Moroccan defender Tahar El Khalej grabbed a late equaliser to earn a point for Southampton at The Valley.

Charlton centre-half Richard Rufus had put the home side ahead but the Saints never gave up and hit back in the dying moment of the game when El Khalej headed home from Jason Dodd's cross.

The Addicks at least ended a run of four successive Premiership defeats. They had England full-back Chris Powell back in the side after missing last week's 2-0 away defeat by West Ham.

Midfielder Chris Marsden, with an ankle injury, and defender Claus Lundekvam, with a calf problem, were both ruled out by Southampton.

Both sides have already ensured that they will be playing Premiership football next season.

Southampton suffered an early blow when they lost midfielder Matt Oakley after only eight minutes.

Oakley injured his left leg in a challenge with Charlton defender Richard Rufus in the fourth minute and, after a prolonged spell of treatment, limped off.

After John Robinson had hit his pass just too far ahead of Graham Stuart, Jonatan Johansson found Saints goalkeeper Paul Jones perfectly positioned to save his hard struck shot.

Oakley gave up the struggle in the eighth minute and was replaced by substitute Jo Tessem.

Charlton were having the best of the early exchanges and Rufus headed just wide from 12 yards before Robinson was booked for a 12th-minute foul on Southampton's Wayne Bridge.

Rufus put Charlton ahead in the 17th minute with a back header at the near post as he rose to meet a long throw from Robinson and there was no doubt the ball had crossed the line despite Jason Dodd's desperate attempt to keep it out.

Six minutes later Scott Parker beat the Southampton offside trap but Robinson's lofted pass was just too high for him.

It took Southampton 24 minutes to trouble the Charlton defence but when they did only a superb close-range save from Dean Kiely kept out unmarked James Beattie's shot as he got on the end of a cross from Rory Delap.

Charlton came straight back but, with Southampton's stretched defence back-peddling, Charlton skipper Mark Kinsella scuffed his 30-yard shot well wide.

Charlton's aerial attack had Southampton in trouble again and, after Robinson centred, Jason Euell headed over under the challenge of goalkeeper Jones.

Then Williams pulled down Johansson on the edge of the Southampton penalty area. Kinsella rolled the free-kick to Robinson but he wasted a free strike at goal by hopelessly mis-hitting his shot.

Southampton substitute Tessem was booked towards the end of the first half for a foul on Parker.

Southampton began the second half with more ambition and Kiely, in the Charlton goal, was forced to react quickly when Delap flicked on a header.

Beattie became the second Southampton player to be booked after being penalised for jumping all over Jonathan Fortune, who required treatment before being able to continue, in the 54th minute.

But Charlton rode out the pressure, with Rufus heading off the line when Beattie powered in a downward header from just outside the six-yard box.

The home side returned to the attack and when Powell fired in a fierce shot from 20 yards only an excellent one-handed diving save by Jones prevented Southampton from falling further behind.

Parker was the second Charlton player to be booked after he fouled Williams.

Stuart then had a shot comfortably saved by Jones and at the other end Kiely did well to beat out a superbly-struck effort from Beattie.

Goal hero Rufus almost became the Charlton villain when his misplaced pass enabled Southampton to break but Marian Pahars ran too wide before his shot tested Kiely who saved at the second attempt.

Charlton forced two corners in quick succession but neither came to anything.

Then Lisbie, who had been on the pitch less than three minutes, was denied a goal when his shot was blocked by the last-ditch interception of El Khalej.

A rare Southampton foray ended when Paul Telfer hoisted his long-range lob over the bar.

Lisbie squandered Charlton's best chance to go two-nil ahead when he somehow managed to shoot over the bar from five yards when Johansson's perfectly placed cross presented him with an open goal.

Charlton snatched an equaliser out of the blue with less than five minutes to go when Dodd centred and the impressive Kiely was finally beaten by a powerful six-yard header from El Khalej.

Teams

Charlton: Kiely, Rufus, Costa, Fortune, Robinson, Parker (Lisbie 67), Kinsella (Konchesky 84), Stuart, Powell, Johansson, Euell.

Subs Not Used: Ilic, Bart-Williams, Svensson.

Booked: Robinson, Parker.

Goals: Rufus 17.

Southampton: Jones, Dodd, El Khalej, Williams, Bridge, Telfer, Svensson, Oakley (Tessem 9), Delap, Pahars (Ormerod 67), Beattie.

Subs Not Used: Moss, Monk, Fernandes.

Booked: Tessem, Beattie.

Goals: El Khalej 85.

Att: 26,557

Ref: P Dowd (Stoke-on-Trent).