Kieran Howard scored a first half leveller for Swansea in their totesportcasino.com Combination Cup match against Southampton at their Staplewood training ground complex.

Regrettably, the Saints added a second goal on the hour from the penalty spot after striker Jordan Robertson, the on loan Sheffield United product, had made the 24th minute initial impact.

The Swansea starting line-up contained eight senior players along with Howard and Jazz Richards, who were quickly back in action following their return from Turkey, after involvement with the Welsh Under-19 squad.

It took Southampton only two minutes to find their attacking stride with a rising shot from the edge of the penalty area by Robertson shaving the outside edge of the bar.

There was concern in the Swansea defence once more five minutes later when a lapse of concentration by Rhys Wilson allowed Robertson to gain possession, but it was the alertness of Albert Serran who reacted superbly to clear the danger and tidy up the potentially embarrassing goalmouth situation.

Swansea responded to that early pressure with a threatening right-sided cross from Guillem Bauza being cleared by Lloyd James, Matthew Collins was then first to react and forced goalkeeper Bartosz Bialkowski to make an important save from the defender's effort on target.

There was an additional attacking thrust by Swansea when Bauza found Oliver Hewitt-Fisher in space, the left-sided player then embarked on a probing run forward to link up with Richards who planted a curling delivery inches wide of the target.

In the high tempo contest, the action switched to the opposite end and Southampton made the breakthrough with Jake Thomson releasing Robertson on a quick attack, and with only Wilson to confront he sent home a low shot into the net from the edge of the penalty area.

Within two minutes of that setback, Swansea were engineering an attacking option with Alan Tate finding Bauza with sufficient room to pose a threat, but his narrow angled effort flew into the side netting.

Just after the half hour Bauza, along with Chad Bond, provided Swansea with an additional cutting thrust but Hewitt-Fisher's flighted cross into the goalmouth was collected by Bialkowski.

The pressure was maintained on the Southampton goal and there was finally reward for Swansea; a by-line delivery from Bauza allowed Kieran Howard to burst forward and seize the opportunity to superbly send the ball into the net from close-range.

Encouraged by that equaliser, Swansea increasing the momentum and soon after Richards forced the Saints' keeper to stretch to his left and make a timely save to deny the Brynmelyn-born teenager.

Unfortunately, Swansea found themselves trailing for a second time just after the hour when Matthew Collins attempted to dispossess Thomson, making a sliding challenge which saw the Saints' player brought down; it was then left to Robertson who stepped forward to powerfully send the spot kick into the Swansea net.

Swansea gradually came more into the picture, with Collins injecting good pace and anxious to aid Swansea search for the equaliser, and he almost made the most of the opportunity only for Bialkowski to get down quickly to smoother the ball.

And with two minutes remaining Chad Bond went close to making the desired impact, only for his fifteen-yard drive to thunder onto the post and deflect away.