It was a successful Christmas for Athletic, who had a four-point return from their away game at Brentford and yesterday’s clash with Wigan. But they would have taken a maximum haul if Brentford hadn’t struck in injury time on Saturday. “That’s the disappointment,” added Ritchie. “We were so near and yet so far. Having said that, we would have taken four points beforehand. And it was a horrible dressing room to be in on Saturday, so the lads were a hell of a lot happier yesterday.”

Sheridan is doubtful for Saturday’s home game against Walsall after injuring the same knee which required surgery earlier in the season. He over-stretched the joint in the first half yesterday but was able to soldier on after treatment. With Danny Boshell serving a one-match ban, Athletic could again find their resources stretched as they try to find a midfield replacement. And they are in store for another tough contest as Walsall, who beat them in a five-goal thriller in August, occupy one of the two automatic promotion places.

IF Athletic miss out on anything by a few points this season, whichever end of the table it may be at, they will surely look back on the chances they threw away. At Brentford, a goal in the fourth minute of injury time was the latest last-gasp setback to damage their ambitions. They were on course to secure victory with a strong and purposeful display until Martin Rowlands cancelled out Mark Allott’s opening goal. After coming within seconds of a flying start to Christmas, their distress at having the party spoiled was felt even more keenly than usual. It was the sixth time this season that Athletic had conceded a vital goal in the last ten minutes, a habit which has cost them seven points — points which would put them near the play-off places — not to mention a lucrative FA Cup tie at Chelsea. They haven’t managed a single such strike themselves and, unless the roles are reversed, consistent progress will stay tantalisingly out of reach. “It was the same old story,” admitted manager Andy Ritchie. “But at least we came away with a draw.”

And Ritchie’s was a fair point to make as, despite the disappointment, Athletic did gain a decent result at a difficult venue. They have now gone six away games without defeat — the best run for over four years — and did so with a side which was seriously below full strength. As well as the five players already ruled out, Carlo Corazzin was a late withdrawal after coming down with a stomach bug on the eve of Saturday’s match. That left Allott and Matthew Tipton as the strikeforce, and both men worked hard to ensure Athletic’s defending started at the front. Shaun Garnett was excellent as the physical buffer needed against Brentford’s forwards, while Gary Kelly made some fine saves in a team performance which was worthy of the draw it earned, if not the win it so nearly achieved. It took a long time for the game to find any structure, with neither side threatening until Kelly made two good saves in quick succession after 25 minutes. David Eyres and Tipton went close for Athletic before they stunned Griffin Park nine minutes into the second half with Allott’s fourth goal of the season.

There was an element of luck about it as Tony Carss hit a long-range drive straight at the stand-in striker. Allott controlled it in an instant and lifted his shot past the goalkeeper from 10 yards. Athletic immediately switched to 5-3-2, with substitute Mark Hotte looking back to his best at centre-half. It became an exercise in containment, and Brentford created precious little other than a Mark McCammon header which was brilliantly tipped over by Kelly. But, to their credit, the mid-table Bees never gave up. And they levelled at the death when a right-wing cross was deflected to Rowlands, who lashed in a tremendous far-post finish from eight yards. In a game of five bookings, Athletic’s Danny Boshell and Paul Rickers were cautioned for time wasting. Boshell, in fact, spent much of the second half on thin ice and may need to cool his temperament if he is to avoid tainting his potential with disciplinary problems.

Oldham are becoming Wigan's bogey side after their 2-1 win and boss Andy Ritchie was delighted with the result of the Lancashire derby. It ended an 18-match unbeaten run for the Division Two high flyers and last season the Latics were the first to beat Wigan home and away. A delighted Andy Ritchie admitted after Tuesday's game: "I don't know what it is, but we seem to have the Indian sign over them. They must be sick of the sight of us." It was a Christmas cracker of a Lancashire derby and for any neutrals in the crowd of 7,750 - Boundary Park's biggest of the season - it was money well spent. There were plenty of scares before Oldham made the scoring breakthrough five minutes before the break. Canadian international Carlo Corazzin cleverly lifted the ball over Wigan's defensive line and skipper Lee Duxbury was on target with a firmly struck shot from just outside the box.

It was back to all square in the 61st minute when Wigan's top scorer Simon Haworth notched his tenth of the season with a close range header. But that was the spur for Oldham to again pick up the pace and Corazzin, having his best game so far, was again the provider as he smartly set up the matchwinner for Mark Allott. The striker, only in the side because of injuries, had time to control the ball before firing home for his second goal in as many games. Ritchie added: "We lost it a little bit when they scored but dug in to come back again. That's four points from six, so it hasn't been a bad Christmas."

John Sheridan is a major doubt for Saturday's visit of Walsall after he aggravated the knee injury which has kept him out for four months. The veteran 36-year-old has had the joint packed in ice after the injury occurred in the win over Wigan. He is due back at Boundary Park on Thursday to have the injury checked out. Boss Andy Ritchie said: "He overstretched a little bit and it needs time for the injury to settle down. At the moment he must be doubtful for Saturday."

Oldham boss Andy Ritchie reckons the Latics current form could lift them up the table and towards a play-off place. They have now lost just two of their last 11 games and he said: "I have spoken about the play-offs recently to the lads and it is not out of their reach. But they have to want it and believe in themselves. "We have to be more consistent and turn draws into wins. We are only 10 points away from the play-offs and three wins on the trot and you are almost there. "Once you get a smell of it you have to keep there and I still believe it is a target we can realistically aim for. "If we keep playing like we are, then there is no reason why we cannot continue climbing the table."

Press reports have once again suggested former Burnley and Preston striker Kurt Nogan could be a potential New Year transfer target for Oldham. Nogan is currently out of favour at Cardiff City, especially with their recent captures of strikers Gavin Gordon and Leo Fortune-West. It is understood that Nogan would welcome a move back to the North West of England after having returned to his native South Wales. The Latics, Wrexham and Blackpool have all been mentioned as possible destinations for a striker with a proven lower division goal-scoring record.

Walsall manager Ray Graydon's patience with his team's away day blues has finally snapped and he is threatening to bring in new men and show the door to some of his current squad. After the Boxing Day flop at Swansea, which meant five consecutive away games without a win, he said: "If we continue to do what we have been doing on the road, we won't get promotion." Asked about next Saturday's game at Oldham, he replied: "I shall be looking at the same result unless the players change. "There is one way I can change it and that's by changing the players. That's the ultimate decisions - to get rid of some and bring some more in. That will be the next stage. I've done everything else."

Graydon agreed that the Oldham match was probably the "last chance saloon" in some respects. Walsall are still second in the table, despite picking up only one point from the last five away games. But they will soon slip out of it unless they show more fight outside the West Midlands. Graydon made four changes at Swansea, but dismissed any suggestion that it could have caused the defeat, pointing to their recent record of failure away from home. Swansea had not won in their previous 12 games and could hardly believe the result against a team some consider to be the best in the division. Graydon said: "They scored from the three times they were in our box --awful goals. "We have a great pattern of play, a good squad of players who are together, but we are not defending well enough as a group of people. "Swansea were not in the same league as us in football terms - and that's a nice way of putting it. But if we continue thinking that football alone is going to win us promotion, it won't. "We go to Oldham on Saturday and I am not going to do any business between now and then, but after that we shall be looking at changing the team - getting some in and some out."