To be in with a chance of winning these tickets. Simply tell us the name of the following two current Premier League footballers: one of them used to play for Wigan Athletic and now plays for Villa. The other used to play for Villa and now plays for Latics. Occasionally.

 Send the two answers along with your TNS username to thisnorthernsoul@gmail.com

 Competition closes at 2pm Friday24th Feb and the winner will be notified by email by 5pm the same day to arrange collection

 Good luck!

The game has been moved as Manchester United’s preceding game with Queens Park Rangers has been moved to Sunday 8th April for TV coverage.

With the game being a crucial local derby, this mob of indiscriminate thugs where always likely to be highly active and used a pincer movement to pick out their targets and assault them and spoil their afternoon. What is even more concerning is that many of the known faces were actually carrying out such acts in collusion and were paid to manhandle the customers they were supposed to be looking after. The Bolton Stewards left their calling card on the Wigan support on Saturday without recrimination, seemingly happy to pick people out, funnily enough nearly all scrawny teenagers and provoke them enough to ensure that their green jacketed mates could join in, rough them up and get them thrown out of the ground to be handed over to that other bastion of equal rights for football fans, the Greater Manchester Police.

Me I always thought the job of a steward was to protect your paying customers, keep them safe and ensure people are sat in the right seats – oh and search people on the way in to ensure they don’t bring in any weapons or anything illegal which could cause distress – but more on that later.

Here at TNS we have eyewitness reports telling us that many people were thrown out for nothing at all – crimes such as “swearing”, “refusing to sit down”, “standing in the aisle” or simply “singing and being boisterous”. Fair enough at a night at the opera, such behaviour may receive a ticking off but at a football match? I’m probably a bit of a dinosaur here but that’s the whole purpose of it isn’t it? All part of the atmosphere. And of course I’m sure the 20,000 Bolton Wanderers fans in the stadium were also indulging in this behaviour but I didn’t see them get carted out by the dozen?

Some of those standing in the aisles had nowhere to sit, they were not stood in the aisle for no reason. The stewards were directing them to full areas when there were empty seats at the end and then challenging them for having nowhere to sit? Is this someone doing their job or someone looking to create problems where there are none?

It is the job of the steward to find people to their seats not to leave them in the aisle and then wrestle them to the ground (especially when one of them was clearly wearing a neck brace) and (allegedly) spit at them.

Many were thrown out before the flare, stewards directed fans to areas which were already full before literally throwing them out for failing to sit down! Stewards attempted to split up one family with children who were looking for their seats and seemed incapable of understanding the parents didn’t want their children sitting alone. Children, who had come for a family day out at the football had their day spoiled by green jacketed bullies acting the big man.

One steward in particular, a bloke in his Fifties was marching up and down the steps all the time and you could tell he didn’t know what he was looking for but it looked like he was determined to pick someone, anybody out. In the main, it will come as no surprise to learn that his targets were small, slightly built kids and when he tried to drag them out the other lads were pulling the Wigan kids back, this led to other stewards coming up the steps to help him which further escalated the trouble. I’m sorry but stewards are not the law, it is a basic human right not to be assaulted and I am proud of the way Wigan Athletic fans reacted in the face of such bullying.

Amongst those thrown out were a girl and a thirteen year old lad – again funny how they didn’t seem so keen to pick on grown men isn’t it? Well no it’s not funny actually it’s criminal, and a very, very serious infringement of human rights by a bunch of jumped up individuals who seemed to think they were above the law because it’s “only football fans”.

Some of those football fans were still at school or at the age were they might be trying to find a career, in case you haven’t noticed, it’s hard enough to find a job as it is without having a criminal record. A criminal record gained in most cases for trying to protect yourself for something as simple as trying to sit down and watch a football match.

Put simply, it was the behaviour of Bolton Wanderers stewards which was an absolute disgrace on Saturday not Wigan Athletic fans.

Sure, ban the people involved with throwing a flare – that is just stupid and someone is going to have to take the rap for that but don’t tar everyone else with the same brush as many of those thrown out on Saturday and subsequently arrested were otherwise perfectly law abiding citizens treated like criminals by people who seemed to get kicks out of agitating and threatening people for trivial reasons. The Mongoose Cuckoo Boys 1988 or the Bolton Wanderers stewards 2012 – see much difference, thought not?

