And there’s more!
JULIUS AGHAHOWA – WINSTON GRIFFITHS
JULIUS AGHAHOWA
Played 32 times and scored 14 goals for Nigeria with Shakhtar Donetsk. He arrived at the JJB Stadium on 30th January 2007 after being granted a work permit by a special Home Office Panel earlier that day in Sheffield. A deal was struck with his former club, Shakhtar Donetsk, the previous week which involved a transfer fee of £2.100.000 and everything hinged on his successful work permit application.
He joined Chesterfield striker Caleb Folan at the club, who has signed just a couple of days previous and his signing put an end to the rumoured re signing of Nathan Ellington from West Bromwich Albion. To date (January 2012) he has brought his international tally up to 32 games, 14 goals. He left the JJB Stadium to sign for Turkish outfit Kayserispor along with his Latics team mate Salomon Olembe.
He is currently plying his trade with PFC Sevastopol on loan from Shakhtar Donetsk
KEITH GILLESPIE
Keith made made 86 appearances and scored 2 goals for Northern Ireland during his time at Manchester United, Newcastle United, Blackburn Rovers, Leicester City and Sheffield United. He was a current International during his second loan spell at Latics but he never played International football whilst at the JJB Stadium. It was whilst at Old Trafford that he was first loaned to Latics on 3rd September 1993.
He made his Latics League debut against Scunthorpe United at the Old Show Ground the following day. The game itself resulted in a 1-3 defeat. During his stay at Springfield Park he played 8 League games and scored 4 League goals. Then on 1st December 2000 Latics signed him on a month’s loan and so Keith began his second stint at the club. He made his second Latics League debut on 3rd December 2000 in a 2-2 draw against Brentford at Griffin Park. He made just 5 League appearances for the Blues without scoring and played in two FA Cup games before returning to Blackburn Rovers on New Years Day 2001.
He is currently (August 2012) plying his trade at League of Ireland First Division side Longford Town and is one of only four players to ever win over eighty caps for Northern Ireland. The others were, Mal Donaghy, Pat Jennings and Sammy McIlroy.
KEN DUGDALE
After a career that took in Kirkby Town, Latics (1+1 NPL apps, 0 goals (1970/72)), New Brighton and Burscough, Ken was in charge of New Zealand at the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup that was held in Mexico. However, the team failed to win a game during the group stages, suffering defeats against the USA, Germany and Brazil. His tenureship started in 1998 and ended four years later. He has also managed the Football Kingz from September 2002 until November 2003. This club is the current New Zealand Knights FC.
He is currently (February 2012) the manager of Vollen Ungdomslagf in Norway. For more information on Ken see the TNS article ‘A Trip Down Nenory Lane With Ken Dugdale’ which is a transcript of an interview with the author.
KEVIN KILBANE
Kevin had made 69 international appearances for the Republic of Ireland, scoring five times, whilst at West Bromwich Albion, Sunderland and Everton. It was from the Goodison Park outfit that he was signed by Paul Jewell on 31st August 2006 which just happened to be transfer deadline day. The fee was undisclosed but was believed to be in the region of £1.000.000, the deal was a three-year one with the option of a further year. He only found out about Latics’ interest in him the day before and had to fly up to the North West from the Republic of Ireland training camp to complete the deal.
He made his Latics Premiership debut on 16th September 2006 against his former club Everton at Goodison Park. A game that resulted in a 2-2 draw. He also created a bit of history when he played in his country’s last ever game at the old Lansdowne Road against San Marino, a feat that he is very proud of. He made 63+11 Premiership appearances for Latics, scoring twice, before signing for Hull City for an undisclosed fee on 15th January 2009. When he left the JJB Stadium his international total was 91 appearances and seven goals.
He is now retired from international football and his record stands at 110 games played and 8 goals scored. He also failed by just four games to beat the legendary Billy Wright’s record of playing in 70 consecutive games for his country.
KEVIN REEVES
Kevin played twice for England whilst plying his trade with Norwich City and Manchester City. He arrived at the DW Stadium from Swansea City where he had been Roberto Martinez’s chief scout. Martinez wasted no time in giving Kevin the same duties for the Blues following his appointment to the Latics hot seat in the summer of 2009.
He started his career at Bournemouth and went on to play for Norwich City, Manchester City and Burnley. He then began a coaching career at Burnley and Birmingham City before becoming assistant manager to Brian Flynn at Wrexham and Swansea City before kinking up with Martinez at the Vetch and latterly the Liberty Stadium.
KRISTOFER HAESTAD
Kristofer played 11 times for Norway whilst with Norwegian Premier League outfit, Start. It was from Start that he was signed by Paul Jewell, initially on a six month loan deal on 29th December 2006. His signing was prompted by an injury to Austrian midfielder Paul Scharner and he joined fellow Scandinavians Andreas Johansson and Andreas Granqvist at the JJ
B Stadium.
His first game for the club was on 6th January 2007 in a FA Cup, third round tie at Fratton Park against Portsmouth. Latics were beaten 1-2 an Kristofer was a used substitute in the 72nd minute, replacing Denny Landzaat. He made his Premiership debut on 13th January 2007 against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in a game Latics lost 4-0. His Latics career consisted of just 1+1 Premiership appearances before returning to Norway early on 30th March 2007.
