New boss Warren Joyce gets first win as Wigan end Huddersfield hoodoo
Wigan secured a first-ever league win at Huddersfield thanks to a classic smash-and-grab raid at the John Smith's Stadium.
Town were complicit in their downfall as they twice conceded to counter-attacks, in each half through Reece Burke and Yanic Wildschut, as the hosts were made to pay for some wildly naive defending.
Burke had the freedom of the penalty area when he opened the scoring after 40 minutes and even when the impressive Aaron Mooy equalised five minutes after half-time, the hosts failed to learn their lesson.
Wildschut, who had set up the opener, was allowed to run free at Danny Ward moments later and kept his head to round the goalkeeper and poke home.
Huddersfield had a seemingly good penalty shout turned down, when Nakhi Wells went down under pressure from Luke Garbutt, but at the end the hosts could have few complaints after a performance that leaves further question marks over their promotion credentials.
David Wagner's side remain inside the play-off places despite the 2-1 defeat, however, but they have now won just once in seven games after a flying start.
For Wigan it was a first win under Warren Joyce, who could also claim to have achieved what no other Latics boss had managed before - a league win in Huddersfield.
The visitors had not even managed a goal at Town in the league since 1993, but put that hoodoo to rest with a win that more significantly leaves them inside the bottom three on goal difference only.
Joyce gave 41-year-old goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen his first league start of the season following Adam Bogdan's season-ending knee injury, but despite Town's dominance he was hardly tested.
Town were given a sign of things to come when they lost their returning skipper Mark Hudson to a leg injury after just five minutes and the frustration only grew thereafter.
Town effectively pressed and harried to keep Wigan camped in their own half, but their inability to secure a goal for their efforts was punished by a textbook counter-attack.
Wildschut had already been allowed to sneak in behind the high line, only to spurn a couple of chances.
Huddersfield ignored the warning signs and while Elias Kachunga was inches away from turning in a low cross, there was an equally tense moment when Mooy did expertly to clear when he was left stranded as the last man on the halfway line.
And eventually Huddersfield took one risk too many, committing bodies forward as Wildschut easily brushed past some weak Jon Stankovic defending and burst up the right flank before crossing for Burke who could hardly miss from a couple of yards.
To add injury to insult, Sean Scannell then also limped off for Huddersfield before the break.
It was his replacement, Nakhi Wells, who set up the equaliser five minutes after half-time.
Wells' incisive run split the away defence and Mooy ghosted in at the back post to tap home his first goal at the John Smith's Stadium.
Mooy then stung the palms of Jaaskelainen with a 25-yard strike but Town's frailty in defence was soon exposed again as Wildschut raced clear to deservedly net what proved the winning goal.
Source : DSG
Source: DSG