Victor Moses was back on the scoresheet

Latics launched a spirited comeback to grab what could be a more than useful away point come May 2012. Spearheaded by the introduction of Shaun Maloney ten minutes into the second half, Wigan laid siege to the Canaries goal and secured a deserved equaliser through Victor Moses with just over 20 minutes to play. Mohamed Diame missed an 86th minute opportunity to snatch the game late on before Ali Al Habsi produced an even later heroic save to preserve Wigan’s point.

Following last week’s non-performance against Swansea, it was heartening to see a sprightly Latics outfit that, for periods, looked nothing like one languishing at the bottom of the table. The performance certainly trumped that of Wolverhampton Wanderers who went down by two goals to fellow relegation strugglers Blackburn yesterday afternoon, so draw what you like from that. After going behind to a fantastic Hoolahan flick on 10 minutes, Wigan were always chasing the game but improved as the game progressed and, by the time their goal went in, had chalked up seven shots on target to Norwich’s one.

Latics began the brighter, but were checked by Wes Hoolahan’s strike, which signalled the start of a good spell for the home side. Wigan managed to scramble everything clear, however, and showed signs of getting a foothold as the game approached the half hour mark. Hugo Rodallega smashed a shot right at John Ruddy in the Canaries goal, while an Emmerson Boyce cross grazed his crossbar after taking a wicked deflection on its way into the area. Jordi Gomez also flashed a shot wide, but little else threatened the Norwich goalmouth.

The visitors’ best openings came in the second half. It was imperative for them to come out fighting, which resulted in an very open five minutes or so – that first 60 seconds of the second period saw both sides create decent chances. An unchallenged Grant Holt header failed to find the target and Latics breathed easily once more. The next chance fell to James McCarthy, and what a great opportunity it was – on this occasion, Ruddy effectively closed down the Irishman, whose storming run through the Norwich final third proved a real threat.

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It’s been just under three months since Wigan’s near-miraculous great escape, and we’re already back in action for a brand new season of Premier League football. After such an intense finish to 2010-11, you’d have thought we might have been afforded a little more time. I for one am still recovering from the madness, and hoped Latics were more ready for this contest than myself.

Latics kicked off this fresh campaign against Norwich, a side they hadn’t encountered for a good seven years – the last meeting between the clubs, a Division One clash on 9 April 2004, resulted in a resounding 2-0 win for the Canaries. To make you feel really old, it should be noted that the likes of Andy Liddell, Ian Breckin and Jason De Vos were on the teamsheet at Carrow Road in front of a crowd of 20,000+, who witnessed Darren Huckerby and Mathias Svensson make relatively light work of a playoff-chasing Latics.

That was now and this is then, however. Much has changed, not least the fact both clubs have since managed to achieve Premier League football (in the case of Norwich, twice), and today’s game promised to be an interesting affair. The first match of a season is always hard to accurately predict, doubly so in this instance. This time last year, Latics had just been slaughtered at the hands of newcomers Blackpool, struggling to settle on a line-up and with a defence still on their pre-season jollies. This time round, however, Wigan’s warmup campaign has been a little smoother with the first team emerging unbeaten since May. As on so many occasions in the past two seasons, it would be difficult to tell which Latics team would turn out.

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