Wigan Athletic: Five talking points from Crewe Alexandra (a)

1 Big Mag! First and foremost, fantastic to see Josh Magennis getting off the mark in a Latics shirt. Leam Richardson repeated after the game the fact the questions he'd been fielding about Magennis had been previously asked about Charlie Wyke and Stehen Humphrys. And just like his colleagues, the Northern Ireland man is up and running - after eight league starts. To put into context, Wyke's maiden goal was in his seventh game, while Humphrys took until January to score in the league. Going back further, Kieffer Moore took until December for his first league goal in open play, so maybe talk of Magennis' goal 'drought' was perhaps a tad premature.

2 Back on the horse! In Cheltenham week, it was fitting to see Latics saddle up and kick for home to put further pressure on their promotion rivals. MK will know they missed their big chance of pegging back Latics at the weekend, and the gap could be up to nine points if the catch-up games go according to plan. Rotherham, too, eked out a vital victory against struggling Lincoln, although they have shown signs in recent weeks of slowing up. The top two remain strong favourites to see it through...let's hope there's no Devon Loch-type drama to come...

3 Ban-fare! Whisper it quietly, but Latics seem to be taking their recent suspension problems in their stride. Both Tendayi Darikwa and Graeme Shinnie returned from two-game absences at Crewe, while James McClean - who was pictured in the away end - completed his own three-match ban. Latics would have taken two wins and a big draw at MK Dons without their talismanic Irishman, while they just have to get through Saturday's visit of Morecambe before Callum Lang returns. This weekend is also the cut-off point for 10 yellow cards to trigger an automatic two-game absence, with Max Power the only Latics player walking the tightrope.

4 Fan-fare! Not for the first time this season, Latics were cheered home by a raucous, bumper travelling army. Some 2,125 made the trip which, contrary to the figures given out on the night, made up the majority of the crowd inside the Mornflake Stadium. Right from the off they were loud and proud, which both the management and players acknowledged after the game set the tone for what followed. And the scenes that followed both goals were every bit as memorable as at any trip this season.

5 Midweek madness! After nine weeks of Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday fixtures, Leam Richardson and Latics can finally begin to think about taking stock after Saturday's visit of Morecambe. For the first time since the turn of the year, they'll have a blank midweek to do whatever it is teams with a blank midweek do. "I'm sure next Tuesday when we have no game we'll all probably get together," chuckled Richardson. "Because we won't know what to do without each other!"