PART 1: Wigan Athletic: The 12th Man - ‘Latics is the epicentre of this lad's world, and Darren has become the centre of the Latics world...’

Alan Rogers:

Deoxyribonucleic acid is the posh name for what we more commonly refer to as DNA. DNA contains the genetic code that has all the instructions that a living organism needs to grow, reproduce and prosper. Rather a boring subject - especially when we are supposed to be talking about football - but life would not exist without it. Interestingly enough, though, DNA has been mentioned a lot in recent weeks, especially in regards to our club. I guess it's nothing new...in the past, we would say something like: 'He/she has the club running in their blood'. That usually means you've inherited an affinity for the club from your family, or maybe simply picked up your affection in another way.

These days, instead, we tend to talk about DNA. But both phrases are supposed to mean that you probably understand - and deal with - the club in a way that an 'outsider' or neutral doesn't. I would suggest the average football fan shares some of the same DNA. The same highs, the same lows and the same feeling of territorial superiority. But each club is slightly different and these differences are vital to recognise.

The journey of Wigan Athletic from non-league obscurity to winning the FA Cup and experiencing the lofty heights of the Premier League is unique. No other football fan will share that strand of our DNA. And what is also unique is our relationship with the local rugby club, our half-full/half-empty stadium, and recent off-field problems, etc.

And so we get to the first point in my rambling journey: DNA, in regards to selecting our new manager. Some people suggested we needed to start afresh. Bring in somebody who has no previous connection with the club. Someone who doesn't have Wigan Athletic 'in their DNA'. Fair enough, we are all entitled to our opinions. My argument was that our most successful managers in the last 25 years or so have all possessed that Latics DNA...Martinez, Caldwell, Jewell and Cook all achieved different types of success (and occasional disasters) having been former players.

In my opinion, that made it easier for them to understand the Latics fanbase for one thing. The majority of fans are fiercely loyal, if a tad fickle but there has always been a minority who are never happy. Learning to live with this slice of negativity is a vital key to becoming a successful Latics manager.

In my opinion, each interview should have begun with discussions about pies, ground-sharing, and that team from Horwich. Followed up by several questions in the same vein...perhaps throw in a 'hypothetical' enquiry about how they may cope with bankruptcy? Only when those questions were answered satisfactorily should we have started the second part of the interview...talking about football! Given all those parameters, I hoped we would have chance to talk to Paul Warne, but best wishes to Ryan Lowe all the same.

My second DNA point is a lot sadder, a lot more emotional. Last week, Darren Orme went missing. Wigan Athletic truly is the epicentre of this lad's world, and this week Darren became the centre of the Latics world. Anyone who watches the team knows Darren - even if it's just to nod to him - and we all know of his dedication to the club. Wigan Athletic, and all it means, truly runs in his blood. Before last Saturday's game, I spoke to Graham Higson - we both worked at Gullicks with Darren's uncle Alan, who is another Latics legend.

It sort of summed it up that the first thing that Graham and I discussed wasn't the current managerial situation or the team - or anything else really - but Darren. And so it went on in the following hours and days. Darren's friends and family sent out pleas for assistance, and the Wigan Athletic family united as they always do and gave their support. Search parties, posters, and prayers covered the town, and further.

And at times like this it's not just the Latics community that comes together. it's the wider Wigan community as a whole. At the time of writing, Darren is still missing, but we have to remain positive. We all hope to see him at the next home game, surrounded by his Latics family.

Matt Auffrey:

There is quite a bit of uncertainty surrounding the club at the moment, but we received a much-needed boost at the Brick last Saturday with our 1-0 victory over Cambridge. While the match contained some underwhelming stretches of play, the most important takeaway of the day was a positive result that far outweighed an up-and-down performance. We did get a boost over the final half hour of the match, largely in part due to the positive impact of the subs. Jon Mellish had one of his best performances to date in what appeared to be a 'free-roaming' role, while three academy graduates - Chris Sze, Baba Adeeko, and Luke Robinson - all played a big role in creating the only goal of the match.

By the end of the day, we found ourselves in 15th position and 10 points clear of Burton in fourth-bottom spot. We also have a game in-hand, along with a plus-15 goal differential on the Brewers. Needless to say, we are in a very stable position with regard to our status in this division for next season. As discouraging as the ‘achievement’ of survival may be when compared to our objectives from last summer, the squad should still be commended for how they have battled through peaks and valleys of the season to date. There are still many questions about how the rest of this season will look.

