Wigan Athletic boss 'made big Sam Tickle decision six months ago'

Tickle was handed only his second league start - having made his debut against Rotherham in the final game of last term - at Derby.

And a fine display in Latics' 2-1 victory underlined his manager's faith in him.

Tickle has stepped up following the summer departure of club captain Jamie Jones.

But boss Maloney - who took over as manager in late January - says Tickle would have been in contention anyway after impressing him in training.

"I knew within about four weeks of being here that Sam, I wouldn't say nailed on, but that I would be giving him every opportunity to be No.1," said the Latics manager.

"I really wanted to see how he'd do at the end of last season, when he played against Rotherham, when we had the pay issue.

"So I knew maybe by the beginning of March that we had a special goalkeeper on our hands.

"What's hard is that he didn't have any league experience before, only loan spells at a lower level.

"I still know he'll have ups and he'll have downs, because this is his first real run as a No.1 goalie.

"But he was very good today and we're delighted with him."

The 21-year-old signed his first professional contract in the summer of 2021, having been with Latics since 2012.

He spent time out on loan at Nantwich Town and Warrington Rylands prior to his ascent into the Latics first-team set-up.