By Saul McNeilage
November 28 2005

Hallelujah! More than one goal scored for the first time since the middle of October and coincidentally enough, that was the last time we won in the league, 2-0 at home to Everton which just goes to show that if you fail to score more than one goal per game chances are you aren’t going to win. Match Reaction – Wigan Athletic

Hallelujah! More than one goal scored for the first time since the middle of October and coincidentally enough, that was the last time we won in the league, 2-0 at home to Everton which just goes to show that if you fail to score more than one goal per game chances are you aren’t going to win. Score two or more goals in a match and the likelihood of victory improves dramatically!

So it proved to be at the JJB stadium at Wigan on Saturday where Keano and Edgar doubled our goals FOR tally for the first time in five matches. Personally I was delighted to see our pit-bull get off the mark in the North West even if the Wigan defending leading up to his goal resembled that of my 5-a-side team on a Thursday night, shambolic.

The Dutchman’s goal swept aside any hint of nerves amongst the boys going into the final 15 minutes of the match. Let’s not forget how we’ve managed to squander 1-0 leads recently because of our inability to score a second goal so I was positively jubilant when Politt politely let the ball shoot underneath him, thank you very much we’re going home happy.

That said we still found it a little confusing at the end there to be more than one up and possibly felt obliged to let in our customary goal at the death so we could put our nerves through the meat grinder in 4 minutes of added time but let’s be fair the boys done good.

I think most of us were surprised to see Keano, there’s only one Keano, start for the second game in succession. I was convinced Defoe would be drafted back in after the Irishman’s poor show against West Ham but the jolly Dutchman is obviously wiser than I. In my pre-match for this game I lamented the lack of width recently and demanded Defoe be drafted back in for the ineffective Keane.

As it was, Keane played really well and scored and the midfield was tuned perfectly to match and outmuscle their strength until quality took over in the 2nd half and Davids could race away and lash home the winner. Width? Who needs width? I’ll keep my mouth shut perhaps from now on regarding tactics!

So, Keano sent us on our way with a slightly fortuitous moment which led to the goal. Ok it was bloody lucky and awful defending from De Zeuuw that led to our first goal but I’m not complaining, he should have cut out Tainio’s through ball but he didn’t, Keane scored and the home side never really recovered I feel.

We restricted them to nothing more than long shots and one header that went over the bar from a corner and that was it, Robbo didn’t have a save to make. Ledders and Dawson just seem to get better and better and perhaps now Keano deserves to keep his place at home to Sunderland on Saturday where 3 points are surely up for grabs against the basement boys, they look truly awful. Jenas was a little quiet again but I like look the look of Tainio the more I see of him, bags of energy and he was unlucky not to be on the score sheet on Saturday with one rasping drive whistling just past the post. With Routledge and Lennon both now fit, competition for places is fiercely intense (just ask Jermaine!) and it will be interesting to see who Jol goes with against the Black Cats.

In all honesty I expected more from Wigan and would have taken the draw if it had been offered before the game but I think they are slowly coming back down to earth after their stupendous start. That said, they certainly caused the Goons a lot more problems last week than they did to us on Saturday and we can be rightly chuffed with our maximum take home.

On the day, Jol got the tactics spot on for this one and there only ever looked like being one winner after Keane’s goal. It wasn’t a vintage performance and one that will stick in the memory for that long but we got the job done against a team who are flying. It’s an old cliché now but this IS the type of game we would have lost not so long ago so a big pat on the back for the boys and the 5000 fans who made the long trip up North, tremendous effort. Happy 50th game in charge Martin, I’ll try not to question your tactics again!
Saul McNeilage