If there is a positive response to this, I can only suggest we start a co-ordinated campaign to get an apology off Bolton Wanderers Football Club and seek evidence of the CCTV for the behaviour of their stewards last Saturday. Sadly I fear we are up against it, as they will undoubtedly only release the CCTV that they wish to and many of the people ejected and subsequently charged will be told that as football fans pleading guilty is the only option. Actually standing up for yourself and injustice is a costly and futile process if you’ve been to a football match and had even so much as a thimble full of beer.

This is wrong from top to bottom and what is also wrong is the attitude of Wigan Athletic Football Club. I’m sorry but you have got this horribly wrong. It does not take 17 people to throw a flare and 17 people did not throw a flare and even if they did to make a snap reaction like that and ban 17 fans, many of whom are apparently the bunch of young lads who travel home and away and are often the only ones who make any noise. Well what a complete over-reaction!

In the morning, you’re advertising cheap season tickets and in the afternoon you’re releasing statements which translate into a hooligan story plastered all over the local and national press. Absolutely woeful. A double whammy that – ban the people who do make the noise and then put a story out to scare off any people who might be contemplating coming along and replacing them. What was wrong with a quiet word and let the courts do their thing?

Or you could really stick your neck out and SPEAK to the fans and get their side of the story, wouldn’t that be radical. If the eyewitness reports above are accurate then, as a football club Wigan Athletic should be publicly writing to Bolton Wanderers demanding an apology for the treatment of our fans last week. Standing up for the fans instead of sentencing them without trial.

What happened to waiting for the facts to become evident? What happened to innocent until proven guilty? Why not deal with it in house without the need to drag the club through the mud even more than it has been. Nobody is defending the flares – whether you perceive it as a bit of fun, creating an atmosphere, something more malicious – an attempt to throw it at someone, or pure and simply a breach of the law. It was a stupid thing to do and someone deserves to and will get punished for it but the club itself has made the whole situation ten times worse by reacting in the way it has and also allowed the local press (who also strangely don’t seem interested in reporting the REAL story) to have a field day.

A very sorry week in the history of Wigan Athletic, a massive wedge driven between fans and club with all manner of talk of protests and an explosion of negative publicity that the biggest flare in the world couldn’t eclipse.

Here at TNS, we’d love to speak to you if you have eyewitness accounts of the Bolton stewarding behaviour. So please contact us at thisnorthernsoul@gmail.com or post your eye witness accounts on the forum here. We are happy to do the job of Wigan Athletic and the local press despite their reticence to stick up for Wigan Athletic fans. It’s only a shame that with a bit more common sense much of this could have been avoided.

The average football fan demonstrates almost perfect behaviour compared to 20 years ago yet are still treated like scum despite paying through the nose for it by over-zealous jobsworth.

We’ve had enough. On a personal note, I’d never walk away from Wigan Athletic due to them being bottom of the league but unless they realise that many of us have sacrificed tens of thousands of pounds and decades of times supporting our club and start actually sticking up for us when we get rough treatment instead of piling it on, then I feel the end is nigh….. #modernfootballis*****

The game was delayed by half an hour from its 2-30pm (GMT) kick off due to congestion outside the ground.  Roberto Martinez decided to give a first ever start to Lee Nicholls between the sticks whilst regular cistodian Omani international Al Al-Habsi started for his country.   Martinez claimed that all his current first team squad would be involved throughout the game that was eventually played out in front of approximately 7,000 fans at the Seeb Stadium, the home of Seeb FC.

Conditions inside the stadium, red hot temperatures tempered by a hot breeze and a bobbly pitch, meant that Latics struggled to play their usual exapansive passing game. Goalscoring chances were at an absolute premium and the best one came from the hosts who ensured that Nicholls had to produce a ‘world class’ save to keep the scores locked at o-o after 45 minutes.

