FORMER Blackburn striker James Beattie today insisted he has nothing to prove as he heads back to Ewood Park tomorrow aiming to pile further misery on his old club.

Beattie admits he was devastated when he learned that former Rovers boss Roy Hodgson had agreed to sell him to Southampton in 1998.

The 24-year-old striker was on a golf course when he got the call to say that Hodgson had lined up a £1 million move to the Saints.

But, although he was initially bitter about the manner of his exit, the former England Under 21 international has now put the whole experience firmly behind him by establishing himself as one of the hottest properties in the Premiership.

"A lot of people at Blackburn maybe realise that they might have made a mistake but I'm not going back there with a point to prove. I'm not interested in that now," said Beattie.

"I've moved on and all I'm interested in now is doing my best for Southampton.

"I didn't leave Blackburn, I was sold by Blackburn.

"I was playing golf one day when I got a phonecall to say they were selling me to Southampton and that was the first I'd heard about it.

"I was devastated at the time. For a young lad who'd grown up in Blackburn and worshipped the club it came as a shock to be told I was leaving.

"It was a dream come true when I first played for the first team and I was preparing for another season.

"I'd done well in the reserves where I'd scored about 16 or 17 goals and I was knuckling down, trying to get a few more first team chances but then I got told the club had accepted an offer for me.

"I did feel bitter about it for a couple of weeks but I've put that all behind me now and I'm more than happy with how things have gone since.

"In fact, moving to Southampton is probably the best move I ever made."

Such has been the scale of Beattie's meteoric rise that he's being widely tipped for an England call-up ahead of next week's friendly with Australia at West Ham's Upton Park.

Sixteen goals this season - his best ever haul - have brought him to the attention of national coach Sven Goran Eriksson.

But the former QEGS student is not getting carried away by all the publicity surrounding his recent performances.

"Things are going well. I'm quite pleased with how things have gone this season and I've just got to try and keep myself fit and maintain what I'm doing at the minute," he said.

"But I'm not thinking about England. All my thoughts are on tomorrow's game and playing against Blackburn.

"That's my main focus right now and if I'm in the squad on Saturday night then that would be great."

Thanks to Beattie's goals, Southampton have become this season's surprise package, swapping a seemingly annual battle against relegation for a top six push.

But the Saints' leading scorer insists manager Gordon Strachan deserves a lot of the credit for steering the team to the heady heights of seventh in the table.

"Gordon is quality. He's brought a lot of passion to the side but we are not just a hard-working team, we play some great stuff as well," said Beattie, who has reached double figures in the scoring charts in each of his last three seasons.

"We've had some great results this season and we've got a lot of quality players here now.

"But because we are not one of the glamour clubs, we don't get much attention as other people which means we can quietly get on with our jobs.

"The manager has also got us very fit and that has got us a lot of results this season.

"And on the technical side of things, everyone goes onto the pitch knowing exactly what their job is, so we're all enjoying our football right now."

Beattie has made such an impact this season that he's even been linked with a big-money move to Manchester United.

But the 6ft 1in hit-man feels so settled on the south coast that he recently signed a new deal which will keep at St Mary's until the summer of 2006.

So with a plush new stadium and their star striker signed up on a long-term deal, the future couldn't be brighter for the upwardly mobile Saints.

"I was delighted to sign. Things are looking good, and I would not have signed if I did not think good things were happening here," said Beattie.

"I love it here. There is a good bunch of lads who are all mates, and we are looking a decent side. With two new quality signings, we hope we can push on from here and get even higher.

"The overall situation is looking very healthy here, and I want to be part of it."