PNE v Wigan Athletic
Deepdale
Pre-Season Friendly
Tuesday 28th July 7.45pm kick-off
Final Score: PNE 1 Wigan Athletic 4 (Mellor 86; Rodallega 36, N'Zogbia 38, Brown 47, Scotland 69)
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Email your thoughts to the matchday team here via matchday@pne.com.
2137: Well, we probably would have liked a more flattering scoreline, but North End played some decent stuff in patches. They're off to Scotland now, Hibs the next stop on Saturday, where I'll try my best to entertain you once again here via pne.com's 'Minute-By-Minute'. Bet you can't wait..!
90 mins: No need for stoppage time, the referee calls this one to a halt right on time, with North End having ended the game on a high after that late strike.
86 mins: Goal for PNE! The crowd come back to life as Nicholson works the ball forward, plays in Parkin for a half chance, but he elects to spread it to Sedgwick on his left, and the winger's low cross is thumped into the top corner by Mellor. That's something to send us home with a smile. 1-4
82 mins: Mellor curls the ball over the top, but the chance receives little or no acclaim from a crowd that have generally lost interest, save for when the odd crunching tackle goes in or an upfield hoof finds touch.
79 mins: Much earlier than usual, we've just been told that the official man of the match is Neal Trotman.
76 mins: Substitution for Wigan - Gomez goes off, and unusually, De Ridder comes back on! Doing this job is a nightmare for friendlies. 3,645 is given as the attendance, just a little more than for Saturday's encounter, presumably because Wigan have brought more than the Potters did.
72 mins: Scotland tries to chip Lonergan from an audaciously close position, but the keeper is having none of it and holds on with ease.
71 mins: Substitution for Wigan - Cattermole heads off and Ben Watson comes on, wearing the wrong number.
70 mins: The away fans cheer 'we want five', which is what they got the last time we met them in a competitive game, lest we forget.
69 mins: Goal for Wigan! Brown strikes from distance, Lonergan blocks, but the rebound is all too inviting for Scotland, who smashes home from ten yards. 0-4
68 mins: Chilvers blocks from Gomez to give away a corner as Wigan press again. Scharner heads against the near post from the resulting corner.
66 mins: Cattermole places the ball wide of the far post as he looks to add a fourth from the edge of the box.
63 mins: Triple substitution for PNE - the three I tipped you off about; Davidson, Mellor and Parkin; make their way on for Nolan, Elliott and Brown... all like-for-like changes.
62 mins: The second I type that, Lonners comes charging out, bravely making life very hard for Gomez, who ends up sliding the ball just wide of the far post after breaking clear on goal.
61 mins: Preston look to be preparing Davidson, Mellor and Parkin for a half hour burst. The game has gone a little flat so could probably do with a lift.
58 mins: Sedge tries his luck from distance, narrowly clearing the bar.
51 mins: PNE press through Billy Jones but tonight's midfield man and captain is crowded out as he aims to strike from distance.
48 mins: Right, time for those Wigan subs... Off went Figueroa, Bramble, De Ridder, Rodallega, N'Zogbia and Thomas, while on came Edman (who wasn't even on the team sheet), Scharner, Brown, Won-Hee, Bourouzan and Scotland.
47 mins: Goal for Wigan! Three subs combine to increase our defecit. Rachid Bourouzan plays it forward for Jason Scotland, and the ex Swansea man plays in another former Championship player, Michael Brown, who smashes it home from outside the box. 0-3
46 mins: Substitutions for Wigan... but they can wait 'cos they've scored.
2051: The game re-commences. Double substitution for PNE - Ross Wallace off for Chris Sedgwick and Hendo replaced by Lonners in nets for a pair of PNE changes.
2050: Oh no... multiple half time changes. At least five we can see for Wigan. This update may take a while.
2047: For the first time since being a North End employee, I've taken the chance to nip down to the press room at half-time, and I'm amazed to find the room completely empty. There are hot pies and cold drinks galore in there, but evidently the Wigan press don't rate our pastry based offering.
2038: I've never seen the press box as quiet as it is tonight. I've taken the rare chance to sit in the BBC's padded seats because they've only sent one reporter tonight and she's chosen to plant herself elsewhere. This section would normally be packed like a tin of sardines on a competitive matchday, but today nobody is interested.
2033: The half-time whistle blows without giving Latics the chance to take the corner properly.
45 + 1 mins: Nearly a third for Wigan, but it would have been harsh. Thomas' shot dips just in front of Henderson and the bar of soap that passes for the ball slips from his grasp, sliding behind for a corner.
45 mins: There will be one minute of added time.
40 mins: It's all action here. Kirkland comes to collect the ball on the right hand edge of his box but concedes a free kick as he slides out of the area with the ball in his hands. This being a friendly, he escapes a yellow card (which probably goes some way towards explaining the quality of Thomas' fouls earlier).