Al-Habsi, having kept a clean sheet for the hosts during the first half took his place between the Latics sticks for the second period.    There were also six other changes which were Ben Watson, Steve Gohouri, Hendy Thomas and three, yes THREE strikers in the shape of Hugo Rodallega, Callum McManaman and Conor Sammon!

Shortly after keeping Oman in the game Al-Habsi conceded after 50 minutes when Sammon’s bobbling shot from just six yards out.  On the whole though the second half also became a victim of the elements but Oman were unlucky to hit the bar in the closing stages.  Sammon was also unlucky not to double Latics’ advantage with almost the last kick of the game.

Wigan Athletic will shortly return home and Martinez will be looking forward to the clash with Aston Villa next weekend, possibly with a huge personal goal in mind.   Should Latics beat Villa it will be the first time that Martinez will have won three games on the bounce.

Heady days indeed!

WIGAN ATHLETIC, Lee Nicholls, (Al-Habsi 45), Ronnie Stam, Adrian Lopez, Gary Caldwell, (Ben Watson 45), Maynor Figueroa, Albert Crusat, James McArthur, (Conor Sammon 45), Mohamed Diame, (Hugo Rodallega 45), Victor Moses,(Steve Gohouri 45), Franco Di Santo, (Hendry Thonas 45), Jordi Gomez, (Callum McManaman 45).  Sub not used, Jean Beausejour.

The game of course sees Latics’ custodian Ali Al-Habsi arrive in his homeland an dhe  spoke about the implications of such and historic game,

“It will not only strengthen our ties with foreign football clubs but also encourage our youth to participate in the sport actively.”

“I just did my part but OFA took up this initiative very seriously and hats-off to them for hosting Wigan in a very professional manner.”

Asked against which side he would play, Al-Habsi replied,

“I don’t know from which side will I play in the friendly match tomorrow. You will have to wait and watch,” he said.  He was also delighted to be able to spend some quality time with his family in  Mudhaibi before returning to Wigan for the crucial game against Aston Villa.

Meanwhile, Wigan coach Roberto Martinez heaped praise on the Omani custodian. “He is a phenomenal footballer who puts his 100 per cent on the field. He is a great lad and someone whom we totally depend on,”

He also expressed his delight and admiration for the OFA stating,

“It’s going to be a very exciting experience to be in Oman especially to be in the place from where Ali comes from. Ali has opened a big market in Oman and I see that the OFA plans are huge. We are grateful to OFA for giving us the hospitality. It is our privilege to play here,”

On arrival in Oman the Latics players received a red-carpet welcome at the Muscat International Airport where they were received by top officials from OFA. Chief executive Jonathan Jackson had this to say,

“A big thanks to the OFA. Here in Muscat we would mainly focus on the training camp and the friendly against the Oman national side. Premier league according to me is the best league in the world. Maybe in future we try to spot young talents in this region.”

Wigan Athletic will be playing their third game against an International side having hosted Zambia and China since entering the Football League in 1978.  This game however, brings the club’s profile onto a much bigger platform as the Blues continue going onwards and upwards in the football world.

** All quotes and the accompanying picture are taken directly from the ‘Times Of Oman’.

Concessions are priced at £15.00 for each game, but for just £10.00 you can get a ticket both matches! Saving £5.00 and getting an extra ticket at the same time.

The game is scheduled for Friday in Muscat, Boshar – Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Oman are currently placed 90^th in the FIFA rankings.

The national teams last three games has been two draws and one win, the victory was in November last year was surprising as they beat Australia 1-0 in Muscat with Ali captaining the side.

An away draw again in November last year finished 0-0 against Saudi Arabia, both games were World Cup Qualifiers for the Asian Group D .

Oman are third of four teams in their group with little hope of qualifying for the final stages, their last outing was a friendly match resulting in a 2-2 home draw in Muscat against  the DR Congo.

After playing Latics they take on Thailand on the 29^th Feb in a WCQ in Muscat, the away game back in September last year was a 3-0 defeat, no doubt it will be hard but Thailand are bottom of the group with four points.

What Ali reckons about it all …..

‘Oman at this time of year is brilliant, we’ll have temperatures of around 20-25 degrees, plenty of sunshine for lots of sessions and I’m sure everyone will enjoy it.

