Huddersfield Town's 4,000th Football League game ended in defeat - now Mark Robins’ men must mark their 2,001st home match with a three-point haul.
Former manager Lee Clark returns to Huddersfield on Saturday with his Birmingham side in the bottom three of the Championship after a third defeat in four games.
That same stat applies to 14th-placed Town, and while there’s no doubt they are a better and more resilient side than last season, they have to stop making the kind of mistakes which have been punished so ruthlessly in recent matches.
Robins had called on his men to “reinforce” the derby-day delight of beating Leeds 3-2 at the John Smith’s.
But despite having the larger share of possession at a rainy DW Stadium, and some decent opportunities, Town suffered a fifth successive defeat in games at Wigan stretching back to 1992-93.
Having fallen to another set-piece strike midway through the first half, when Leon Barnett headed home from Ben Watson’s corner, they pretty much gifted Wigan their winner, with skipper Peter Clarke’s wayward pass enabling Manchester United loan man Nick Powell to drill the ball past the helpless Alex Smithies.
Town, who were spirited throughout, had hauled themselves back into the contest thanks to Ollie Norwood’s equaliser in first-half stoppage time, a low shot from Jazz Richards’ cross which deflected off Ryan Shotton past Lee Nicholls.
It was crucial they withstood Wigan’s onslaught early in a second half which began in a downpour – for the rest of the game it was just a steady drizzle – but both Norwood and Paul Dixon were guilty of giving the ball away cheaply before captain Clarke was made to suffer in the 50th minute.
It was all too much for Adam Hammill, whose petulant response to being substituted by Sean Scannell was lapped up by the home supporters.
But Hammill, like Danny Ward, had been below par, while Jon Stead, the hero of the victory over Leeds, struggled to make an impact as the central striker in a 4-2-3-1 system.
It was hardly helpful that Robins, whose side survived a couple of penalty appeals, was forced into a first-half change when Jonathan Hogg came off worst in a full-blooded meeting with Spaniard Jordi Gomez, the Town man immediately calling for attention after taking the impact to his left knee.
Hogg and his deep-lying midfield partner Keith Southern had set about their task with relish, although Town never fully got to grips with Watson, while on-loan Manchester United man Powell and tricky winger Callum McManaman also caused problems.
Robins gambled by bringing on Danny Carr for Southern in the closing stages, but there was to be no dream league debut for the 19-year-old, who seemed to struggle to get into the rhythm of a fairly frantic match.
Norwood, back in the starting line-up at the expense of Duane Holmes, did come close to a leveller with a well-struck late free-kick, and while the defeat which meant Town dropped five places was disappointing, it’s certainly not all doom and gloom.
But beating Birmingham would certainly make things look better.
Run of the ball
3mins: Wigan striker Marc-Antoine Fortune fires over from Nick Powell’s pull-back.
19mins: Powell shoots over on the turn.
20mins: Wigan go ahead. Chris McCann forces Alex Smithies to concede a corner with a rising shot and from Ben Watson’s flag kick, Leon Barnett heads home firmly.
23mins: As Town force three corners in quick succession, Peter Clarke comes agonisingly close to meeting the middle one with a header at close quarters.
36mins: Wigan’s Watson shoots wide from McManaman’s pass.
45+1mins: Town level as Norwood plays a one-two with Jazz Richards and nets with a deflected low shot.
48mins: Smithies reacts well to push Fortune’s close-range effort to safety via the face of his left-hand post.
50mins: This time the Town keeper is helpless as Jordi Gomez seizes on Clarke’s misplaced ball to set up Powell, who drills home.
62mins: Substitute Sean Scannell tees up Danny Ward for a low shot which is saved by Lee Nicholls.
64mins: This time Nicholls is equal to Clarke’s header from Ward’s corner.
82mins: Norwood’s well-struck free-kick is saved by Nicholls..
84mins: Smithies blocks bravely at the feet of Wigan substitute James McClean.
