Tag Archives: wigan athletic

A tough approach needed for Bury and Millwall

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Match Previews and tagged with , , ,

 

 

“They are the best team in the league. I know we have done well against them but they have recruited fantastically well. They are a very, very good team. Their subs’ bench is absolutely incredible. They are a top team and it’s one we can look forward too. I’m really looking forward to this week to get a game plan together to compete with them.”

It is the final sentence in David Flitcroft’s comments that is the important one. The Bury manager will surely have more tricks under his sleeve when his side visit the DW Stadium tomorrow. With two wins and a draw under his belt against Latics already this season, can he do it again? What tactics will he employ?

The likelihood is that Flitcroft’s main tactic will be to adopt a physical approach in an attempt to put Latics off their game.

The same can be expected from Millwall on Tuesday. Latics were mauled by the opposition players and their crowd at the New Den in a key relegation match in mid-April last season. It was early days in Gary Caldwell’s new managerial position and Millwall manager Keith Harris’ intimidatory tactics worked. The 2-0 victory to the Lions proved to make no difference in the long run, with both clubs being relegated.

Neither Bury at home, nor Millwall away, is a particularly comfortable fixture for Latics. The Lancashire derbies have their own special feel and the competition can be fierce. Playing away at Millwall is never going to be easy, given the fiercely partisan crowd. Bury have only won one of their past ten, but Millwall have won four out of the last six and are serious challengers for a playoff place.

Latics have not played at all well against Bury this season. The League Cup tie in mid-August was decided by a controversial penalty given against Craig Morgan, the Shakers winning 2-1. But Morgan was to have his revenge by getting a last minute equaliser at Gigg Lane in early October in a 2-2 draw. Wigan’s performance in the 4-0 FA Cup defeat at Gigg Lane in early November was woeful, although it did leave one wondering how interested they were in progressing further in the competition.

But the Wigan team that faced Bury in the first half of the season, during the gelling process with so many new players, is a different kettle of fish than the current one. Latics are second in the table, on an 11 game unbeaten run, scared of nobody.

The win at fellow promotion hopefuls, Walsall, pushed them above the midland team for the first time. Wigan were much the better team on the day, but only won the game in the closing minutes. Will Grigg missed a handful of clear opportunities. Had he scored at least one of them he could have out the game out of reach for the home side.  However, it must have been a bittersweet return to the Bescot Stadium for him with the home fans jeering his every touch. Grigg is a fine centre forward at League 1 level, but such profligacy cannot continue if Latics are to attain that automatic promotion spot.

A home win for Latics tomorrow is most likely, but they must be careful to avoid complacency. But then again they have good reason to make a big effort in retaliation for the bad results against Bury so far. Flitcroft claims a long injury list, but it remains to be seen what side he will put out tomorrow. One thing is for certain – Latics can expect a rough reception from the visitors.

The Millwall game is another against a promotion hopeful and will not be easy. The Lions are now in fifth place, but surprisingly their home record has been poor, having a record of W7 D2 L7, whereas away they have the second best stats in the division behind Walsall. But Neil Harris will surely once again rile up his players and his crowd to give Wigan a hard time.

Gary Caldwell has used 33 players this season, six of whom were on loan and have gone back to their parent clubs. Two players – Grant Holt and Richard O’Donnell – departed over the January transfer window. Four players are injured or in recuperation – Michael Jacobs, Reece James, Kevin McNaughton and Sanmi Odelusi.

But Caldwell has a squad that is the envy of the other League 1 managers. The ability to bring players off the bench of the quality of Craig Davies and Yanic Wildschut gives Caldwell that added factor that the other managers do not have.

Wigan Athletic have the quality to win the division. But much will depend on avoiding complacency and being willing to slug it out with teams like Bury and Millwall.

Neither match is easy. Both are winnable at a physical cost. It would be no surprise if Caldwell once more rotates his team or changes its shape in the next two games. A return of four points from the two would keep Latics on track. More would be even better.

Sam Morsy – a crucial acquisition in the quest for promotion

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Player profiles and tagged with , , ,
Photo courtesy of the Express and Star.

Photo courtesy of the Express and Star.

To the more discerning viewer the work of Sergio Busquets for Barcelona is crucial to the smooth running of the team. Granted their MSN forward line would take any defence apart, given decent ammunition. But that ammunition is dependent upon someone playing a seemingly simple role much deeper. Busquets plays the same kind of role that Pep Guardiola did when playing under Johan Cruyff. He is strong in the tackle, makes key interceptions and rarely wastes the ball.

