Wigan Athletic 1 Doncaster Rovers 0
Latics started well and they were screaming for a penalty in the opening exchanges, with the ball clearly hitting a visiting hand, but the referee was unmoved.
After Viv Solomon-Otabor fired wide from a good position, Doncaster took charge and created a hat-trick of decent opportunities.
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Hide AdJamie Jones denied James Coppinger twice from just inside the box, before former Latics left-back Reece James' marauding run set up Jon Taylor.
The Wiganer steadied himself, but could only fire wide of the mark.
And Latics took full advantage of the let-off by stepping up their efforts after the break.
They took the lead on 59 minutes when Garner rose highest to head home Solomon-Otabor's right-wing cross.
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Hide AdAnd Solomon-Otabor really should have doubled the advantage within two minutes, racing clean through only to be denied by Rovers goalkeeper Joe Bursik.
Rovers pushed for a leveller in the final quarter, but the Latics backline - featuring on-loan Leicester defender Darnell Johnson for the first time - held firm for a first clean sheet of the campaign.