THAT 'S THE (A)WAY TO DO IT !!

WIGAN ATHLETIC  2  STOKE CITY FC  2

In the early stages of this match you had the distinct feeling that the outcome would be on the dissappointing side.In the early minutes  Robert Huth was harshly adjudged to have handled the ball in the area,setting Wigan on their way with Maloney's penalty conversion.This seemed to set us back more than a little.

Things changed markedly for the better from half an hour in when new signing Charlie Adam replaced the injured Wilkinson.From then on,by our standards, the football flowed.Just before half time Crouch cleverly flicked the ball up and over Figueroa in the Wigan penalty box.The full back handled, Ref Atkinson evened things up,and Jon Walters made no mistake with the resultant penalty striking the ball firmly under  keeper Al Habsi's dive.There was still time before the break for Wilson to hit the Wigan bar with a shot from distance.

With Stoke slow out of the blocks Kone broke upfield,squared the ball across the area to Di Santo,who unerringly stroked the ball beyond Begovic into the corner of the net (49 mins).Stoke got back on terms through some real clever play.

A short  throw in  from the left was nodded over a Wigan defender by Jerome.The ever willing Walters,anticipating, was already on the move into the Wigan area.He took the ball on,flicked it up to his right where Crouch headed home from close range,giving the keeper no chance.

All square and with Stoke in the ascendancy we went for a winner.We so nearly had one too. With 5 minutes to go Adam's powerful shot on goal from a freekick took a deflection of Caldwell.Al Habsi was already diving left,the ball went right,but he still managed to get a hand up to his right to paw the ball away.Univerally acknowledged by all as a wonder save.Jerome followed up but the angle was much too tight for him to make anything of it.

So Stoke away.....creating plenty of chances,scoring two goals in one match,and for two thirds of the match looking likely to get a win,Adam bossing proceedings,things all of sudden begin to look much more promising for us Stokies.