On Saturday Sam Morsy played the Busquets role in an excellent Wigan Athletic performance at Walsall. He sat in front of the back four, nullifying Walsall’s attacks, making sure possession was retained. Moreover he put through pinpoint long passes towards the flanks. Had Will Grigg not been so profligate, with a handful of goal scoring opportunities, Latics would have been out of sight long before Yanic Wildschut’s stunning winner. But Morsy’s contribution in that Busquets role was crucial in stopping opposition attacks and launching his team forwards.

Morsy was signed at a knock-down price from Chesterfield, being in the final year of his contract. He was the captain and the driving force behind the midfield in a team that challenged for promotion last season. The Busquets role is not one he was used to at Chesterfield, where he operated in the holding midfield role where David Perkins and Max Power have excelled for Latics this season. But at Sheffield and Walsall, Caldwell opted to put Morsy in front of the back four, pushing the duo further forward.

Morsy is only 24, with his best years ahead of him. He gave an excellent account of himself at both of his previous clubs, Port Vale and Chesterfield. He is a player who has come through the lower divisions of the English football pyramid, but shows the capability of playing at a higher level.

Gary Caldwell and his recruitment team have done a wonderful job in building up a squad capable of gaining automatic promotion back to the Championship. They have signed a number of players in their early to mid-twenties. Should Latics get the promotion they seek, most of those players can be expected to make a mark on the Championship. Morsy ranks among them.

Sam Morsy has made an immediate impression on Wigan Athletic fans. He could be a key player for not only promotion, but for years to come.

Frustrations in co-existing with a rugby club

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Reflections and tagged with , , , ,

A couple of weeks ago Wigan Warriors met the Catalan Dragons in a televised match at the DW Stadium.  The events that followed have once again brought to the surface the latent frictions between followers of the two codes, the ground-sharing issue once again being hotly debated.

The pundits said that the rugby match would have been postponed had it not been on television. The DW pitch was already in poor condition after the constant rains that had fallen over recent months. Allowing a rugby game to be played in atrocious conditions caused so much further damage that a couple of days later David Sharpe was to take drastic action by installing a brand new surface within the week that followed.

The social media message boards were buzzing. Some Latics fans advocated evicting the rugby club; others questioned why towns like Huddersfield and Hull don’t have the same types of problems with their pitches. However, it is understood that the control of the DW Stadium rests in the hands of the Whelan family, not Wigan Athletic itself. Moreover we are told that the rugby club was given a 50 year lease on using it.

Theories abound as to why the pitch has been so problematic since the opening of the stadium in 1999. The common view is that it was built on marshy, reclaimed land close to a river and a canal, so how could we expect any better? Another claim is that there is a large cesspit beneath it, from which gases rise over the winter months, poisoning the grass above.

The bottom line is that Sharpe has invested a significant amount of money in providing a new pitch for the short term, with more work to be done over the summer. The new pitch looked remarkably good for the Oldham match last Saturday, although the players will have found some difficulty adjusting to the longer grass, which could not be cut to normal length at the time because of its newness.

Sharpe’s investment will surely help Gary Caldwell’s players in their quest for promotion. Having to play on a quagmire would have seriously damaged Latics’ promotion chances, given their preferred style of possession football. But more rugby games are coming up as the football season continues.

The recent announcement that the Warriors home game with Salford has been moved forward a day to Thursday, February 25th has brought indignation from their fans. Latics have a home game with Bury on Saturday, the 27th. Warriors’ chairman, Ian Lenegan, eloquently discusses the fixture schedule complications that caused the rearrangement of the match on YouTube.

The upcoming matches at the DW are now:

Sat, Feb 20 – Warriors v Brisbane

Thurs, Feb 25 – Warriors v Salford

Sat, Feb 27 – Latics v Bury

Sat, March 5 – Latics v Peterborough

In 2011 we published an article called “1932 and all that – is Wigan a rugby town?”

The intention was to examine the more recent history of both Wigan Athletic and Wigan Warriors, looking at attendance trends in particular.

