Defensive crisis for Wigan Athletic manager

Curtis Tilt in action against Solihull before injury struck

Wigan Athletic boss Leam Richardson is suddenly down to one fit senior centre-back after losing THREE in just four days.

Kell Watts had to be substituted during the first half of Saturday's FA Cup first-round tie against Solihull, with Curtis Tilt coming on in his place.

Incredibly, Tilt didn't reappear for the second half after reporting a problem, which meant young left-back Luke Robinson slotting in alongside Jason Kerr.

And Richardson admits he faces anxious few days before finding the extent of both injuries.

"Kell rolled his ankle, he's tried to rub it off but couldn't," the Latics boss said.

"He's in a protective boot, and it doesn't look great.

"Curtis has a problem with his knee and his thigh, but again it's too early to know the full damage.

"Having said that, that didn't look great either."

To add insult to injury, Richardson also revealed Jack Whatmough missed the game not because he was rested - but because he's also nursing a problem.

"Jack hurt his ankle on Tuesday (at Fleetwood), just before half-time," reported Richardson.

"He got a bit of a whack in the back, and his ankle stuck in the turf.

"He's also in a boot at the moment, and we're hoping for those results to be positive as well.

"We've gone from having four fit quality centre-halves champing at the bit to now having one.

"Jason Kerr will be going away on holiday, and wrapped up in cotton wool until the next game!"