Ahead of the opening fixture of the season, we spoke to Wigan Athletic fan and editor of the Mudhutter Fanzine, Martin Tarbuck.
Obviously Wigan have recently been taken over by Phoenix 2021. Have the new owners managed to get fans back onside after a difficult few years?
We had to wait a long time but yes, they certainly seem the best of the bunch, given some of the fantasists, chancers and freeloaders that were trying their hand as alternatives. Regardless of who they are, you have to ask the question as to who on earth would want to pump money into buying Wigan Athletic? They do at least seem to have some plausible reasons. We have a following in the Middle East, through Ali Al Habsi, Amr Zaki and from the FA Cup final/Premier League days.
Plus, we also probably had about £40m of talent shifted last summer for a fraction of the price, including three England youth internationals, sold to Premier League clubs for buttons. They are hoping to continue and build upon that. We have a continuing model through our academy, and also by buying younger players released from the big North West clubs, then selling at a profit. That is what’s more baffling really; had we sold Antonee Robinson for £8m last summer, we would have broken even. And how much could we have got for Kieffer Moore this summer following his Euro 2020 showing? He’s got £12m to Burnley written all over him. So we are not completely unsustainable and more importantly, they have stated from the outset that they won’t be throwing money at it, and ambitions are no more lofty than getting us to mid table in the Championship in five years. Which is right where we were, when the last bunch of conmen pulled the plug.
You’ve made some statement signings this summer- do you think the new look team will be able to gel instantly before the first game of the season?
We seem to be attracting attention for signing pretty decent League One players, but I think it has to be seen in the context that we only had five players left at the end of last season, and three of those were back up players or academy lads, who had only played because of the situation we found ourselves in. So we literally needed to go out and buy a team of established League One players to put a team on the park.
What did you think of the signings of Max Power and Charlie Wyke, who obviously failed to get promoted three times in red and white?
Max Power has been promoted with us previously, so no issue there. I think he struggled at Championship level a touch, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves, he’s fine at this level.
Charlie Wyke, I know little about, his goal record is good in recent years but I know a lot of Sunderland fans put that down to McGeady, and I get that, as he is ridiculously good at this level. Sentimentally, I think some fans would have liked Will Grigg back instead but thinking back to immediately before administration, we had Kieffer Moore up front so it seems both Cook (then) and Leam Richardson now, prefer a big target man to provide a focal point of the team.
When Sunderland came in for Will Grigg, were you happy to see him leave for such an extortionate price?
The man was a legend for us so I was sad to see him leave. But at that price, well everyone is dispensable. I don’t think Paul Cook fancied him that much so we took the money and moved on. £4m is probably cheap for a Championship striker (as we were) but Cook seemed to prefer Joe Garner, presumably for his stronger work rate. At League One level, he had always been a prolific goal scorer, with us and MK Dons. You’d pay that to get more or less guaranteed promotion but it sadly didn’t turn out that way. I’m being too diplomatic. Ok then, we had your pants down. Sorry.
Why do you think it hasn’t worked out for Grigg at the Stadium of Light?
I really am at a loss to understand why he hasn’t. Most Wigan fans seem to say that you have never played to his strengths, which is basically, poaching in and around the box. Obviously, he’s a totally different size and shape to Wyke but with McGeady as his supply line, it is strange that it just hasn’t happened for him. I’m not sure he ever wanted to leave Wigan and that might have influenced matters. I also recall he missed a sitter in one of his early games. Again, it sounds ridiculous but strikers are all about confidence and maybe he never recovered from it.
What was going through your head when you saw the situation play out behind the scenes in Sunderland 'Til I Die? (Presuming you watched it of course)
I’ve only watched bits of it but it is a sorry state of affairs. I have no formal requirement to offer sympathy here but you have been awfully run for far too long. You seem to have taken over Leeds’ mantle in this respect. I have no need to toe the party line but in terms of stature, and all the usual traditional measures, Sunderland are one of the top 20, maybe even top 10 clubs in the country and your fans deserve better. I say this as someone who had a soft spot for SAFC for years. I got to know loads of decent Sunderland fans from County Durham in the late Eighties through a Wigan lad who was a big Mackems fan. If it’s any consolation then, just like Leeds, it might only take one inspired appointment for things to change.
Given your struggles in the league last season, are you confident in fighting for promotion this season?
The party line is that mid table is fine by us. We’ve not had a year in the last twenty where we’ve not been either threatened with relegation or battling for promotion. Let’s be frank though, there is a lot of dross in League One and, whereas we might not have the fanbase you do, some of our fans demand an awful lot, probably because we have punched above our weight for so long.
I wouldn’t expect us to get off to a flyer with a completely new team but there is a really good vibe around the place after what we’ve been through. The one positive of nearly losing your football club is that it focusses minds. The fact that the administrators stripped everything bare means we have a blank canvas and none of the baggage that others club have.
What is your score prediction and who do you think will score when the two teams meet?
I don’t expect fireworks, I think both teams will take a while to settle into the game and indeed the season. Perhaps a scrappy 1-1 draw.
Martin Tarbuck
@mudhutter