To date (August 2012) he has represented his country 27 times, netting once and he is playing his trade with Valerenga.
KEITH PRING
Keith played 3 times for Wales in a career that took in Newport County, Rotherham United, Notts County and Southport. It was from Haig Avenue that he arrived at Springfield Park in 1972 as the assistant manager to new Latics boss Gordon Milne. It was whilst with the Millers that he made all three of his Welsh appearances. He was sold to Notts County by then Rotherham manager Tommy Docherty as part of the deal that took Dave Watson to Millmoor. He is now living in retiremnt in Southport.
LARRY LLOYD
Played 4 times for England whilst at Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. Larry won his first cap on 19th May 1971 when England drew 0-0 against Wales. He replaced Fred Eyre and Dave Benson who had been caretaking following the dismissal of Ian McNeill just a week previously on 28th February 1981. He made his Latics League debut against Rochdale at Springfield Park on 7th March 1981 and the Blues lost -1. However, by the end of the following season he had ensured that the Blues had won their first ever Football League promotion by finishing in third place of the old Division Four.
On 4th April 1983 Lloyd was sacked after a furious row with chairman Freddie Pye and Bobby Charlton became caretaker/manager until the end of the League campaign which at the time looked like being Latics’ last one in the Football League. He had made 52 League appearances for the Blues and scored 5 League goals.
LEE McCULLOCH
Lee was signed for a then club record fee of £700,000 on 2nd March 2001 and his signing was made during a crisis at the JJB Stadium. He put pen to paper on his four year deal, along with his Firs Park team mate Steve McMillan just days after Bruce Rioch was controversially sacked. He and Steve also had to be airlifted out of Scotland down to Wigan due to horrendous weather conditions in Scotland.
He made his Latics debut the following day against Swindon Town in a home League game that resulted in a 0-0 draw. Lee was a commanding figure scoring goals from midfield during the epic 2004/05 campaign which resulted in Latics gaining Premiership status for the first time in the club’s history.
He is currently (August 2012) playing for Scottish Third Division outfit Rangers having made a £2.200.000 switch to the Ibrox outfit on 11th July 2007. His Latics career consisted of 192+32 league appearances and 44 league goals. On 8th September 2008 he announced his retirement from international football having played 15 times for Scotland scoring once, most of these appearances where made whilst he was based at the JJB Stadium. He came out of retirement and played once more for his country.
LEIGH JENKINSON
Played once for Wales whilst with St Johnstone. It was from the Scottish outfit that he was signed by John Benson on 17th July 1998. He made his Latics League debut, along with Gareth Griffiths, on the opening day of the season, 8th August 1998 against Millwall at Springfield Park. The Lions ran out 1-0 winners.
In total he made just 3+4 League appearances for the Blues without scoring before being transferred to Heart of Midlothian for a fee of £50,000 on 30th December 1998.
LEIGHTON BAINES
Leighton goes down in the Latics record books as the first ‘home grown’ player to ever represent his country. Previous to making his full debut for England he was called up for the England Under 21’s squad on 26th August 2004 to face Austria and Poland in Euro qualifying games. In doing so, he also became the first ever Wigan Athletic player to be called up for England at this level as well.
Another unique experience for himself and Wigan Athletic was that he was one of the first players to ever grace the New Wembley Stadium when he appeared for the England Under 21’s in the first game ever played at the venue!
His first senior appearance for his country was on 3rd March 2010 against Egypt at the Emirates Stadium whilst plying his trade at Everton. The fee that Latics received from the Toffees for his transfer to Goodison Park in July 2007 was £5.000.000 which was also a club record fee for a ‘home grown’ player.
He was in the preliminary 30 man England squad for the South Africa 2010 World Cup tournament but never went to the tournament. His international tally to date (August 2012) reads, 9 games played without scoring.
LUIS ANTONIO VALENCIA
Played 21+1 times for Ecuador, whilst with CF El Nacional and Villareal, although he was on loan to Recreativo de Huelva at the time. He arrived at the JJB Stadium on 3rd August 2006 on a season long loan deal that was expected to be made permanent for the following season. He was signed after being voted one of the World Cup 2006’s best young players of the tournament. His work permit and visa arrived the day prior to Latics’ final pre season friendly against Vitesse Arnhem at the JJB Stadium and he came on as a substitute during the game that resulted in a 1-1 draw.
He returned to Villareal at the end of the campaign with a Latics career record of 17+5 Premiership appearances and 1 Premiership goal. However, he agreed a further one year loan deal to stay at Latics for the following 2007/08 Premiership campaign. However, he signed a two and a half year deal at the JJB Stadium on 18th January 2008. He was transferred to Manchester United in June 2009 for a club record fee of £16,000,000 with an international tally of 34 games played, with four goals scored. To date (August 2012) he has played
52 games and netted six times.
MALCOLM BARRASS
Played 3 times for England whilst at Bolton Wanderers. His first cap was won on 20th October 1951 when England fought out a 1-1 draw against Wales. He had a glorious career which included an appearance in the now legendary ‘Matthews’ FA Cup Final. He became Latics player/manager on 1st August 1958 when he replaced Trevor Hitchen. He made just 20 Lancashire Combination League appearances for the Blues and scored five League goals before resigning on New Years Day 1959. Jimmy Shirley took over the managerial reigns.