This week's Fans Forum should ideally provide a level of clarification about the past, present, and future that leaves the fanbase feeling more secure about the state of the club. The first two months of 2025 have seen us lose our manager and our top scorer from a squad that are currently the lowest scorers in the division. Prior to the Cambridge fixture last weekend, our previous four matches featured just one striker in the entire matchday squad. We have been challenged for depth in key areas over the course of the season and, as a result, the product on the pitch has frequently suffered. We need some legitimate assurances that there are plans in place to improve upon these issues ahead of next season.

As important as the Fans Forum event may be within our own little world of football, finding beloved Latics fan Darren Orme - who has been missing since last week - is the most critical development at the moment. The challenges of this season have often divided our fanbase over rather trivial matters. To see our fans, along with the greater local community, come together on behalf of Darren has been a very heartwarming affair to witness - even for someone like me who is thousands of miles away. Thank you to everyone who has offered their assistance thus far. The phrase ‘keep the faith’ applies just as much now than ever before. I remain hopeful for a positive update.

George Arkwright:

We can never just have an off-season, can we? Just once in a while, I’d like a season devoid of drama or adversity, where we play our football, no-one gets sacked, the club doesn’t teeter on the brink of oblivion, and we all go home content with a ninth place finish, rueing our missed opportunities, but optimistic about the season ahead. Since I’ve supported Latics, we’ve spent eight years in the Premier League, won the FA Cup, won this league three times, been relegated five times, survived by the skin of our teeth three times, and been put into administration twice. The three seasons in which we’ve not either been relegated or promoted have been a question of survival by the finest of margins. I suppose one thing that can be said is that it’s never boring. Apart from right now, it seems, off the back of two of the dullest games I’ve watched in a long time.

The football has been lacking ambition, and the players and coaching staff are all evidently still hurting after the departure of Shaun Maloney. However, it cannot be overlooked that we’ve picked up four points in that period. Sacking our manager mere hours before the first of two six-pointers seemed like an incredibly naive decision on the part of our ownership, and yet it seems to have paid off. We’re not playing exciting football under Mr Whelan (not that one), but something seems to be working. There hasn’t been the same air of bewilderment at the substitutions that have been made in these games. We’re still not scoring, but their furore seems to have calmed down significantly since we became managerless.

Is that a concession of defeat? Has the wind been kicked out of us? Or are we standing at the beginning of a journey, in which our players put their heads down, grit their teeth, and drag us over the line? One thing’s for certain - Ryan Lowe will have a hell of a job to do, even if he’s building upon the good work of his predecessor. Another overhaul of playing staff seems inevitable, with many loanees and a few big names from our team seemingly destined for pastures new.

Furthermore, working within the constraints of our ownership’s tight purse strings seems to present its own frustrations and difficulties, and a good relationship between our manager and owners seems paramount for any future successes. I think it’s incredibly important Lowe is given the time to implement a style of play and find any missing pieces in the transfer market. Returning to one of our former managers - Cook, Richardson or Caldwell - would have been a reversion and evident pandering in an attempt to curry favour with many of our disillusioned supporters. There were a number of strong acquisitions to be made at this level and I think that, with the right appointment, we can really see an up-tick in our fortunes.

We are a stable club once again. It seems as though Mike Danson will aim to keep us at least at this level in perpetuity which, after the turbulence of the last decade, seems like a sensible approach. Yet it feels that if Lowe is given the right backing, I can see us establishing ourselves at a much higher level. We have a top-rated academy, a bucketload of success in recent years, more so than many of our contemporaries, and infrastructure that lends itself to being used by the best in the business. A 25,000-seat capacity with 10,000 averaged per week...I think that says all it needs to say.

Our ownership group has obviously purchased us for a reason. Had they never involved themselves at all, nothing would’ve been said of Danson not lending a hand to save us in our time of need. After all, who buys a football club on a whim? This reason may yet to be established among the wider support, but surely the motivating factor is success. Danson is a self-proclaimed perfectionist when it comes to the running and growth of big business. I saw someone recently mention they felt Wigan was a sleeping giant in League One, and I’d be inclined to agree.

All that remains is for the Dansons to realise this, too, as with investment comes measured success, more revenue, more investment, and more success. It will be interesting to see how the Fans Forum is received. I think Gregor Rioch, Lucas Danson and Sarah Guilfoyle will have some difficult questions to answer, and the hope is they provide the Latics faithful with some much-needed clarity on the direction of the club, the motivations of the ownership, and the mire surrounding our lack of recruitment.