Five things we learned from Wimbledon (h)

1 So near...yet so far. Again. Having recovered from their now-customary slow start, Latics dragged themselves up off the canvas and were back on level terms by the midway point in the second period. There was only one winner of the game at that point, with all the momentum and ascendancy with Latics. But yet again, they shot themselves in the foot, with the kind of unforced, individual error that has ultimately proved decisive far too often this term. And frustratingly, it's not inexperienced youngsters who are doing so. It's experienced, senior pro's - all over the pitch - who Latics need more than ever to lead them to safety.

2 Too easy to get at. Saturday was one of the very few occasions this term Leam Richardson has been able to name the same back five and two holding midfielders parked in front. Having seemingly decided this is his blueprint for the rest of the season, the boss now needs the personnel to bed in as quickly as possible, and give the side the kind of platform they need to put some results together. All three goals - plus a Wimbledon effort that hit the bar - saw the opposition being invited into the danger zone without so much as a glove laid on them...twice down the Latics right, once down the left, and once down the middle. There's no real time to get things sorted on the training pitch, so Latics need those involved to learn as they go - out there on the pitch - and fast.

3 Not that there weren't any positives out there. The performance of Jamie Proctor on debut gave much hope for the rest of the campaign, with the on-loan Rotherham man leading the line and giving Latics a focal point they need to make much more use of. His goal was superbly taken, and he might have had a couple more had his finishing matched his work-rate. The character in the side - in stemming the bleeding in the first half, before getting back on level terms - also showed the level of fight that remains at the club despite everything that's happened.

4 Six-pointers slipping away. Saturday's game was the second in four days which saw second-bottom Latics take on the side directly above them in the table. And again Latics allowed Wimbledon - as they allowed Swindon last Tuesday - to jump out of the relegation zone with three precious points. Tomorrow sees Latics travel to Northampton who - yep, you've guessed it - are now third-bottom in the table. Latics have to start holding their own in the relegation dogfight. Tellingly, rock-bottom Burton are the only side in the bottom half Latics have beaten this term. Their four wins have all come against teams in the top eight - Doncaster, Portsmouth, Sunderland and Accrington. Latics can more than match it with the best on their day. They have to show they can match it with the not-so-best far more often.

5 Table doesn't lie. Despite only one win in the last nine matches - at rock-bottom Burton - Latics remain only three points adrift of safety. The standard in the lower reaches of League One is, with all due respect, not great. Latics don't need a miraculous transformation - the kind they needed this time last year - to stay up. A small tweak in performances and results would make a huge difference, in a short space of time. All is not lost yet - far from it.