MARCELO MORENO
Marcelo had played had played for Brazil at Under 18’s and Under 20’s level before opting to play for Bolivia, for whom he had made 17 appearances and scored seven goals prior to signing for the Blues. He was signed on loan from Shakatar Donetsk by Roberto Martinez on 1st February 2010. He made his debut for the club as a used substitute against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on 6th February 2010, a game that resulted in a 1–1 draw.
He failed to score for the Blues in 12 Premier League outings and returned to his parent club at the end of the season, after which he was replaced by the club’s record signing Mauro Boselli on 29th July 2010. His current (August 2012) international tally stands at 31 games played and 10 goals scored. He is plying his trade with Shakhtar Donetsk
MARK BOWEN
Played 41 games for Wales whilst at Tottenham Hotspur, Norwich City and West Ham United. Mark joined Latics on 7th August 1999 on a month to month contract as cover for regular left back Kevin Sharp. He played in the pre season friendlies at the new JJB Stadium against Morecambe and Manchester United and was to make 7 League appearances for the Blues without scoring.
His Latics League debut was on 7th August 1999, the opening day of season 1999/2000, which was of course the first League game ever played at the JJB Stadium. The game, against Scunthorpe United resulted in a 3-0 victory for Latics. It was whilst at the JJB Stadium that Mark was offered and accepted the Wales U 21’s joint manager’s job with Jimmy Shoulder. On 7th December 1999 Mark joined Reading on a free transfer.
To date (May 2012) Mark is still involved in the professional game as assistant manager to Mark Hughes at Queens Park Rangers.
MARK BURCHILL
Played six times for Scotland whilst at Celtic. He was signed by manager Paul Jewell on 20th August 2003 on a on-month loan deal from Premiership outfit Portsmouth. He made his Latics League debut on 23rd August 2003 against Burnley at Turf Moor.
The game was won 2-0 and it was quite a historic occasion as it was the Blues’ first ever win as a First Division club. He only played 1+3 League games for the Blues before returning to Fratton Park.
MARIO MELCHIOT
Played 19 times for Holland whilst at Ajax, Chelsea, Rennes and Latics. He was signed on a free transfer from Rennes on 15th June 2007, becoming new manager Chris Hutchings’ third summer signing as Latics embarked on their third season of top flight football. The Blue beat off a host of Premiership and European clubs for his signature including, Roma, Lyon, Paris St Germaine and Olympiakos, among many others.
On signing he explained that he moved to the JJB Stadium because it was Latics who wanted him ‘the most’. His first game for the club was on 17th July 2007 when Latics beat Dutch Second Division outfit, FC Zwolle by 2-0 in a Holland training camp game.
He made his Premiership debut on the opening day of the 2007/08 season, 11th August 2007, against Everton at Goodison Park, a game that Latics lost 2-1. He holds the record as the first Latics player to ever play in the European Championships. He is currently (January 2011) playing for Umm Salal and his international career is over.
MARLON KING
Marlon played 12 times for Jamaica, scoring six times during his time at Watford. It was from the Vicarage Road outfit that he was signed for an undisclosed fee on 25th January 2008. Rumoured to be around the three and a half million pounds mark, the fee was expected to rise further depending on certain criteria inserted into his three and a half year contract. He wasn’t eligible to play in the following day’s FA Cup fourth round game against Chelsea at the JJB Stadium.
He made his Premiership debut for Latics on 29th January 2006 against Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium, a game the Blues lost 1-0. After making just 8+7 Premier League appearances, scoring once, he was loaned to Hull City at the start of season 2008/09 and was then loaned to Middlesbrough for the second half of the season. The move to the Riverside Stadium also saw Egypt international, Mido, move to the JJB Stadium. He was sacked by the club after receiving a jail sentence for assaulting a woman whilst on loan at Hull City. As at the end of season 2009/10 he had an international total of 18 games played, 10 goals scored.
He is currently (August 2012) plying his trade with Birmingham City having served half of his jail term.
MAURO BOSELLI
Played four games for Argentina scoring oncem whilst at Estudiantes. It was from the Argentinian club
that he was signed in a club record deal of six and a half million pounds by Roberto Martinez on 29th July 2010.
He made his debut on the opening day of the 2010/11 season at home against Blackpool, Sadly the Blues were beaten 0-4 by the Premier League new boys.
He is currently (August 2012) staring his third season at the DW Stadium, during which most of his time has been spent on loan to Genoa and then Estudiantes and he hasn’t improved his international career.
MAYNOR FIGUEROA
Played 47 times for Honduras, netting twice, whilst based at Deportivo Victoria and Deportivo Olimpia. It was from Olimpia that he signed on at the JJB Stadium on 15th January 2008, securing a six month loan deal from manager Steve Bruce after a successful trial.
His only appearance for the club that season was in the final game of the season against Manchester United at the JJB Stadium. However, the following 2008/09 season saw him ever present and he was much sought after by the bigger clubs in the summer of 2009 but new Latics manager Roberto Martinez persuaded him to stay at the DW Stadium.
