Wigan Athletic 1-2 Ipswich Town

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Mick McCarthyImage source, PA
Image caption,

Mick McCarthy's Ipswich side have now won three games in a row.

Ipswich held off a spirited late fightback to end Wigan's unbeaten home record and move up to seventh place in the Championship.

Midfielder Luke Hyam put Ipswich ahead when he finished Tyrone Mings's excellent low cross from the left.

The points looked safe when former Latics player Conor Sammon doubled the lead as he scored from close range.

But Wigan responded as Martyn Waghorn turned in a James McClean shot and Oriol Riera thumped the post.

Riera was desperately unlucky not to level the score but for 75 minutes it was Mick McCarthy's visitors who were in control.

A slice of Sammon

Wigan paid £600,000 to sign striker Conor Sammon from Kilmarnock in January 2011

Derby County paid £1.2m to sign him in August 2012

He only scored once in 34 appearances for the Latics

The 27-year-old has won nine caps for the Republic of Ireland without scoring

Hyam had been involved in two tasty challenges in midfield when he put Ipswich ahead after a flowing move. David McGoldrick spread the ball out to Mings, and his superb delivery was met convincingly by Hyam to side-foot in.

Sammon - who scored once for Wigan during an 18-month spell at the club - should have made it 2-0 moments later when he failed to convert McGoldrick's fine ball.

But after the break the powerful Irishman did grab his first goal for Ipswich since signing on loan from Derby County when he broke an unconvincing challenge from Ivan Ramis and slotted home at the second attempt after Scott Carson had saved.

Uwe Rosler's home side belatedly rallied and Ramis forced Ipswich goalkeeper Dean Gerken into a fine stop before substitute Waghorn halved the deficit when he flicked in McClean's shot from a corner.

And fellow replacement Riera was inches away from securing a point for the hosts when he showed superb technique to bring the ball down, before arrowing his shot against the near post.

The result leaves Wigan in 17th with eight points from eight games.

Ipswich manager Mick McCarthy:

Media caption,

McCarthy on Wigan v Ipswich

"I know a lot of talk will be about the last 10 minutes and the shot that hit the post and another that missed, but we could have been more than one goal up by that stage.

"It's nice when a plan comes together, and it did tonight.

"I can come up with all sorts of ideas but unless the players buy into it I've got no chance.

"Thankfully tonight they did. It was a really solid performance."

Wigan boss Uwe Rosler:

"Ipswich came with a clear plan, to rough us up, and tried to make the game a scrap.

"In periods they dominated our midfield, we couldn't get the ball down, and we weren't strong enough to win the second balls.

"But the response we showed in the last 20 minutes speaks for the character of the players and the spirit in the camp."

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