Trying to arrest a sinking feeling

WIGAN’S last-day Premier League survival win at Sheffield United 10 years ago was the biggest game of my club career.

All the furore surrounding Sheffield United and West Ham, Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano didn’t affect us going into that final game at Bramall Lane. We had to beat Sheffield United to stay up, no matter what.

We played really well, and even when we went down to ten men, we won the game 2-1, drawing level with Neil Warnock’s team on 38 points and overturning goal difference thanks to former Blade David Unsworth’s match-winning penalty.

That win kept us up and a lot of people in jobs at Wigan Athletic Football Club. It was nice to be a part of a successful period for good people at Wigan because relegation can have devastating consequences for a club and its community

The drop to League One from the Championship could be calamitous today for three big clubs, with Premier League and cup-winning history. One will be relegated from Premier League champions of 1995 Blackburn Rovers, the 2011 League Cup winners Birmingham City and double European Cup Winners Nottingham Forest.

Supporters of all three clubs know it is not the fault of managers Tony Mowbray, Mark Warburton and Harry Redknapp, victims of poorly run clubs as these managers fight for their teams’ lives and their own futures and reputations.

It will come down to nerve. Bramall Lane was absolutely bouncing that memorable day a decade ago as the rain poured down. We thrived on that, went out to upset them and ultimately succeeded.