Return of the Mac

We spoke about consistency last week and Ryan Lowe’s Latics are now consistently putting results together.

The one frustrating thing? It could have been even more.

Saturday’s trip to Rotherham saw Latics ahead at half time after clearly being the better side.

We then struggled during the second half to the point where Rotherham looked to have all three points in the bag.

Before Paul Mullin rescued a point that could have seen Latics snatch all three if the goalkeeper hadn’t saved spectacularly from another Mullin chance.

It was important to see a reaction after Leyton Orient and although there were lots of good things in that first half at the New York Stadium there was as many worrying things in the second half.

Jensen Weir has become the fall guy for that second half performance but as Ryan Lowe said it isn’t just on Jensen it’s on his team mates as well.

Lowe has shown that he won’t shy away from the difficult decisions and to take off a substitute who had only entered the pitch twenty minutes before – well that’s as difficult a decision as you can make.

More cut throat decision making earlier this week saw Jon Mellish depart to Paul Warne’s MK Dons on loan for the season.

One can’t help but feel for Mellish, he left his long term club to join us and as with Ronan Darcy didn’t really have time to show the club what he was about before the change in management saw him out of favour.

I thought Mellish may well feature for Lowe this season. He’s got an endless engine and his versatility is something that’s hard to find these days but clearly the manager thinks otherwise.

It’s a brutal business football and no one will know that more than Mellish along with fellow 24/25 luminary Dion Rankine who was with the Under 21s at Cardiff on Tuesday instead of in the squad for the EFL Cup match against Stockport.

They’re like buses Stockport matches. After years of never playing them we’ve played them in the EFL trophy, home and away in the League last season and now we can add the EFL Cup before this year’s League match, followed by the EFL trophy in the Autumn.

On Saturday.

They’ll be sick of the sight of Wigan Wallgate on Saturday. They certainly will if we manage to replicate Tuesday’s result.

A much changed Latics shaded a tight first half and although an equally changed Stockport rallied in the second half it was Latics who got the better of Dave Chalinor’s side.

It was great to see Callum Mcmanaman, and Messrs Smith – Matt and Jonny back on the pitch.

Mcmanaman and Matt in particular put in great shifts, a midfield axis of Trevitt, Francois and Smith could do great things this season if they can stay fit.

Honourable mention too to Stephen Sessegnon who seems to have bounced back from his own particular horror show at Leyton Orient.

The subs changed the game for Latics, or rather influenced it but we could and should have been ahead before that if the referee had awarded a stone wall penalty when Malease Assamoah was hauled down by a Stockport defender.

The introduction of both Christian Saydee and Fraser Murray reflected both lads class. They really are a class above and if we keep them fit we could have a fantastic season on our hands.

Next up it’s Stockport! I’ll take a repeat of Tuesday right now.

Sean Livesey

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