Wigan Athletic v Port Vale preview – Moore’s men targeting six games unbeaten in a row

Wingback woes – what to do if Gabriel doesn’t make it?

Darren Moore has opted to shore up the left flank with the experienced Marvin Johnson. His arrival was prompted by injuries to Liam Gordon, Jaheim Headley (and to a lesser extent Mitch Clark and Kyle John) leaving rookie Jack Shorrock as the only fit recognised left wingback. However, just as the left flank is strengthened, problems emerge on the right…

With Clark and John both injured, Jordan Gabriel is the last man standing on the right. So, his injury late on during the draw with Wimbledon may have filled Moore with some dread. If Gabriel isn’t fit, it leaves Moore with a quandary – he has the option of teenager Ben Lomax or (perhaps more likely) playing midfielder Ronan Curtis there.

Gauci back in goal?

It will be interesting to see who lines up in goal for this one. Joe Gauci, back from International duty, appears to be number one but Ben Amos has done nothing wrong in Gauci’s absence. One possibility could be that Moore sticks with Amos for this game, allowing Gauci more time to recover but the likeliest option is that Gauci starts.

Heneghan or Humphreys?

According to Darren Moore, Cam Humphreys was the closest injured player to returning. Will Saturday see him come back or will Moore give him more time and stick with the dependable Ben Heneghan?

Impressive Hall to continue upfront?

One of the highlights from last weekend was the performance of George Hall in an advanced role. His skill and pace caused the home side numerous problems and he’s probably favourite to maintain his place alongside the prolific Devante Cole.

Known injury list

Mitch Clark and Liam Gordon are long-term injured. Jordan Gabriel, Kyle John, Jaheim Headley and Cameron Humphreys are all injury doubts.

Possible Vale line-up (3-5-2)

Amos – Debrah, Heneghan, C.Hall – Gabriel, Byers, Croasdale, Johnson – Garrity – Cole, G.Hall

George Hall on his match sharpness – “almost there”

Meet the manager

47 year-old Ryan Lowe took over as manager in March this year. Previously the manager at Bury, Plymouth and Preston he has been in charge of 28 games for Athletic, winning seven of them.

What the manager said

“We focus on ourselves quite a bit, and most of the time, but you have to respect the opposition you come up against, especially Port Vale, with the way they are and the way they play. Darren (Moore) has his team well set up, and we’ve worked a lot on them. We have to make sure we give the lads a game plan, and they’ve had it all week…”

Recent form

The home side last won back on the 13th September and have now gone six games in League and Cups without a win.

Last match

Wigan lost 1-0 at home to Wycombe Wanderers last weekend.

Brief History

Founded in 1932, Wigan have played at the DW Stadium since 1999, before which they played at Springfield Park. They won promotion to the top flight in 2005, were beaten finalists in the League Cup in 2006 and won the FA Cup in 2013.

Pub bore fact

The establishment of Wigan Athletic was the sixth attempt to create a major football club in the town. It follows the demise of (takes deep breath) Wigan AFC, County, United, Town and Borough. It’s a good job the word “Athletic” was still available or they may have run out of something to call the new club..

Stadium

Wigan have played at the Brick Community Stadium (formerly the JJB stadium) since 1999. Wigan Athletic had spent the previous 67 years playing at Springfield Park.

Trivia

Port Vale’s last away win against Wigan came in a 2023 Football League Trophy win. The Valiants won 3-1 thanks to goals from Cristian Montano and a double from Theo Robinson. The last League win was back in 2002 when Ian Armstrong scored the winner in a 1-0 away win.

330 minutes – Port Vale’s epic first competitive encounter with Wigan Athletic

Fixture history

The two sides first met in an FA Cup tie in 1969 when it finished in a 1-1 draw with John James scoring. It took two more replays for Vale to beat their non-league opponents with James again scoring the winner in a 1-0 second replay win (see the clipping above).

Last time we met

The two sides played out a goalless draw back in April 2024.

Player connections

Port Vale striker Devante Cole had a two year spell with Wigan Athletic in 2018. He was limited to just seven appearances before moving on. Meanwhile, former Vale loanee Jenson Weir is now on the books at Wigan.

Vintage connection

Striker Bert Llewellyn had prolific spells with both clubs. The forward joined Port Vale in 1960 and scored fifty goals in 101 appearances during a three year stay. He was even more prolific at Wigan scoring 140 times in 185 games during what was the final club of his playing career.

Discuss the game

Want to discuss things before, during and after the game? Our forum’s dedicated match thread is the place to be. Share your views with fellow fans –

Match thread for the game

Quiz

Have you been paying attention? Here’s our traditional preview quiz

Who is the current Wigan Athletic manager?
Who is Wimbledon’s record goalscorer?
What was the score when the sides last met?
Which current Wigan player had a loan spell with Port Vale?

(answers below – no cheating)

Quiz answers

Ryan Lowe
Andy Liddell
Wigan 0-0 Port Vale
Jenson Weir

Quiz ratings

In homage to Joe Gauci, Ben Waine and the International break, today’s theme is Port Vale players who have featured for their country. How did you fare?

0/4 – James Lawrie
1/4 – Ryan McGivern
2/4 – Anthony Griffith
3/4 – Chris Birchall
4/4 – Neville Southall