WBA 2-2 Wigan Athletic F.C.

live text replay




as i often do in the case of delayed TV broadcast of a match, i listened to this one live on ALBION RADIO, then was able to watch the game on SETANTA SPORTS CANADA almost immediately following its conclusion. i was once again struck how different the two media are. an entertaining game on TV is not always so engaging as audio commentary.

technically, this was a pretty poor game of football. while both the baggies and latics have been lauded for their good football, expansive passing games and enterprising strikers, they are both defensively poor. while the baggies just edged this one (in fact, they could have won this match 6 times over in the last 15 minutes) they still did not get the result they really deserved and set-pieces were once again their undoing.

roberto di matteo has finally realized that his team must play with a certain amount of abandon from the outset, and his re-jigging of tactics paid off early on as peter odemwingie, the club's top goal-scorer on the year, put the albion uncharacteristically ahead in the 5th minute. while there were also one or two shakey moments at the back early on, the gaffer deserves credit for inspiring the team to play in a manner with which the baggies will have to approach home games for the rest of the season, regardless of the opposition.

for the next 20 minutes the baggies looked to be in full control of the match and created a truly buoyant atmosphere at the hawthorns. a solid defensive performance would see this one out and maybe even create the possibility of more goals if they could stretch wigan sufficiently as the match wore on and the latics would increasingly need to chase the game. however, and much as they had done in the 2008-09 season, they simply could not hang on to an early lead.



youssouf mulumbu, once again, gave away a free-kick in a dangerous area at the top of the box and the latics took full advantage as charles n'zogbia equalized in the 20th minute. both the momentum of the game and the atmosphere of the hawthorns changed drastically, as wigan went on to claim a huge majority of the possession as well as a second goal before half-time.

in almost a mirror image of the first latics' goal, gonzalo jara gave away a free-kick on the edge of the box just minutes before half-time, and ben watson stepped up to take. the wigan midfielder, who was at the hawthorns on loan towards the end of last season, put the ball right through the box past everyone, including a static west brom defence, four on-rushing wigan attackers and a largely unsighted and highly distracted boaz myhill in the albion goal.

this was a real let-down and it was visible throughout the albion team that confidence is rather fragile at the moment. there was also some tension amongst the albion fans themselves, as one baggies supporter was spotted arguing and throwing punches with another in the birmingham road end. it all cooled down pretty quickly and served as some small diversion and temporary amusement for the stewards, as well as being clear evidence of the frustration that is setting in at the hawthorns these days. supporting the baggies is strictly for adults and an experience that should be reserved only for those who can handle it.

while a lack of defensive quality on TV very often makes for entertaining football, on radio or as audio commentary it is tragic and dull. i believe that this is due to the intrinsic critical nature of audio commentary which tends to be pretty unforgiving on the mistakes and negatives, as well as creating an intense involvement on the part of the listener. after all, radio always was the "hot" medium as far as marshall mcluhan was concerned. whereas television offers us a more generous version of the action through its impartial, neutral, cool and detached point of view.

with time slipping away in the second half, the baggies again showed their character and sense of purpose as they battled on and came back into the match following marc-antoine fortune's inclusion. the french striker was called into action when simon cox was forced off with a minor injury.

both fortune and chris brunt hit the post within a space of two minutes as the albion built the momentum to find the equalizer. this finally came in the last 15 minutes as the baggies relentless pressure on the wigan goal finally paid off and fortune sneaked in a header from a ball dinked in across the face of goal by jerome thomas. the baggies were level in a match that neither side could afford to lose.



the baggies kept pressing for the winner and only a top-class save from ali al-habsi in the wigan goal preserved the draw for the latics. a screaming header from paul scharner off an albion corner-kick looked every inch a goal until the latics' keeper stunning reflex save pushed the ball over the bar. in the end - and despite a some good aggressive attacking play by charles n'zogbia - the baggies could and and should have won this one.

these two teams are very similar in that they are dedicated to the principals of playing football in the right way. they want to entertain their supporters and maintain a competitive place amongst the top 25 teams in the country. while simple enough in its conception, it's not half as easy as it sounds.

wigan have managed to make a go of it, although every year since their inaugural seasonin the top-flight - where an early run of form carried them through to a 10th place finish - the PREMIER LEAGUE has been a struggle and fighting off relegation is now a yearly ritual. i don't know much about the structure of the club, but from seeing the way they play football i imagine they are pretty well run organization who have their supporters' best interest at heart. especially as wigan has never been noted for its football and is still widely percieved as a rugby league stronghold.

while the baggies have yet to compete in the top-flight for more than two years consecutively, they are superbly run organization that has developed a management formula - and appropriate to a club of its size - that will continue to secure the baggies a place in the country's top 25 teams; thus, always - and likewise - able to compete for a place in the PREMIER LEAGUE.



the significance of this, is that it is careful not to follow the trend we've seen develop over the last 10 years, where clubs will qualify for the PREMIER LEAGUE and overspend in a desperate attempt to retain their top-flight status, only to fall into financial problems and drop two divisions within a couple of years. the list of clubs who've suffered this fate grows annually. five or six years ago, charlton athletic were touted as the model of how a community based club might achieve consolidation in the top-flight... just check out where they are now! this will never happen to the baggies.

they'll always be an albion!!! at least as long as jeremy peace is the chairman.

however, the sad truth is that there is no reward for being a well run club with a mandate to play football in the "right way". manchester united can afford to play a style of football - and presented in such a way that people would want to watch - that is not a viable way for the bigger community based teams to play. if wigan, west ham, wolves or west brom go 2-0 down in the first-half of a match with any other team in the PREMIER LEAGUE, it is very unlikely they will able to come back sufficiently to get a result. the best they could expect is perhaps a draw, and that would require a rare and exceptional performance. on the other hand, manchester united would routinely go on to win 3-2 as many as four times out of five.

apparently, you have to have a more or less unlimited budget to play good, attractive and exciting football in the context of the top-flight. any attempt to do so without this type of financial resource is suicidal in respect to the PREMIER LEAGUE. survival is achieved either through gambling with the very existance of your club, or playing completely negative football. this is why the top-flight is populated by mid-table perennials like blackburn, bolton, stoke and fulham, who are always happy enough to get away with a draw or nicking a late winner in a 1-0.

wigan have to be happier about this point than the baggies as the two look to be amongst the six or seven teams that threaten to get sucked into a relegation battle as the season enters its final phase.