From a Jack to a king..
WIGAN boss Paul Cook felt “key incidents” went against his side in their frustrating home defeat at the hands of the Rams.
Jack Marriott (above) grabbed the only goal after 21 minutes – a lovely header at the far post from Jayden Bogle’s rightwing cross.
It was Marriott’s eighth goal of the season. The Derby fans love him and if they go up, he promises to be a key element.
The Latics had been reduced to 10 men five minutes earlier after Kal Naismith allowed Harry Wilson to get clean through and was forced to pull him down on the edge of the penalty area.
Wilson was then involved in two flashpoints, when he and Wigan skipper Sam Morsy were both yellow-carded for going head-to-head at the end of the first half.
The Welsh international escaped a second caution in the final quarter despite going to ground under little or no contact from Dan Burn.
“I’d like to see the sending-off again, but I don’t want to get drawn into a debate like this,” said Cook (inset, below). “I think Wilson’s a quality player, but there’s key incidents in the game and he was involved in one in the second half.
“The referee is telling us he’s slipped, but it would be interesting to see it again.
“It’s always in the penalty area where people seem to slip – and he’d already been booked.
“These are big moments in games.
“He’s managed to give the red card in the first half very quickly.”
Unsurprisingly, opposite number Frank Lampard took an alternative view.
“I haven’t seen it again but I thought in the first half there was a foul on Harry, and a blatant attempt to try and get him sent off, to even the game up,” the Derby boss said.
“And I’m not just having a go at Morsy, he was involved in the tackle, and it’s not his fault.
“But the reaction of the crowd and the pressure on the referee and Harry throughout the game was an attempt to level the game out.
“Thankfully the referee didn’t quite go for it, but I felt for Harry because he’s a genuine kid trying to play good football.
“In the second half he slipped, he got straight up, he didn’t ask for a penalty, players were slipping all over the pitch.
“But I took him off as I felt the atmosphere was going against him and that was unfortunate as he was playing very well.”