He competed in the South Africa 2010 World Cup tournament along with Latics team mates, Hendry Thomas, Won Hee-Cho, Steve Gohouri, Vladimir Stojkovic, Richard Kindson and Antolin Alcaraz. His current international total is 85 games played during which he has netted twice.
MICK KENNEDY
Played twice for the Republic of Ireland whilst at Portsmouth. He was signed by manager Kenny Swain, a team mate of his from Portsmouth, from Chesterfield during the pre season of 1993/94 and by the time the season started he was injured.
He made his Latics League debut three games into the season on 29th August 1993 against Wycombe Wanderers at Springfield Park in a game which Latics drew 1-1. He went on to make 15+2 League appearances and he scored 1 League goal and he was released at the end of that season.
MICHAEL BALL
Michael played once for England, against Spain in a friendly, whilst with Rangers in 2001 Ball played a ‘trial game’ for Latics against Burnley on 8th December 2009 in a bid to win a contract at the DW Stadium. He trained with the team for most of the season after being released by Manchester City due to injury the previous season.
He was just hours away from signing a contract when his injury flared up again just prior to the winter transfer window opening and his hopes of making a comeback with Latics were dashed.
MICHAEL O’NEILL
Played 31 times for Northern Ireland whilst at Newcastle United, Dundee United, Hibernian and Coventry City. Ray Mathias signed Michael on 18th September from Coventry City 1998 on a free transfer. This was Ray’s second attempt to sign the classy midfielder and he was well worth waiting for.
He made his Latics League debut against Macclesfield Town at Springfield Park on 19th September 1998 in a game that resulted in a 2-0 win for the Blues. In what was Latics’ last season at Springfield Park he made 36 League appearances and helped the Blues reach the Play-offs. Things didn’t work out too well for him under the managership of John Benson at the JJB Stadium but he still managed 30 League appearances and a couple of goals before being released at the end of the season. In total he played 66 League games for the Blues and scored 2 League goals. On Friday 18th August 2000 he signed a short-term contract with Scottish Premier League side St Johnstone.
He stayed with the Saints for two years until he moved back home to play for Irish League outfit Glentoran at the start of season 2002/03. After helping the club to win the Irish League Cup and the County Antrim Shield he returned to Scotland for a short spell with Ayr United.
He then moved into management with Brechin City and Shamrock Rovers, with whom he won the Irish League championship twice and the Setanta Cup, before becoming manager of Northern Ireland on 28th December 2011.
MOHAMED DIAME
Momo was signed by Roberto Martinez from Rayo Vallecano on 22nd August 2009. He followed his former team mate Antonio Amaya to the DW Stadium as part of a joint deal believed to be worth three million pounds. The following day he received international clearance to make his Latics debut against Manchester United at the DW Stadium just one hour before kick off. He probably wished the clearance never arrived as the Blues suffered a (then) top flight record 0-5 defeat.
He made his first international appearance for Senegal on Saturday 26th March 2011, completing the full 90 minutes as his side secured a 1-0 win over Cameroon in the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifiers. He then went on to become something of a regular and has to date (August 2012) made 12 international appearances without scoring.
NEIL ROBERTS
Has played once for Wales whilst at Wrexham prior to his move to the JJB Stadium. He signed for Latics from Wrexham in a three-year deal worth £450,000 on 18th February 2000. He made his debut on 19th February 2000 against Burnley at Turf Moor in a 0-0 draw. This game also saw the debut of Ian Wright for Burnley and Latics became the first team to ever stop the ex Arsenal and England legend from scoring on his debut. Neil does of course have his critics but how many of those know that he is actually the first player to score for and against Latics since the relocation of the club to the JJB Stadium? Hel has never really lived up to the price tag paid for him with regards to his goalscoring record.
He had played 2
9+26 League games for the Blues and scored 9 League goals when, on 25th January 2002, he was loaned to Third Division outfit Hull City, however, after making 3+3 League appearances for the Tigers without scoring he arrived back at the JJB Stadium on 26th February 2002.
By the end of the 2001/02 season he added another 1+4 League appearances and 2 League goals to his tally. On 20th November 2002 he made his second International appearance when he came on as a substitute during Wales’ Euro qualifier against Azerbaijan which Wales won 2-0. Neil ihas now retired from playing and his final international tally read 3 games played, 0 goals scored.
NIGEL SPINK
Played once for England whilst at Aston Villa. He arrived at the JJB Stadium as goalkeeping coach following the arrival of Steve Bruce as manager. The previous occupant of the goalkeeping coach role, Gary Walsh, left the club to join previous Latics boss, Paul Jewell, at Derby County.
After just one and a half seasons at the JJB Stadium he left once again to join Steve Bruce at Sunderland following Bruce’s appointment as manager at the Stadium of Light on 3rd June 2009
OLIVIER KAPO
Olivier played nine times for France scoring three goals, whilst at Auxerre and Juventus. He became Steve Bruce’s second summer signing of 2008. He arrived at the JJB Stadium on 15th July 2008, signing a three-year contract for a fee of £3.500.000 from Birmingham City. He never really fitted in at the DW Stadium and he hankered for a move at seemingly every transfer window opportunity whilst with the club.
