Sunderland have booked their place in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup by securing a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Southampton in the fifth round at the Stadium of Light.

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Craig Gardner's 49th-minute strike proved enough for Gus Poyet's men to seal their passage to the last eight of England's premier cup competition.

It was the Saints who created first goalscoring opportunity, with James Ward-Prowse being denied by Oscar Ustari following Rickie Lambert's header.

Mauricio Pochettino's troops may have found the breakthrough on 36 minutes if not for the intervention of Santiago Vergini, who produced a crucial interception to deny Lambert from reaching Nathaniel Clyne's cross.

The deadlock was broken four minutes after the interval when Gardner smashed home from 25 yards with the help of the crossbar.

Adam Lallana fired wide of the mark from another Clyne-inspired run, and the 22-year-old menaced once more to tee up Lambert in the box, but the England international missed the target from close range.

The visitors would not earn a better chance to restore parity as Poyet's side went through to the next round.