Wigan Athletic face anxious wait over Powell
Powell limped off seconds before the half-time whistle with a thigh problem, which will now be scanned by anxious club medics.
“Nick felt his quad a little bit, when he went on a run through the middle,” revealed first-team coach Anthony Barry.
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Hide Ad“Obviously it’ll take a bit of time to assess...24 to 48 hours is usually the time-scale.
“To be fair, he didn’t feel too bad in the dressing room.
“But when you’ve got lads on the bench with the quality we have, there’s no point taking any risks.”
Latics were already a goal to the good when Powell exited stage left, thanks to Dan Burn’s 17th-minute header.
And the visitors overcame the loss of Powell to scored three more goals within 17 minutes of the restart from substitute James Vaughan, Michael Jacobs and Will Grigg.
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Hide AdDale pulled one back in the dying moments when Steven Davies potted a late penalty, but it was scant consolation.
“The lads have done very well, because this is a tough place to come,” acknowledged Barry.
“I thought they pushed us all the way in the first half.
“But then in the second half our moments of quality came through - like we did in the wins at Walsall and Bury.
“I think we’ve got a lovely balance in the team at the minute.
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Hide Ad“Defensively we’re structured and everyone knows what they’re doing.
“Offensively, when you’re able to bring players like James (Vaughan) off the bench, shows the number of quality options we have.”
Barry also hailed winger Gavin Massey for another fine performance down the flank.
“Gavin’s been outstanding for us throughout the season,” enthused Barry.
“He maybe doesn’t get the headlines that some of the other players get.
“But his work-rate and his presence on the pitch is a massive part of what we’re doing.”