Ryan Lowe vows full-strength Wigan Athletic side for FA Cup clash - 'Make sure we leave no stone unturned'
Wigan Athletic boss Ryan Lowe insists he will be fielding a strong team against Hemel Hempstead Town in their FA Cup tie this weekend.
Wigan host the Tudors, who play in the National League South, in the first round of the FA Cup at the Brick Community Stadium on Saturday afternoon, with Lowe insisting he will be fielding a full-strength line-up, with Latics leaving no stone unturned against the underdogs.
“100 per cent,” Lowe replied when asked if he would be fielding his strongest team possible.
"We’re not going to take anything lightly, we’ve got Saturday-Saturday, so I want them to keep up the good form because there has been some good form over the last couple of games.
"I want our performance to stay at the levels that are expected, and we’re going up against a tricky opponent from the non-league. They’ve also got some players who have played at the professional level before, and I respect the manager for the job he is doing down there. It is a tough job in non-league and maybe aspiring to go bigger and better, and these games give managers, coaches and players the opportunity to do that – we’ve just got to make sure that we leave no stone unturned.”
Lowe has already confirmed that key defender James Carragher will start the game, having made his return from a 10-week injury absence in last weekend’s 1-1 draw at Mansfield Town.
The Latics boss also provided a further squad update, including positive news on midfielders Baba Adeeko and Tyrese Francois, who are nearing their returns to action.
"Everyone’s fit, Baba and Tyrese have been on the grass today, which is nice,” said Lowe.
“Smudge (Matt Smith) took a little bit of a bang on his knee on the weekend. We’ll see how he is, he’s trained today, we’ll see how he is, and then we’ve got a fully fit squad, they’re all champing at the bit.
"There was a bit of illness in the Under-21s camp, but the lads are back, the likes of Tobias (Brenan), Leo (Graham), Jack Rogers, K’Marni (Miller) – they are all back training with us, they’re all fit and firing and waiting for an opportunity.”
Meanwhile, Adeeko and his partner recently welcomed a baby into the world – and Lowe joked the former Republic of Ireland Under-21s international is looking a bit tired after some sleepless nights!
“His eyes have been a bit tired,” Lowe laughed. “I’ve seen him in the canteen and in the gym and whatnot. It probably set Baba back a week (in his recovery from injury) with his baby but that’s fine by me, there is no problem in that, but the baby is fit and well and the mum is fit and well, and he’s back training on the grass now, so hopefully in the Vertu Trophy we can probably get him and Tyrese back and get some minutes in them, and if we do, then it builds the squad more, and the more availability definitely helps.”