Crushed by the burden of wealth: JWAW’s poor attempt at political commentary

I really wasn’t sure what to feel today. On one hand it is sad to think the DW Stadium will not be hosting top flight football next year, on the other there was the sheer elation of seeing the FA Cup paraded around the pitch as if it were the Marsden Cup or something. Surreal indeed.

After the festivities come those inevitable salad days, but I think we’d better just enjoy this four-course steak dinner while it lasts. You shall hear no more negative comments from myself in this post, because today was a day for celebration. The result was secondary to reminiscing over eight glorious years for our little club, but it’s certainly worth recounting the final pages in this particular volume of the Wigan Athletic story.

There was one small upside to this seemingly dead rubber. Save for the cup matches, I can’t remember many occasions this season where I could sit and enjoy a game without the worry that one small error could spell ultimate disaster. With Wigan’s fate sealed on Tuesday, I could at least relax in the knowledge that whatever happened today would have little impact on the first game of the 2013-14 campaign. Heck, who knows how many of today’s first team (and indeed coaching staff) will take to the very same playing field in mid-August for a campaign of European football? In some ways, it’s rather exciting.

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Pierrot tickles Columbine to death.
I added the pixellation, just in case you were wondering.

Good evening, podcasters! I hope you aren’t in too foul a mood following the events of Tuesday evening, and have enough energy to enjoy this week’s Progress With Unity. The FA Cup win is no doubt a sweetener, and the thing you will remember until the day you die. Once I recover from the disappointment of relegation (cough, and this virus), I am sure to be jubilant at the simple fact that Wigan Athletic won the FA Cup. I think that’s a point worth repeating a few thousand times.

This edition is a celebration of Saturday, which I have just about come to terms with. It is an emotional time as every man around the table recounts their memories of a day that will live forever. There’s a bit of coach ride banter, exclusive insight into the craziness of the Wembley press box when Latics scored, plus the infamous triangular corner flags myth and Ben Watson Mania! If you only listen to one edition of PWU this year, make it this one. And the one next week.

Contents: Arsenal review (0:00); Wembley (10:00); we did it for Joseph (12:08); coach antics (18:37); press box madness (25:30); more tales from the tour bus (32:00); meet and greet and Villa preview (39:26)

Get involved!

Progress With Unity is currently the only Wigan Athletic fan podcast on the web. If you would like to get involved or have any topics you’d like to be discussed please get in touch with Barry at wigan@vitalfootball.co.uk, marking your email PWU Podcast.

There is one more edition to come this season before we all take a well-deserved break. To be alerted when said episode is published, the PWU iTunes, RSS and app info pages are available as they have been all season. I should return for next week’s review of the campaign, which is sure to be a fun-filled 50 minutes reminiscing upon yet another gripping nine months in the Premier League.

As ever, thanks for listening and thanks for being yourself.

“Yo Death, my maaan! Shouldn’t you be at Aston Vill-aaaaagh!”

Not to be a party pooper, but I feel I must interject at this point. Remember a time long ago when we all cared about the league? Nah, me neither.

I don’t think I quite emphasised the importance of the Swansea game to Wigan’s Premier League survival. Hey, we all had other things on our minds last week so I suppose you could forgive a momentary lapse of concentration… or three. Don’t worry, I’m not going to bang on for 2,000 words about how the lack of Ramis and Alcaraz reduces the Wigan defence to a gibbering wreck, though to a certain extent I believe this to be true.

Instead, I shall speak at (moderate) length about this evening’s game and how Saturday afternoon affected it. Best get out your digestive biscuits and dunking beverage of choice for this one.

They say Wigan are the first team to win the FA Cup by accident, but I prefer to describe it as ‘everything falling into place’. The right draws, the right team selections, the right bit of luck here and there – three elements that have sadly been missing from Wigan’s league line-up at crucial points in the season. Antolin Alcaraz was supposed to miss the rest of the season, but he made a miraculous return to lead his team to FA Cup glory.

If Callum McManaman had been producing these kinds of performances in the first team from day one of the 2012-13 campaign, we might probably have been safe by January. And if Lionel Messi played for Wigan, we might have won the FA Cup. Oh, wait…

Screw the ifs, because barring a trip to the Large Hadron Collider, you can do precious little to change the past. Wigan had one more chance to fend off the Grim Reaper – if they could pull off an amazing win at Arsenal, that required points total of 41 would seem less of a pipe dream and a bit closer to reality. But the margin for error was negligible; quite simply, nought but perfection would suffice. Gulp.

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The FA Cup: Suitable headwear for post-match parties

I have not been too well of late. Yesterday I was hallucinating that Wigan Athletic won the FA Cup so I think a trip to the doctor for stronger medication is in order. I am still unsure whether all that really did happen and that I will wake up tomorrow morning to news that Latics actually lost to Macclesfield.

I am not a pie eater, but I chewed my celebratory steak pie with pride last night, and not *just* because it was free. Wigan Athletic have produced some of their very best performances in this competition, and yesterday was no exception to the established standard. There was a bit of luck, a bit of quality and of course the goal just when it was needed – dare I say, the perfect end to a perfect cup run?

You may have already seen this stuff, but it’s definitely worth posting up here. Please enjoy this wonderful selection of videos courtesy the FA.

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