I’ve spoken to lots of people back home about the visit and there are so many people looking forward to seeing Wigan Athletic, a Premier League team, arrive in our country.’

It’s the first time a team from England have visited the country and hopefully if all goes well it could be the first of many visits in the future.

We have a qualifying game for the Olympics and a Word Cup qualifier against Thailand this month that we have to win to stand a chance of progressing in each competition.’

And so it begins.  Or maybe not, it’s been a while since I wrote anything and longer still since I wrote about Latics, but the time has come for me to get back on the wagon, bite the bullet and… well… just grab a bit of my time back.  As I type, I still don’t know what I’ll be writing about but this is about me getting the juices flowing, so if I end up a bit Holden Caulfield then you’ll just have to put up with it.

The thing is, this would have been a damn sight easier had Latics done the decent thing and lost on Saturday.  I’ve got a shoot the lame horse piece in me no problem, but by winning Latics have managed just salvage just enough hope to keep the embers of those home fires flickering, ooh, at least until March time.  Just enough hope, but not enough expectation to get me started on the survival songs, just yet.

So Saturday was great, eh?  There was something for everyone in there with all that application, a sprinkling of counter attack and what looked suspiciously like two central forwards for the bigger part of the game, but it still wasn’t 4-4-2, it was still very much plan B-obby and possession and control still very much ruled over percentages and emotion.

It was far from perfect, and I doubt if it will be held up as this season’s Blackpool, but if it can knock a bit of confidence into the players and start them on a bit of a run, then who knows?

There’s a danger here though, December’s performances (and points) lifted the gloom of eight straight defeats but when the context was changed by a particularly drab January then it didn’t take long for that corner we’d turned to lead us right back where we’d started from.   This was just one game, not a month’s worth but when it comes to the final reckoning it could profe equally as important.

Not least because, if we’re going to stay up, we need a good run, not at some point before the end of the season, but right now.  The next four games, against Villa, Swansea, Norwich and West Brom provide a handy break before five which feature Liverpool, Chelsea, Man United and Arsenal.  Then we’re in the home straight and, for someone, will be time for the fat lady to sing, for the bell to toll and for the train to run out of gravy.

Either way, my gut tells me that the story of this season has yet to be written for Latics.  Results aside, there has been enough in the first two thirds of the season to provide an undercoat to whatever finish we get.

A glorious struggle to balance the books and play football?  You can have it if you want it, no matter where we fetch upi n the league.
A morality tale against excessive stubbornness and conceit?  You can have that if we go down with a whimper.
A siren’s call to ideology, faith and belief?  Well only if you end up sitting on the right side of the fence.

I would imagine that many of you will have made your mind up on the season already, but keep an open mind and a glimmer of hope and who knows what twists might open up.  There are 38 games in a season and that Rohnan Keating bloke had it (in a room of monkeys writing the works of Shakespeare sense) right when he said that “love is a rollercoaster”.  Sometimes it’s better just to ride it and see what happens, the next bit could be one of those big inclines followed by… more inclines, they all have one of those, right?

I suppose you might be wondering where I think we’ll end up?  Honestly, it’s not looking good, but even more honestly, I don’t know.  In a triple whammy of confessionals, I don’t particularly want to know where we end up, I’d rather be left with my ounce of hope and my attempts to enjoy ninety minutes of football unhindered by people who seem happy to spend £20 quid a fortnight, just so that they can let go of their anti-Spanish tendencies and tell Jordi Gomez just how much they hate him.

… Paul was spotted by Harry McNally playing Non League football for Marine and he signed for Latics on 20th August 1984 and he made his Football league debut for the Blues on 17th March 1985 against Walsall at Springfield Park. It was to be an unhappy debut as the Blues lost 1-2. He made 77+6 League appearances and scored 14 League goals at Springfield Park before he was transferred to Norwich City on 23rd May 1988 for a fee of £73,000.

He had a very successful career on leaving Springfield Park taking in spells at Norwich City, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Coventry City, Tranmere Rovers Stockport County and Burnley.

