a famous win were then blown away by Morrison.

First, he showed tremendous poise and skill just after the hour to round the goalkeeper and fire past two defenders on the line.

Then, as Wednesday poured forward, Morrison was again in the right place at the right time to apply the finish after good work by Mellor and James O'Connor.

The game was now over, a fact underlined in the 64th minute when Tommy Spurr rounded off the crazy frenzy of goals with a fierce shot from close range after being picked out by Teale's corner.

There was still time for Paul Heffernan to thunder a shot against the crossbar that appeared to bounce over the line before being claimed by Dickinson.

The linesman felt otherwise, though it was of little concern to Wednesday who come the final whistle could look back on a professional display and look forward to a second round tie later this month.

MATCH FOCUS

Hero: Clinton Morrison

Scored twice and helped create two other goals to cap a fine all-round display from a striker who has not enjoyed the best of times since joining the Owls last summer. The look of relief on his face after the match told the story.

Villain: Southport midfield

After fighting their way back into the game with a second equaliser, what the home side needed was some calm heads in midfield. Instead, a mix-up handed possession to the Owls and Morrison made it 3-2.

Key moment

62nd minute: The game was still in the balance at 3-2 when Neil Mellor centred to James O'Connor, who in turn found Morrison and he finished.

Ref Watch

Carl Boyeson: Showed a good understanding of what the first round is all about by endeavouring to keep play moving wherever possible.

Verdict

An admirably professional performance from the Owls when the pressure was on after back-to-back defeats against Charlton and Huddersfield Town.

Quote of the day

There's only one Jason Manford, one Jason Manford... there's only one Jason Manford.

Next game

Sheffield Wednesday v Hartlepool United; Wednesday, 7.45pm; JP Trophy.