However, after a loan spell at French outfit Boulogne and a brief stay with Glasgow Celtic, he is currently (August 2012) plying his trade at Al-Ahly
PASCAL CHIMBONDA
Pascal played three games for Guadaloupe whilst with Le Havre and was signed from Bastia on 8th July 2005 for an undisclosed fee, rumoured to be around the £800.000 mark. He played his first game for the club in a ‘behind closed doors’ friendly encounter against Elite 3000 during a Danish training camp on 20th July 2005. Latics won the game 5-0. He made his Latics League debut on 14th August 2005 against Chelsea at the JJB Stadium, a game that Latics lost 1-0. He proved to be such a quality signing that he won a place in the Premiership PFA Team of the Season on 23rd April 2006.
He made a total of 37 Premiership appearances, scoring twice, before handing in a transfer request just minutes after the final game of the season at Highbury. He insisted that he would not get a call up for France whilst he remained a Latics player and cited this as his main reason for putting in a transfer request. Ironically, one year and one day after signing at the JJB Stadium he made his French debut, a World Cup warm up friendly match, a 2-0 win against Denmark on 31 May 2006. He appeared amongst the substitutes, appearing briefly on the pitch in the final minutes of the game, replacing Willy Sagnol in the 87th minute for his debut.
Chimbonda did not make a single appearance during the 2006 World Cup, and to date (January 2012), his cap against Denmark is his only appearance for the national side. During the whole of the pre season he stated that he wanted to move to Tottenham Hotspur and the deal was finally secured on 30th August 2006, just a day before transfer deadline day, when a fee of £5.000.000 was agreed. He made just a single substitute appearances against Reading at the JJB Stadium to complete his Wigan Athletic career.
He is still the only Latics player to have represented two different countries at full international level and is currently (August 2012) playing for Doncaster Rovers
PAT McGIBBON
Made 7 International appearances for Northern Ireland during his time at Manchester United and Latics. He arrived at Springfield Park on loan from United on 3rd March 1997 and made his League debut on 4th March 1997 against Hartlepool United at Springfield Park. The Blues ended up drawing the game 2-2. He stayed at Latics until the end of the season. It was Pat who scored the goal against Colchester United at Springfield Park in a 1-0 win on 8th April 1997 which ensured that the Blues would be promoted at the end of the season. On 1st August 1997 he signed for Latics in a permanent deal worth £250,000 plus follow on fees depending on League games and International appearances .
After being a regular first team player for four years he surprisingly had a transfer request granted by the club in September 2001. On 15th February 2002 he signed for Scunthorpe United on a month’s loan with a view to a permanent deal. He made his Scunthorpe debut the following day. Whilst at Glanford Park he teamed up once again with Peter Beagrie and Carl Bradshaw, during his time at Glanford Park he played 6+0 League games for the club without scoring, and they never lost a game in which he played.
He returned to the JJB Stadium on 16th March 2002 after failing to agree personal terms with the club. By the end of season 2001/02 he had made 163+11 League appearances for Latics and scored 12 League goals. He was released at the end of the campaign and was signed on a short-term basis by ex Latics manager Ray Mathias for Tranmere Rovers at the start of the following season. He is currently (August 2012) the manager of Newry City.
PAUL SCHARNER
Paul played 12 times for Austria without scoring whilst playing for Austria Vienna, SV Salzburg and Brann Bergen. It was from the latter club that he was signed in a deal involving an undisclosed transfer fee, believed to be in the region of £2.5 million, on 22nd December 2005. He had signed a three and a half year deal and was eligible to play for the club from January 1st 2006. He became an instant hero when he played his first game for the club on 10th January 2006. He scored the winning goal in a 1-0 victory over Arsenal in a League Cup Semi Final, first leg encounter at the JJB S
tadium!
His Latics League debut was against West Bromwich Albion at the JJB Stadium in a game that resulted in a 0-1 defeat. He was a member of the Latics team that contested the 2006 Carling Cup Final at the Millennium Stadium on 26th February 2006. However, after making two more international appearances whilst at Latics he sensationally resigned following a row with the Austrian FA and his national manager Pepi Hickersberger.
To date (August 2012) he is plying his trade at SV Hamburg and has come out of his self imposed international exile and has made 40 appearances for his country without scoring.
PER FRANDSEN
Played 22 times for Denmark whilst at FC Copenhagen, Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn Rovers. He was signed by Latics for free on 24th May 2004 due to him being released by Bolton Wanderers the previous week. He performed brilliantly in midfield for the Blues during a pre season tour of Belgium and impressed in several friendlies before the season kicked off. He made his League debut on 7th August 2004, the opening day of the new League Championship, in a home game against Nottingham Forest. The game resulted in a 1-1 draw.
He was outstanding in midfield where he formed a great partnership with Jimmy Bullard. He played 9 League games for the Blues, scoring 1 League goal, in which they were unbeaten before tragedy struck on 18th September 2004 in a home League game against Sheffield United. With Latics 3-0 to the good he was injured, rupturing his knee ligaments and his cruciate ligaments. This ended his Latics career. However, he does go down in Latics folklore as a member of the squad that took Latics into the Premiership for the first time in their history.
PETER CORR
Played 4 times for the Republic of Ireland whilst at Everton. Peter played 34 League games and scored 11 League goals for Latics during season 1952/53 after a distinguished career at Preston North End and Everton. He made a total of 34 Lancashire Combination appearances for Latics during which he netted 11 times.