Paul signed for Latics for the second time 30th November 2001 in a one-month loan deal from the Clarets. He made his second Latics League debut on 1st December 2001 in a home game against Swindon Town which the Blues won 1-0. He played a further 6 League games, without scoring, before returning to Turf Moor on 29th December 2001 after the home 0-0 draw against Bournemouth. In total he made 83+6 League appearances for the Blues, scoring 11 League goals.

In May 2003 he retired from the professional game and drifted into non-league football with Accrington Stanley. He became the player coach of the team that finally won a place in the Football League in May 2006 before becoming the manager of Conference outfit Southport in June 2006. However, he resigned from the post in January 2007.

He then took on the manager’s job at Sligo Rovers whom he guided to two FAI Cup Final victories in 2010 and 2011.  He now succeeds former Latic John Coleman who left Stanley to take over the managerial reins at Rochdale last month.  Presumably, he will be a popular choice among the Accrington Stanley fauithful.

All at TNS wish him the best of luck.

Many Wigan and Bolton fans showed their solidarity by walking from the DW to the Reebok prior to the game to raise money for a brave little girl from Wigan called Emma Hoolin who is receiving treatment for a neuroblastoma cancer in America.

All goodwill disappeared come three o clock as a Wigan team with one change from the side which drew with Everton, the returning Alcaraz replacing Stam in the defence.

The game started at a furious pace with the home side using the pace of Petrov to try and stretch the Wigan defence but then as  all afternoon the Wigan defence stood resolute.Wigan continued to play their calm , controlled passing game but at a noticeably higher tempo than in recent weeks and their pace and passing troubled the home team.

The first chance fell to Bolton when Caldwell ( who had just survived a penalty shout for handball) and McCarthy failed to call for a ball and with Al Habsi out of position the ball hit the Scottish captain and went behind for a corner.

Bolton in truth offered very little other than at set pieces and Wigan looked the most likely to score with Moses and Beausejour looking dangerous every time they were on the ball and the two Mc’s ; McArthur and McCarthy renewing their Hamilton partnership to great effect. Di Santo provided a willing outlet for their efforts and a couple of shots whizzed narrowly past Bogdan’s goal.

From one of these efforts Bogdan conceded a corner and Beausejour looked to take a short corner to Gomez, Bolton quickly closed this option down and it proved to be fruitful for Wigan as a superb cross allowed Caldwell to rise above Wheater unchallenged to head the ball into the goal for only Wigan’s second goal from a corner in fourteen months.

Wigan saw out the half comfortably and the muted boos for the home team as they trooped off suggested disquiet amongst the home ranks.

The second half started in the same vein with Moses looking particularly sharp switching wings and attacking with gusto and giving all the Bolton defence a torrid time. From one of these attacks Moses ghosted past the Bolton defence and pulled back the ball to McArthur whose tame shot was easily saved.

Bolton seemed to react to this and this sparked the best passage of play for the home side. From this save Bogdan punted the ball upfield, the ball seemingly hit a Bolton players without him realising it and the loose ball fell to Mark Davies who hit an unstoppable shot past Al Habsi and Bolton had an equaliser their play had not deserved.

In the past Wigan would have shut up shop and tried to settle for a point but with a point not enough for in the battle for survival, Wigan continued to attack with a freedom seldom seen this season and their efforts were rewarded when McArthur was afforded a simple tap in following a good break and half parried shot by Moses.

Bolton pushed forward in  search of yet another equaliser and Al Habsi had to get down well to save from Miayachi.

Full time brought rapturous cheers from the massed ranks of travelling away fans and loud boos from the home fans as the superb team performance from Wigan reduced the gap at the bottom giving renewed cause for optimism.

Team and ratings

Al Habsi…..8 Another good performance

Boyce……..7 Steady and dependable as always

Caldwell….8 Led by example

Alcaraz……8 Best game forWiganthis season

Figueroa….7 Solid

McArthur…8.5 Excellent controlling performance

McCarthy…8 Back to his best

Beausejour…8 Looks like a good buy

Moses……..9 Man of the match.

Gomez…….6 Shameful dive trying to win a penalty

Di Santo….. 7Worked hard

Subs used

Rodallega…6 Looked sharp

Jones ……… N/A

Att…. 23,450