From 1932 to 1978 a look at attendances would appear to an outsider that rugby was the dominant force in the town, although a significant number of Wiganers would typically travel to Liverpool and Manchester to watch top flight football. After achieving Football League status in 1978, Latics’ average attendance went up five fold in that first season, the average of 6,701 eclipsing the 4,505 average of their rugby counterparts for the first time.

However, it was Latics’ entry into the Premier League in 2005 that was to give them dominance in terms of attendance. Even after relegation to the Championship their attendances held up in the first year, only to fall below the rugby last season

Football season Rugby season Wigan Athletic Wigan Warriors
2005-06 2006 20,160 14,464
2006-07 2007 18,159 16,040
2007-08 2008 19,045 13,995
2008-09 2009 18,350 14,080
2009-10 2010 17,848 15,181
2010-11 2011 16,976 16,125
2011-12 2012 18,634 16,043
2012-13 2013 19,375 13,556
2013- 14 2014 15,176 14,102
2014-15 2015 12,882 13,980

Can a small town like Wigan support two aspiring clubs?

In terms of attendance the highest ever aggregate of the two clubs’ attendances was 34,677 in the 2011-12 football season/2012 rugby season. The contrast with 1977-78 season is stunning, with the rugby club averaging 5,544 and Latics 1,334 in their last season in the Northern Premier League.

Latics current average attendance of in League 1 of 8,679 will surely be eclipsed by the Warriors this year. However, should promotion back to the Championship occur, history suggests that they would compete on an even keel with the rugby team next season.

In terms of attendances it appears that both clubs can co-exist. It is the prickly question of ground-sharing that is the more urgent issue. Questions remain whether the pitch can withstand constant use over the course of a year and as to whether the Super League can play its part in ensuring that the rugby club’s fixtures complement those of their football counterparts.

Ground-sharing in a small town makes economic sense. Let’s hope the frictions can be reduced by dealing with the key issues.

A Crewe fan’s view of Ryan Colclough

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Fan Views and tagged with , ,
Photo courtesy of the Daily Mail.

Photo courtesy of the Daily Mail.

Wigan Athletic yesterday announced the signing of 21 year old Ryan Colclough from Crewe Alexandra. Although the fee is undisclosed it appears that the basic amount could be topped up, based on appearances, with Crewe receiving a proportion of any future transfer fee.

Given the torn calf injury suffered by Michael Jacobs, Colclough would seem an almost ideal replacement, nominally a winger but scoring his goals from more central positions behind the central striker.

On signing for Latics he told the club’s official site that “I will play anywhere across the front three.  I like to get on the ball, go one v one against a defender and I also like to have a shot and score a goal as well.” Colclough has already scored 8 goals this season in a struggling side.

Gary Caldwell, like many Latics fans, will have been impressed by Colclough’s displays against his club this season.  He is clearly a talented young player with much to offer.

The 6 ft tall Colclough was born in Burslem in the City of Stoke on Trent. He joined the Crewe set up at the age of 7 and progressed through their renowned academy, signing his first professional contract as a 17 year old. He made his senior debut as a substitute in a 1-1 draw with Leyton Orient in September 2012 soon after.

However, Colclough’s career was to be upset by injury. He spent 16 months out of action with a groin injury.

In October 2014 he had told the Stoke Sentinel that:  “It’s been really hard, it played on my mind a lot and I’ve had a lot of down days, but I’m just happy to be back training. Obviously I have got dreams and want to get back to playing, and when I do I’m sure I’ll get back to doing what I was doing before, if not even better. “I’ve overcome my injury now, it’s just a matter of getting fit and I will prove myself, it’s not a matter of if, I will.”

In March 2015 he made his return for the under 21 side, when he won and scored a penalty against Colchester United.

Last summer Colclough had a trial at Wolves, but he went on to sign a two year contract for the Railwaymen. This season he has put the injury worries behind him and been a star performer for Alexandra. He made 40 starts at Crewe, with 28 appearances off the bench, scoring 13 goals.

In order to learn more about Colclough we reached out to Crewe fans on Twitter.

TimT (@Tants_88) comments that:

Wigan have bought a player with great potential in Ryan Colclough. Unfortunately for Crewe Alex fans we haven’t seen as much of him as we liked due to some serious injuries that he’s done very well to overcome.

Colclough can play on either wing or very effectively as a front man and enjoys taking players on and using his skill and pace to beat them. He’s capable of some stunning strikes but as with all younger players learning their trade, be prepared for some shots to be way off the mark when passing could have been the better choice.

