And there lies the beauty of it. I can’t deny I took on more than I bargained for when I decided to run with the TNS Top 50 Wigan Athletic players poll. I’ve spent several hours collating votes and just when you think you’ve seen all the players that are ever likely to be listed, another one pops up.
When I saw the name of that, ahem, cultured centre half John Robertson amidst nine other Latics luminaries (don’t worry I’ve filtered out the inevitable joke comedy entries) it got me thinking ‘I wonder if anyone’s voted for Allan Johnson?’ Two local lads, centre halves, synonymous with a period when we weren’t exactly brilliant but it’s those kind of periods when the young lads get thrust into the limelight and perform. A few emails later and there he is: Ashton’s (other) finest centre back.
Bryan Griffiths, we’ve got a few votes for him but none as of yet for Ian Griffiths or Gareth Griffiths. Unless that’s what they meant. We’ve had a few for Taylor: did they mean Ryan Taylor, Steve Taylor or the one time Wolves short-term loanee, Colin Taylor. I doubt it. Unless he’s your dad or summat. And we’ve had a few in for Caldwell, I had to take an educated guess on which one they meant.
Anyway, we could go on forever as no two submissions ever seem to be the same and the list of people’s favourites continues to grow but nevertheless whilst there is still a lot of jockeying for position, there is a definite trend emerging.
The final 50 will undoubtedly include Premier League players, lower league players, non league players, star names and lesser lights who put a shift in, free scoring centre forwards and the more selfless kind. Flamboyant, ball playing midfielders and bite yer ankle defensive types, shot stoppers and defensive stoppers, old fashioned centre halves, galloping wingers, sturdy full backs and the odd false nine thrown in for good measure.
It’s been a pleasure and thanks a million to everyone who has voted so far but we need soon to bring it to a close and start announcing the TNS Final top 50 as voted by Wigan Athletic fans.
We’ve already received over 1,200 votes cast for around 115 players but we’d dearly like to get this over the 1,500 mark. So if you haven’t voted yet, what are you waiting for!!
We’re going to close the polls at MIDNIGHT ON FRIDAY so please read on below to find out how to submit your star names into us:
The idea is simple. Just give us ten of your top Latics players. Top can mean favourite, best, most memorable or just certain players that are synonymous with your love of Latics, whether you’ve seen them play or not; whether they are one of our current Premier League stars or served Wigan Athletic in it’s formative years as non league FA Cup giant killers.
It’s entirely up to you whether you do it instinctively or spend hours whittling down your shortlist but we want to hear from you as soon as possible so that we can get as many votes in as possible.
Send us your Top Ten Latics players in any of the following five ways:
1. Add them on our forum here
2. Post them in the comments box below this article
3. Email them to us at thisnorthernsoul@gmail.com
4. Post a comment on our Facebook page or under the story link
5. Tweet us @TNS_WAFC using the #Top50wafc hashtag
We’ll keep a running count and keep you up dated as we continue to celebrate the fantastic history and achievements of Wigan Athletic and the many great players and characters who have served our club over the years
VOTES WILL CLOSE FRIDAY AT MIDNIGHT SO PLEASE GET YOUR ENTRIES IN SOON
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