The first three signings of the summer haven’t really marked Chris Hutchings out as his own man.  Any one of Bramble, Sibierski or Melchiot could just as easily have been picked up under Paul Jewell, in fact they were probably identified as targets before if announced his decision to resign and at least one of […]

Or not as the case may be. For all I know, there may never have been a time where top flight managers were left alone for a couple of months to hunt down and court their chosen signings for the coming season but I’m certain that the Latics managers of my youth didn’t have to […]

The departures of De Zeeuw, Jackson and Unsworth may have left a big hole in the experience levels of Chris Hutchings’ squad, but it’s a hole he’s looking to fill and the signs are that he’s looking at a different level of experience to do that.  Today’s signing of Mario Melchiot may not be earth […]

Goals, that’s what this game is supposedly all about and yet so many clubs in this division survive without the mythical 20-goal a season man that can make all the difference.  However when your defence is shipping them in like nobody’s business all eyes turn to the strikers to redress the balance and if the […]

 Controversy is never too far away where our Mr Camara is concerned.  He joined the club with a reputation and his actions since have done pretty much nothing to shake it off.  Last season , his sulk after being substituted, his late return from the African Nations Cup and his agent’s constant chirping about opportunities […]

I’ve always said that there are only a handful of really top keepers in the world at anyone time and plenty of poor ones.  Between that there are a large number who could hold their own at any level given the chance.  Latics have had their fair share of the latter in recent times, in […]

Five years ago, Wigan Athletic conceded a mere 25 goals all season on the way to the Second Division championship.  This season in eight games less, they conceded 59, we almost got relegated.  The conclusions are easy to make and it’s a simple fact of football that the more you concede the less likely you […]

 After a season where criticism of the club and its fans has been waiting around every corner of the JJB stadium, ears have been pricked all round waiting to sample how the new manager would handle the barriers that Paul Jewell insisted stood in his way.  Early indications are that he’s got his pole out […]

Ye gawds, Latics are among the early movers and Shakers in the summer transfer market.  Today’s two signings may not rock everyone’s boat, but you can see where the manager is coming from with both of them and at least there’s now a fighting chance that we’ll have 11 first teamers to take the field […]

If the season had been that little bit less stressful, if Latics had won just a couple more games and if the tendency to knock long balls onto Heskey’s head had been a little less obvious then we might have spent a little more time discussing the relative merits of the players that are actually […]