Ryan Lowe's reaction to Wigan Athletic's FA Cup draw with Barrow - 'We can’t take them for granted'
Wigan Athletic manager Ryan Lowe insists they will not take League Two side Barrow for granted after the pair were drawn in the second round of the FA Cup.
Latics will be looking to progress into the third round of the competition when the Bluebirds visit the Brick Community Stadium on Saturday, December 6 – 3pm kick-off.
Lowe’s side reached the second round thanks to a penalty shootout victory over National League South side Hemel Hempstead Town on home soil earlier this month, whilst Barrow claimed a 2-0 win at National League North side Spennymoor Town.
Latics will head into the second round tie with Barrow as favourites, given they are a division higher than their Cumbrian counterparts, but Lowe insists they will not be underestimating their visitors when the two sides meet in WN5 next month.
“I actually didn’t know it had been drawn,” Lowe smiled when asked for his reaction to last Monday’s Cup draw. “My lad told me we’d got Barrow at home, and when you see Barrow at home, it is obviously pleasing because Barrow is a tough place to go, let me tell you.
"But again, it’s another game we feel we can win, it’s a team and a level that’s better than what Hemel Hempstead was and a league below us – but we can’t take them for granted.
“It’s a good opportunity for us to hopefully get through to the third round, but it’s going to be a team who are battling away for their club, their manager and their coaching staff to do the same thing.
"We’ve just got to make sure that we’re a bit better than we were in the last round of the FA Cup to try and get to the third round of the FA Cup where everyone wants to be, and hopefully our fans can have a special day out somewhere down the line against a Premier League team, but there is a team standing in our way.”
Wigan’s tie with Barrow will see Latics academy product Scott Smith return to the Brick Community Stadium for the first time since leaving his hometown club to join Barrow in the summer.
"Fair play to him, he needed to go and play, didn’t he?” said Lowe. “I’m sure it’ll be a Scott Smith love-in!”