McCarthy, Watson and Boyce commit to new contracts

Author: No Comments Share:



Wigan Athletic are delighted to announce that James McCarthy, Ben Watson and Emmerson Boyce have all signed new long-term deals at the club.

McCarthy signs a five year deal, Watson a three year deal and Emmerson Boyce a two year deal.

Latics manager Roberto Martinez said:

“In any transfer window, all we often hear about are possible new arrivals and targets coming out of the blue and we can sometimes forget the importance of keeping a really competitive core of players at the club, players who know what it means to play for our Wigan Athletic, who have daily standards and the level of performance to make them deserve being rewarded. It’s part of our strategy to offer and reward players with new contracts in order to look after the future stability of the club.

“We have been talking to several of our players and we are delighted to announce these first three, with hopefully more to come very soon. Having players commit their long-term futures provides the platform we need to build from.

“James is a young man with a very big future in the game, and it speaks volumes that he has chosen Wigan to carry on his football education. We are proud to have him as a Wigan Athletic player.

“Ben has grown to become a key member of the team over the past 12 months and has shown great maturity on the field. He is in the best moment of his career but I’m sure his best years still lie in front of him, here at the DW Stadium.

“As for Emmerson, what can we say? He is now in his 6th season at the club and is a true professional who continues to set the highest daily standards, he is an example to others around him and a true ambassador for Wigan Athletic.”

McCarthy, 20, who arrived from Hamilton Academical in July 2009, has won the club’s Young Player of The Season Award for the past two seasons, and also scooped the Supporters’ Goal of The Season for 2010-11 with his brilliant volley against Blackburn Rovers. He said:

“I owe a big debt of loyalty to the club and the gaffer for giving me the chance to prove myself in the Premier League, and I am really pleased to be able to sign this deal. I also want to say a big thank you to everyone at the club, and also to the Wigan fans, who have been brilliant to me. All I want now is to focus on my football, and to do everything I can to help the club keep improving.”

Watson, 26, has been in sensational form over the past few months and has become a mainstay of the Latics midfield. He said:

“I’m looking forward to keep establishing ourselves further in the Premier League over the next few years and there’s a real good feeling at the club right now. I’ve really enjoyed my time here and I just want to thank the manager, the club and the supporters for making me feel so welcome.”

At just 31, Emmerson Boyce is the most experienced outfield player in the side and has now notched 134 Barclays Premier League appearances since arriving from Crystal Palace in 2006, just 11 shy of Paul Scharner’s all-time record of 145. He said:

“I’m delighted to sign for another two years, I’ve enjoyed the best years of my career here. There have been many changes during my time, but it’s a great young squad at the moment that will keep improving. Thanks to all the supporters for sticking by me over the years!”

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PIE AT NIGHT PODCAST
We promise you that it’s easier to subscribe to the podcast so you don’t have to rely on us to remind you when a new episode comes out.

Apple sorts can find it on iTunes here – https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-pie-at-night-podcast/id1097853442?mt=2

If you prefer a different podcast app then just search for “The Pie at Night Podcast”.

You can also find us on Stitcher, here – http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-pie-at-night-pocast/the-pie-at-night-podcast

If you’re that way out, you can find and subscribe to our RSS feed here – http://feeds.feedburner.com/thepieatnight

And if you just want to take pot luck then you can find all our episodes on our Soundcloud page

Previous Article

Why do Wigan Rugby hate Latics so much?

Next Article

Honours Even in Historic Game

You may also like

Leave a Reply