He was instrumental in Latics winning the League, the Lancashire Combination Cup, The Lancashire Junior Cup and the Makerfield Cup that season. When his playing career was over he became a scout for Everton before leaving the game to run a news agency in Preston. Sadly Peter, the uncle of the Irish pop group ‘The Corrs’, died after suffering from Alzheimer’s disease on 1st June 2001. He is a part of the Irish Sporting Hall of Fame in Dublin, thus ensuring his name lives on forever.
PETER KENNEDY
Played 12 times for Northern Ireland whilst at Watford and Latics. Peter arrived at the JJB Stadium on 17th July 2001 for a fee of £150,000. The arrival of Gianluca Vialli as manager of the Hornets left Peter out in the cold and so new Latics boss Paul Jewell decided to swoop for the versatile player. He made his Latics League debut on 11th August 2001, the opening day of the season, against Brentford at the JJB Stadium.
The game resulted in a 1-1 draw. On 13th February 2002 he made his 13th International appearance (his fourth whilst at Latics) for Northern Ireland during a 1-4 defeat against Poland in Cyprus, a game watched by 221 fans. By the end of season 2001/02 he had made 29+2 League appearances for the Blues without scoring. He brought his International tally up to 14 games on 21st August 2002 when he played against Cyprus in a friendly game that became famous for the death threat issued to Neil Lennon prior to the kick off.
PHIL HUGHES
Played 3 times for Northern Ireland whilst at Bury. He arrived at Springfield Park in October 1987 and replaced Roy Tunks in goal after both Dave Redfearn and Nigel Adkins failed to fill the gap. He made his Latics League debut on 3rd November 1987 against Chesterfield at Saltergate and Latics emerged from the game 1-0 winners. He made 99 League appearances for the Blues before joining Rochdale for the start of the 1991/92 season.
He is currently (May 2011) the goalkeeping coach at Bolton Wanderers.
RETO ZIEGLER
Played 3 times for Switzerland whilst at Tottenham Hotspur. Reto was signed by Paul Jewell on 23rd January 2006 in a loan deal that would conclude at the end of the season. Reto had been playing on loan at SV Hamburg and had been called back to White Hart Lane two days previously. And Premiership Latics’ Premiership rivals immediately agreed to the loan deal with Reto.
The player himself wanted a move to the Premiership to increase his chances of competing for his national side in the forthcoming World Cup Finals in Germany. He made his Latics debut against Arsenal in the Semi Final second leg of the Carling Cup at Highbury the following day. He was a substitute in a game that the Blues lost 1-2 but won on the away goals rule! Latics had reached the final of a major cup competition for the first time in their history! Since leaving Latics he has brought up his international record up to 26 games played, scoring once, most notably during his spell at Sampdoria.
He is currently (August 2012) plying his trade with Juventus.
RICHARD KINGSON
Kingson, who also goes under the name of Farok Gursoy, played 56 times for Ghana, scoring once, before a move to the JJB Stadium on 18th September 2008. he was to make just 4 Premier League appearances for Latics before signing for Blackpool in the summer of 2010.
He is currently out of the game. To date (August 2012) he has made 90 imternational appearances and scored once. He returned to Wigan in the summer of 2011, but he only trained with the team as he failed to find another club. Also training with the club at the same time was former Bolton Wanderers striker El Hadj Diouff.
ROGER ESPINDZA
Roger teamed up with his Honduras team mate Maynor Figueroa when he was snapped up from the Kansas City Chiefs on 2nd January 2013
ROY CARROLL
Played 8 games for Northern Ireland whilst at Wigan. In fact, he was the first ever Latics player to play for his country without making an international debut whilst playing for another previous club. He arrived at Springfield Park on 30th March 1997, a few days after the transfer deadline and he was unable to play during the Championship winning season. He cost Latics £350,000 and was a record signing at the time. The following season (1997/98) saw him make 29 League appearances, becoming the automatic number one at the expense of Lee Butler.
He made his Latics League debut, along with Paul Warne, on 30th August 1997 against Bristol City at Ashton gate and Latics were beaten 0-3. The final season that the club spent at Springfield Park (1998/99) saw him make 43 League appearances and become established in the Northern Ireland squad.
During the first season at the JJB Stadium (1999/00) he made 34 League appearances before being ruled out of the last four weeks of the regular season due to contracting appendicitis. On 30th April 2000 whilst laid up in hospital, Roy was voted into the annual PFA Division Two team. However, the excellent performances of Derek Stillie in his absence meant that Roy didn’t figure in any of the play-off games, including the Final against Gillingham at Wembley. His second season at the JJB Stadium (2000/01) concluded with him signing for Manchester United in a £2.500,000 deal on 27th July 2001.
He signed a four-year contract for the Old Trafford club after proposed deals with both Leicester City and Everton broke down. His incoming fee was the biggest ever received by Latics, easily beating the previous record of £329,000 that they received from Coventry City for Peter Atherton in 1991. In total Roy played 137 League games for the club. To date (August 2012) he has brought his international appearances total up to 19 and is now plying his trade with Greek Super League outfit Olympiacos.
