Taylor Harwood-Bellis’ superb 12th-minute header was added to by a well-taken Ross Stewart strike after 47 minutes.

Lewis Dobbin capitalised on a Daniel Peretz howler to half the arrears on the hour but substitute Cyle Larin tapped home to seal the win in stoppage time and ensure Saints stayed unbeaten in the league since January 17.

But Saints boss Eckert said: “I don’t care, it doesn’t make a difference.

“No one cares in the end if we make it all the way and you don’t make the last step. We need to make the last step.

“The (players) are playing at their best that they have played all season so we are OK.

“It is very important (to keep up standards). It’s not easy to play a game like we did today, especially if you have seen our schedule. The performance was excellent in every regard possible.

“The boys were fantastic today. I think that we can suffer in moments and it sometimes helps in away games that you can go a little bit deeper and then break into space.

“I think you can rate that performance at the end of today.”

Southampton play Middlesbrough in the play-offs and, having finished fourth, will be at home for the second leg.

“For me it doesn’t make a difference,” Eckert said.

“It might be a small advantage (to be at home) but it doesn’t matter. It was just important to win the game today.”

Paul Heckingbottom was full of praise for the effort of his players.

The Preston manager said: “I couldn’t have asked for much more really. We were up against the best team in the Championship at the minute.

“I didn’t want us to sit off them and show them too much respect and I felt we were the better team in the first half. They scored that second goal at a killer moment at the start of the second half but we showed good character to get back in it.

“The third goal for them flattered them and I didn’t think we deserved it having got back in the game so I’m proud of the effort.

“It’s probably a really good reflection of the season of us giving our all, which has been more than good enough against a lot of teams, but we came up against a team today who were better than us.”

The Lancashire outfit could be taken over this summer as talks with US-Saudi businessman Amr Zedan are reportedly at an advanced stage.

“I’m not speaking about owners,” he added. “You can ask me all you want.”