I’m inclined to say you’ve got a bargain as the fee is undisclosed. This usually means one party has overpaid or sold too low, in this instance I think Wigan have approached Crewe at the right time but hopefully we’ll benefit from a sell on when he does well for you. He has had some off the field incidents in his life but hopefully those, along with his injuries are behind him now. All in all you’ve bought a good all round attacking player that will only get better with time.

James Tait )

Ryan Colclough. Call him Coco. A few close run-ins with the law involving an assault and a taser. On the pitch, he is inconsistent, raw and frustrating, but he’s also maturing every game and cooling his head.

He’s selfish, but a good kind of selfish, excellent dribbling, pretty quick and I’d always back him score in any game. Injuries have been a concern but he seems past that now. He really has carried us (Crewe) all season and is the only reason we aren’t already relegated.

DavidM (@David Morris26) says:

Ryan has the ability and skill to be a match winner.

Has a good eye for a goal and the pace and tricks to worry defenders. Decision making can be a little wayward and sometimes forgets his defensive duties.He will certainly be a good asset to your team wish him and Wigan all the best for the rest of the season.

This article from the Stoke Sentinel taks about Colclough leaving Crewe.

 

 

A Chesterfield fan’s view of Sam Morsy

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Fan Views and tagged with , ,

Sam_Morsy_2014Reports suggest that Sam Morsy is about to sign for Wigan Athletic. The 24 year old Chesterfield captain is out of contract at the end of the season and Latics have surely negotiated a bargain fee to secure his permanent transfer. Morsy might well prove to be the type of midfield enforcer that Caldwell has been looking for.

The 5 ft 9 in Sami Sayed Morsi was born in Wolverhampton of an Egyptian father. He played in the Wolves academy until he was 16 when he joined the youth ranks at Port Vale. A year later he was in the senior squad, making his debut in February 2010. By the end of the season he was named Youth Player of the Year and given a professional contract. Morsy went on to make 71 appearances, scoring 4 goals, for Vale over four seasons.

Morsy joined Chesterfield in the summer of 2013 after a fee had been agreed for him as an under 24 player. Ex-Latics player and Chesterfield manager at the time, Paul Cook, said that “When we found out that he may be available, we moved heaven and earth to get him here.”

Morsy went on to make 39 appearances in that 2013-14 season when the Spireites won League 2. He was voted Player of the Year, also providing the assist for Eoin Doyle’s goal in the Football League Trophy final when Chesterfield were beaten 3-1 by Peterborough United.

Last season Morsy became club captain and led Chesterfield to the League 1 playoffs where they were knocked out by Preston North End.

A couple of weeks ago another ex-Latics player, Mark Grew, who had been Morsy’s coach at Port Vale told the Stoke Sentinel that:

“I’ve known Sam Morsy since he was 16 and he can’t wait for this game to come. I still speak to him on occasion and I think this is the fixture he is looking for. I am sure other clubs must be looking at him now because every time I watch him he is quality. Ever since I got him from Wolves I always thought he could play at a higher level. Whether he could reach the Premier League is another question but I think he is definitely a Championship player.”

In his time at Chesterfield Morsy made a total of 97 appearances, scoring 6 goals.

In order to learn more about Morsy’s time at Chesterfield we reached out to Keag Lytham (twitter @KLytham), a Spireites fan.

Here’s over to Keag:

Obviously as a Chesterfield fan I’m really sad to see Sammy go as in my opinion he’s the best central midfielder in the league!

He’s a real leader on the pitch leading from the back all the way to the top. Sammy always gives his all and has endless energy. As a defender it must be a blessing to have him in front of you because technically he really is gifted.

He fights for every ball looking for that killer pass; he cuts up play and gives defenders reassurance! Going forward Sammy can be very dangerous and very unpredictable, for a small man he can move! His only trait is his mouth which as a captain he should use but he talks his way into the book a lot.

That being said he is an aggressive player but that’s what being a centre midfielder is about! The fans at Chesterfield really adored and worshipped the ground he walked on. He was the first on the pitch and the last off.

A small club like us was always going to struggle to keep hold of a gem like Sammy, he really does put 110% in each game! It’s really sad to see him go, but he was destined for bigger and better things!

Good luck Sammy and congratulations on the move, I’m sure you’ll be a great success there !