RYO MIYAICHI
Ryo had made one appearance for Japan when he signed for the Blues on a season long loan deal on 13th August 2012. He had played against Latics the previous season for Bolton Wanderers during a 2-1 victory for Latics at the Reebok Stadium A result that went a long way to relegating the Trotters, ensuring the exciting winger’s return trip to the North West was to Wigan.
He is still to make his Premier League debut for the club.
SALOMON OLEMBE
Played 60 times for Cameroon whilst at Nantes and Marseille. The diminutive left back was signed on a free transfer after his release from Marseille, and a failed trial with Derby County, on 4th September 2007. Having previously having a little Premiership experience with Leeds United, he made his Latics Premiership debut on 6th October 2007 in a game against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Unfortunately the game resulted in a 4-0 defeat. He went on to make 2+6 Premiership appearances without scoring before signing for Turkish outfit Kayserispor in April 2008 along with team mate Julius Aghahowa.
SAM BARKAS
Played 5 times for England whilst at Manchester City. His first cap was won on 9th May 1936 when England were beaten 2-3 by Belgium. Although finishing on the losing side in the following game, his last three England appearances saw Sam win them all as captain. Sam was one of the famous five footballing brothers and after a glittering career at Manchester City he became manager of Latics during season 1956/57 after leaving a similar post at Workington Town. He replaced Angus McLean who himself was caretaking after the resignation of Billy Cooke.
Whilst the Blues were sitting in fourth place in the League towards the end of that League campaign he was replaced by Trevor Hitchen He had resigned in protest after the club sold John Bramwell to Everton. Sam died on 10th December 1989 after a fall in his native Shipley aged seventy nine. A bar in the main stand at Maine Road is dedicated to his memory.
SHAUN MALONEY
Played 20 times for Scotland, scoring once during his time at Celtic and Aston Villa. He was signed by Roberto Martinez from Celtic on 31st August 2011 and played his first game for the Blues on 13th September 2011 in a Carling Cup encounter against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
He failed to become a regular in the team until the final two months of season 2011/12 which coincided with Latics winning seven of their last nine games to stay in the Premier League. The highlight of which was Shaun’s winning goal against Manchester United at the DW Stadium!
SIMON HAWORTH
Played 5 times for Wales whilst at Cardiff City and Coventry City. Simon was Latics’ record signing when Ray Mathias paid Coventry City £600,000 for his services on 2nd October 1998. Not only was he Latics’ most expensive acquisition but he also became the costliest sportsman to ever represent a Wigan sporting team when he signed on the dotted line. He made his Latics League debut on 3rd October 1998 in a home game against Northampton Town which the Blues won 1-0.
He spent almost four years at the club and towards the end of his time at the JJB Stadium he made no secret of the fact that he wanted to leave the club. On 28th February 2002 he got his wish when Tranmere Rovers secured his services for a fee . In total he made 99+18 League appearances for the Blues and scored an impressive 44 League goals. A tally that made him the club’s third highest League goal scorer behind David Lowe and Peter Houghton.
He is currently (March 2010) a football agent after retiring from the game after a st
int at Tranmere Rovers.
STEPHANE HENCHOZ
Stephane made 68 appearances for Switzerland whilst playing for Neuchatal Xamax, SV Hamburg, Blackburn Rovers and Liverpool. He arrived at the JJB Stadium on trial in mid July 2005. He played in a behind closed doors friendly against Elite 3000 during a training camp in Denmark and subsequently impressed manager Paul Jewell enough to be offered a contract on the club’s return to England. He signed a one-year deal and arrived on a free transfer having been released by Celtic at the end of season 2004/04. He made his Latics League debut on 14th August 2005, the opening day of Latics’ first ever Premiership campaign when Latics lost to a 93rd minute goal at the JJB Stadium by Chelsea’s Hernan Crespo.
He went on to make 26+0 Premier League appearances for the Blues without scoring before moving on to Blackburn Rovers. He is currently (March 2010) out of the game and studying for his coaching badge. His final international tally stood at 72 games played without scoring.
STEVE CALDWELL
Steve had played 10 times for Scotland without scoring whilst with Newcastle United prior to his move to the DW Stadium. He was signed by Roberto Martinez on a free transfer, having been released by Burnley, on 23rd August 2010. He had impressed enough to earn a one-year contract and he joined his brother, Gary at the club.
He made his debut in the Carling Cup second round against Hartlepool United at Victoria Park on 24th August 2010 and the Blues ran out 3-0 winners. He has since brought his international total up to 12 caps without scoring.
STEVE GOHOURI
Steve had made two appearances for the Ivory Coast, scoring three goals in the process whilst with Borussia Mönchengladbach. He was signed on a free transfer on 10th January 2010 after impressing in a short trial having been released from his contract from the German outfit the previous month.
He made his debut for the club as a half time substitute for Antonio Amaya against Notts County in a FA Cup fourth round encounter at Meadow Lane on 23rd January 2010, a game which Latics drew 2-2.
His current (August 2012) international tally reads, 13 games played and 3 goals scored. He is also a free agent having been released by Roberto Martinez in the summer of 2012.
