Wigan Athletic boss hails wing pair and explains omission of duo

The wide men were the stand-outs in Saturday's 1-0 victory over Leyton Orient, which lifted Latics 13 points clear of the drop zone with nine games to go.

Having been recalled to the starting XI, both players should have claimed at least one assist for creating chances that, on another day, should have led to goals.

"Jordan's been absolutely brilliant for us," said Maloney. "It's been an incredible rise for him, considering where he's come from at the start of the season, he's had such a hard time.

"He knows what I think of him, and the only challenge is whether he can finish the season at this level, because he's giving us a big chance to win games at the moment."

The sight of Jones on the field is a welcome one, given the Latics boss had recently ruled him out for a month, only for a medical second opinion to give him the green light to play on.

"I did expect him to be out for longer as you know," said the Scot. "But it managed to clear up quicker than we feared.

"We didn't expect to have him available before the international break, so it's a big bonus to have him available for these big games.

"I also have to mention Cal...he always leaves everything out there, and the start was reward for what he gave us against Bolton.

"Again, I made a decision at Fleetwood where I made three changes to bring energy into the team and, on reflection, I should have made five or six - or zero.

"Scott Smith and Josh Magennis I would put into the same bracket...they all deserved to start because of what they did against Bolton."

The return of McManaman and Jones to the team saw Stephen Humphrys drop to the bench despite his fine recent form.

"Stephen's been ill," revealed Maloney. "In my experience of working with Stephen - particularly when he played against Manchester United and he wasn't 100 per cent - when I found out he was ill on Wednesday, I had a decision to make.

"I thought he could maybe give me 30-40 minutes, and he was brilliant when he came on. Hopefully he's okay now, I don't need loads from him in training..."

Maloney also explained the surprise omission from the squad of ean Clare.

"Sean was just tactical, I made the decision to go with Scott because of what he gave me against Bolton," said Maloney. "And then thinking about the substitutes...at any stage of the game, what would I need if we needed to score, or shore up at the back.

"I went with an extra centre-back on the bench, so it was tactical, but it was tough to leave him out.

"It's tough, but also I know the group knows I'll always be pretty honest when it comes to selection...whether you're one of the captains or not, I just want to pick a team to win a game.

"There's been moments when Sean's been very, very good for us this year, and I guess it's my job to make sure he's at that level every single week."