Going Dutch

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The Annual Josephs’ Goal Charity game at Ashton Town 

Next Friday 19th May at Ashton Town is the place to be if you are a Wigan Athletic fan! After what has been something of a dismal season, the Josephs Goal charity match promises to put a smile back on Latics fans’ faces as a team of Legends go head to head against a team of Dutch Masters. And the Dutch team will be captained by none other than one of our most popular ever players, Arjan De Zeeuw.

In what is now turning into an annual event to raise valuable funds for Joseph’s Goal, an array of past heroes has been assembled from Wigan Athletic’s history to do battle against the Netherlands’ finest. The highlight of the night will undoubtedly be the appearance of the Three Amigos playing together once more.

Roberto Martinez, Isidro Diaz and Jesus Seba, three men who were the catalyst to the fantastic journey we have been on for the last twenty or so years. Martinez’s assistant and former Latics goal machine, Graeme Jones will be there to partner Nathan “The Duke” Ellington up front – or maybe he will forge a partnership with his League Two title winning cohort, Graham Lancashire. Maybe we’ll just play one up front? Leave it….

Those of a certain age will be dewy eyed to see Ian Kilford and David Lowe wearing the blue and white once more and I can’t see a midfield featuring Michael Brown and Graham Barrow taking too many prisoners. Those of you who frequently used to answer the “whose our best left back” debate with the words ‘Kevin Sharp’ are in for a treat, whilst Mr Dependable, Nicky Eaden will be on the right.

At centre half, we are likely to find club stalwart and ex-Premier League star, years before the club made it there, Peter Atherton. And to top it all, we have Emmerson Boyce leading the team out, a man who has done so much for Wigan Athletic and Joseph Kendrick.

Also confirmed are another former goal machine (till being inexplicably dropped at Christmas….but again let’s not go there) Stuart Barlow and another member of the back room team and one time enforcer, John Doolan. The midfield will also be supplemented by the tireless running and silky skills of Jason Jarrett. All we’re missing is a touch of eccentricity to brighten up proceedings, oh hello Paul Scharner.

Oh and maybe a goalkeeper as well, but let’s not worry about that right now. Let’s face it, even if we got Chris Kirkland, he’d probably end up playing centre half like last time anyway.

The Dutch side will present a stern test however. No doubt they’ll be fitter than our boys and probably have a better diet but as we’re stereotyping, then with any luck, in true Dutch tradition, they’ll all fall out with each other after half an hour. Maybe they’ll have a big fight and Detective Arjan De Zeeuw will have to leave the field to take them all to the police station.

The Dutch Masters have a team littered with internationals such as Jan Kromkamp, Glenn Helder, Michael Mols and Sander Westerveld, along with other names familiar to the English game such as Kiki Musampa, Gerald Sibon and Michel “put a Vonk in it” Vonk.

It will also possibly be the first time in years that professional sportsmen called Ellery and Pascal will be sighted in a Wigan sports stadium. Furthermore, the team sheet shown here is by no means the final squad with one or two more names to be confirmed yet, such as midfield psychopath Darren Sheridan or fleetfooted Scottish winger Gary Teale who has been announced in the time it’s taken me to finish this article….


Finally we all have to give massive thanks to Ashton Town and their chairman Mark Hayes, who has put an amazing amount of work in to get this game on. Here’s hoping for a magical evening and a massive amount raised for Joseph’s Goal!

If you haven’t yet got your ticket for this superb event, you are well advised to buy in advance as the capacity is only 2,000 and pay on the day will be restricted and only available if it doesn’t sell out soon. Click HERE to get tickets priced at £10 for adults and £5 concessions for kids:

http://www.wiganlatics.co.uk/tickets/

Kick off time is 7.30pm on Friday 19th May 2017

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