SVETOSLAV TODOROV
Svetoslav had made 32 international appearances for Bulgaria, scoring four times whilst with West Ham United and Portsmouth. He was signed by Paul Jewell on 31st August 2006 on a season long loan deal from Portsmouth. He became Latics’ eleventh new signing prior to what was the club’s second Premiership season. He joined Kevin Kilbane and Davis Cotterill on the Latics roll call as they had both been signed on long term deals earlier in the day.
He made his Latics Premiership debut on 1st October 2006 in a Premiership encounter against Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park. Latics lost the game 2-1 with ‘Toddy’ missing a penalty with the score at 1-1. During an injury hit spell at the JJB Stadium he made just 2+3 Premiership appearances without scoring, before returning to Fratton Park on 1st January 2007.
TOM CLEVERLEY
Tom arrived at the DW Stadium on a season long loan deal from Manchester United on transfer deadline day of 2010. The Blues were his third temporary club following on from Leicester City and Watford, but it is generally accepted that he became the player he now is courtesy of his spell under the wing Roberto Martinez. Even Sir Alex Ferguson has admitted as much.
His debut for Latics, which was also his Premier League debut came on 11th September 2010 in a home 1-1 draw against Sunderland and from that moment on he never looked back. Upon returning to Old Trafford he established himself as a first team regular and all his hard work was rewarded when he made his England debut against Italy in Switzerland on 15th August 2012.
TOMASZ KUPISZ
Tomasz, who has won two caps for Poland since leaving Latics, was signed by Paul Jewell on 11th January 2007 from his only previous club, KS Piansenczo. He was bought as ‘one for the future’ and he joined another Polish youngster, Tomasz Cywka on the books at the JJB Stadium.
He played his first game for the club in a pre season training camp game against Den Bosch on 19th July 2007, replacing Jason Koumas in the 80th minute, in a game that Latics won 2-0. He played his first competitive game for the club on 26th August 2008 in a Carling Cup game against Notts County at the JJB Stadium whhich Latics won 4-0. Tomasz himself netted the fourth goal in injury time. He left the club on 7th July 2010, signing for Jagiellonia Bialystok without making a league appearance for the club.
It was in December 2010 that he made his senior international debut in a 2–2 draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina. he has appeared twice for his country without scoring to date (August 2012)
VICTOR MOSES
Victor who had played for England at Under 16’s, 17’s, 19′ s and 21’s level decided that he would have a better chance on the international stage by playing for Nigeria, his country of birth, prior to signing for Crystal Palace and L
atics. He was selected to play for Nigeria against Guatemala in February 2011, but the friendly was cancelled.
He then accepted a call-up in March 2011 for Nigeria’s games against Ethiopia and Kenya but he was ruled out of those games because his application to FIFA to switch nationalities was not received in time. He made his Eagles debut as a substitute on 29 February 2012 against Rwanda. As at August 2012 he has made 3 appearances for his country without scoring.
VLADIMIR STOJKOVIC
Vladimir played 30 times for Serbia prior to being signed by Roberto Martinez on 7th January 2010. He arrived at the DW Stadium as cover for third choice goalkeeper Richard Kingson who was playing in the African Cup of Nations competition during January 2010 and part of February. He signed a six month loan deal from his parent club, Sporting Lisbon and made his Latics debut against Notts County on 23rd January 2010 in a FA Cup, fourth round game that resulted in a 2-2 draw. His Premier League debut came just four days later, a 2-1 defaet against Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park.
His current (August 2012) international total stands at 39 games played and he is plying his trade with FK Partizan.
WALTER CROOK
Played one war time international game for England whilst he was with Blackburn Rovers. He had started his career at Blackburn Nomads befire signing for Rovers where he went on to play 218 league games for the Ewood Park club. After finishing his career at Bolton Wanderers he went on to manage Accrington Stanley before replacing Ted Goodier as Latics manager in November 1954.
He completed the season as boss befiore later managing Ajax, helping to make them the club that they are today. A feat for which he has been included in the Amsterdam Arena Hall of Fame.
WILSON PALACIOS
Wilson was already a regular starter for the Honduras team when was signed by Steve Bruce on 11th January 2008 from Honduras outfit Deportivo Olimpia. He signed a three and a half year deal and arrived at the JJB Stadium for a fee of £770,000.
He made 16 Premiership appearances without scoring by the end of the 2007/08 season, during which he became a firm crowd favourite. During the pre season he signed a new, improved contract much to the delight of the fans who feared that he and team mate Luis Antonio Valencia were bound for Manchester United.
However, he was only at the JJB Stadium until the following transfer window, he was snapped up by Tottenham Hotspur on 20th January 2009 for a club record fee of £14.000,000. His current (August 2012) international total stands at 77 appearances during which he has netted five times. He is arguably one of the best players Wigan Athletic have ever had.
WINSTON GRIFFITHS
Winston arrived at the JJB Stadium from Rhode Island University in October 2000 having already been capped by Jamaica. He played in a ‘Behind Closed Doors’ friendly against Bolton Wanderers at Robin Park on 18th October 2000 but failed to impress manager Bruce Rioch during the game and in subsequent training sessions.
He went on to have huge success in America, playing for eleven clubs in total including LA Galaxy, and his international total by the end of his career was 28 games played and two goals scored for the ‘Reggae Boyz’.
Winston sadly died in May Pen Hospital on 23rd October 2011.
So there you have it, the story so far.
To be continued …
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