17th February 2000    

Wigan game under threat

INTERNATIONAL calls are threatening Athletic’s already rearranged home game against Wigan on Tuesday. The match may be postponed again if Wigan striker Simon Haworth is called up by Wales for next week’s friendly in Qatar. Wigan have already lost goalkeeper Roy Carroll and central defender Pat McGibbon who are in the Northern Ireland squad for their friendly against Luxembourg. If Haworth, who has been placed on stand-by, is needed by Wales, Wigan can seek a postponement because three of their players are away. “It is going to be a case of waiting to see if any of the Welsh strikers are injured on Saturday,” explained Athletic chief-executive Alan Hardy. He added that it is a far from ideal situation not knowing whether the game will go ahead. 

Andy Ritchie is having no luck in his search for a new striker. One of the Athletic manager’s main targets has been injured. Ritchie, who has lost Mark Allott through injury and Matthew Tipton because of a four-match ban, says it is unlikely that a loan striker will be brought in until next week. That will leave Athletic with a depleted forward line in Saturday’s league match at Wrexham. Ritchie will also have to make a defensive change as Scott McNiven joins Tipton on the banned list. McNiven, who must serve a one-match suspension for accumulating five yellow cards, will be replaced by either Richard Graham or Paul Jones. Graham has played the last two matches in midfield in place of John Sheridan who has a neck injury. Though an X-ray has revealed no bone damage, Sheridan is still complaining of soreness so he must remain a worry. Athletic reserves’ home match against Manchester City tonight in the Manchester Senior Cup has been postponed as the Boundary Park pitch is unfit.