Mark Crossley (pictured), John Sheridan's man of the match at Southend, was delighted with his contribution to the win and he told Latics World, "I made two or three saves at crucial times, but that's what I get paid for. I said you'd not seen the best of me, and I felt that was coming. I think today proved I'm still capable at this level, not just to everyone else but to myself as well. I was pleased with my performance, but as I've already said that's what I'm there for."Crossley was the man of the match
Mark Crossley (pictured), John Sheridan's man of the match at Southend, was delighted with his contribution to the win and he told Latics World, "I made two or three saves at crucial times, but that's what I get paid for. I said you'd not seen the best of me, and I felt that was coming. I think today proved I'm still capable at this level, not just to everyone else but to myself as well. I was pleased with my performance, but as I've already said that's what I'm there for.""When their lad got sent off I did a little rally round and told the lads not to think the game was over with them at ten men. We were away from home, and I told them to regroup, keep their shape and do the dirty things in football, like getting the ball in the corners and kicking the ball out of play. We did that and got a fantastic three points. We've got another big game coming up on Wednesday, so now I'll just forget about today."
Mark Allott, the player who returned to Boundary Park after some time at Chesterfield, was happy to take on the role as team skipper, a role that needed to be filled as captain Neal Eardley was serving a one-match ban.
He said, "It was a very tough game but we dug deep and got what we deserved, which was three points. We moved the ball well in the first half and got stuck in in the second. The opportunities were there too, but we are just pleased to keep a clean sheet. Every player worked hard for the others, right down to JP Kalala when he came on. Lee Hughes is on fire, and he must feel like he can score from anywhere at the moment. Hopefully Craig Davies and the other players can chip in too, because that can only help the team. Confidence is high at the moment, and as long as we can keep the same attitude and keep working hard for each other, hopefully we can keep getting the right results."
"I'd definitely like to thank the fans who made the journey down, because it's a long way to come. We heard them all the way through the game and I'm pleased we gave them something to cheer about."
There was a total of 182 Latics faithful who made the long trip down to watch their heros win at Southend.