38 mins: Goal for Wigan! N'Zogbia the tormentor again. He cuts inside Nolan and Wallace, and that left foot of his deftly picks out the bottom right hand corner of the target he's aiming for. 0-2
37 mins: Yellow card! Another rash tackle on Carter and Thomas is booked.
36 mins: Goal for Wigan! N'Zogbia's left foot has looked a handy weapon down the right, allowing him to regularly cut inside, and he tried the trick again to pick out Hugo Rodallega's head. He does so perfectly, and the number nine puts his side ahead. 0-1
31 mins: The conditions cause another North End sliding tackle to turn into something tastier, Carter catching Thomas late with what would have been a well timed tackle on a drier pitch.
28 mins: Wigan are playing with what appears to be a very fluid formation, with the setup arguably 4-2-3-1, with the front four playing in something of a triangle that maximises the width of the pitch. They could be quite a nice side to watch this year with the continental flair to suit the system (or is it a system to suit the players?). Whatever it is, it works.
26 mins: The game has slowed down after the pacy start, but all the passing still retains a good element of zip because of the surface.
21 mins: Michael Hart nips back onto the pitch after having his head bandaged like a mummy - he appeared to have a cut near his eye, according to a keen pair of eyes to my right. All in a day's work for the rugged Scotsman.
19 mins: After a strong Wigan start, it's all North End at the moment, with Elliott a constant menace to the orange shirted defenders.
16 mins: New boy Hendry Thomas slides right through Eddie Nolan from behind, so referee Graham Salisbury pulls him to one side and gets skipper Mario Melchiot - the Dutchman - to interpret for Thomas, the Ecuadorian.
14 mins: Goal for PNE... or not, as it turns out. Wallace plants the ball in behind the defence from a deep left wing free kick, and though Elliott neatly places the ball in off the post, the cruel linesman felt the Irishman was offside at the point of delivery.
10 mins: North End counter attack as Elliott keeps a ball in play that everyone had given up on, and after playing in Wallace, the winger is unfortunate not to pick out Carter with his cross - a Latics defender cutting the ball out right at the last minute.
9 mins: N'Zogbia cuts inside Nolan and aims a shot at goal, but Jones' block turns it over the bar.
8 mins: The first sustained chanting of the game comes from the away supporters, who have turned up in decent number.
6 mins: Jordi Gomez lashes a dipping shot from outside the area and it looks set to sneak under the crossbar until Henderson gets a fingertip to it and turn the ball into the empty Town End in style.
4 mins: Chris Brown puts pressure on the Wigan defence but ends up inadvertantly travelling further than he planned in a sliding tackle due to the greasy turf and ends up giving away a free kick.
1 min: Nearly a perfect start for Wigan, but Henderson comes out to make life hard for Gomez who hoped to strike from the edge of the area, and the loose ball bounces around the box, heading for a corner, until Rodallega cuts it into the side netting from an opportunistic angle.
1945: The game gets underway.
1942: The teams are making their way out, and it looks like the team sheet was wrong because Billy Jones is wearing the captain's armband.
1936: The aforementioned cricket is now abandoned without a ball being bowled. There's still time for Twenty20 lovers to get down to Deepdale... this one's definitely on!
1932: Wrong place, wrong time. I step out of the office for just a split second and suddenly I'm a customer services assistant for all and sundry as I get hassled for ticket requests, directions, and whether I know anywhere selling a good curry. There's good money to be had for doing that role... check out the advert on this very site!
1913: The office printers are playing up. They must be full of water. Everyone that walks in from outside look as though they've just had a bit of a frolic in 'The Splash'.
1903: The rumours were true. Changes are very much evident all over the team sheet, with some of the more interesting points of note being the inclusion of Wayne Henderson from the start, with Billy Jones moving to central midfield and Barry Nicholson playing on the right. There's a new front two and a new skipper as well, but it's easier just to give you the line up and let you enjoy working it out for yourself!
PNE: Henderson, M Hart, Nolan, Jones, Trotman, Chilvers (capt), Nicholson, Carter, Brown, Elliott, Wallace. Subs: Lonergan, C Davidson, Chaplow, Sedgwick, Parkin, Mellor, Hawley.
Wigan: Kirkland, Melchiot (capt), Figueroa, Cattermole, Boyce, Bramble, De Ridder, Thomas, Rodallega, Gomez, N'Zogbia. Subs: Pollitt, Scharner, Brown, Won-Hee, Bourouzan, Scotland, Kupisz, Cywka, Routledge, Holt, Watson.
1857: Rumours abound that team news is imminent. Changes are expected, or so I'm told from the glance one of my colleagues has cast at the draft team sheet.
1839: I know of at least one North Ender who has opted to miss this game in order to watch the cricket at Old Trafford instead. Good call; if you're a fan of pitch covers.
1836: Still wet. Shame.
1830: It's wet here. Not terribly wet, but just about wet enough to drown a small child if they try to walk from the ticket office to the Club shop. In other words, it could be wetter, but not by much. Hardened fans will like this one, softer fans may end up having to follow the action here with me, Adrian Ward.
