📝 Match Preview: Wigan Athletic (H)

All you need to know ahead of Saturday

4 November 2023

Exeter City's attentions turn to the Emirates FA Cup on Saturday against former winners Wigan Athletic at SJP.

After the Grecians' fantastic Carabao Cup run came to an end against Championship side Middlesbrough on Tuesday night, the Grecians have the chance to start another Cup run against another League One side.

City will be looking to take Saturday's point, and Tuesday night's strong performance against Boro into the match as they look to progress in the Cup.

The tie is the second meeting between City and the Latics in two weeks. City will be looking for a better result than the league tie which went the way of Wigan.

The opposition come into the match on the back of Tuesday night's 3-2 defeat to Charlton Athletic, where they almost came back from three goals down to snatch a point.

Tickets have been reduced for the match, with advance discounts also available so book early for the best spot and best price!

Kevin Nicholson's thoughts

Assistant manager Kevin Nicholson was on press duty this week to discuss City's preparation for the Emirates FA Cup first round tie with Wigan Athletic at St James Park.

Match Tickets

Ticket prices have been reduced for the match with the following prices:

Thatchers Cider Big Bank

Adults: £15 advance/£17 on the day
Seniors: £12 advance/£14 on the day
18-23s: £12 advance/£14 on the day
Under-18s: £8 advance/£10 on the day
Wheelchair areas: £12 advance/£14 on the day

Optimising IT Adam Stansfield/Nevada Construction Main Stand

Adults: £20 advance/£21 on the day
Seniors: £17 advance/£18 on the day
18-23s: £17 advance/£18 on the day
Under-18s: £13 advance/£14 on the day
Wheelchair areas: £17 advance/£18 on the day

How to Buy

Tickets are available via your online ticketing account or in the club shop.

The Kit

City will be in their traditional home kit for this match.

How to follow

Due to competition rules there are no live stream or audio passes available for the match. Users with monthly and seasonal subscriptions will have access to the live audio commentary.

We will also be proving live coverage on our Twitter and Facebook pages and will have reaction from Gary Caldwell and a player after the match!

Exeter City on social media

Key Timings

Check out the key timings for Saturday's match. The players start to arrive from 12:30pm so come along and grab a selfie or autograph!

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Matchday Family Fun

Going to the football with your family is the perfect way to make memories you treasure, and at St James Park there is plenty on offer pre-match to keep the whole family entertained, and ensure a special day out.

For full details of all the activities happening at SJP on Saturday, click here.

Centre Spot Bar

The Centre Spot Bar will be open from 11am and will be showing the early and late kick-offs.

After the match, we will be showing Newcastle United vs Arsenal with draft pints of Tribute, Carlsberg and Thatchers are on offer for just £3.75 a pint.

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The Centre Spot is also home to The Famous Exeter City Real Ale and Cider Emporium, offering a great selection of real ales and ciders.

Junior Grecians Zone

The Junior Grecians Zone is open from 12:30pm to members and 1:30pm to everyone, with plenty of activities for all our young Grecian supporters.

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Club Shop

The club shop is open all day on matchdays and is stocked with all three of City's kits for the 23/24 season as well as a range of training gear and pocket money items.

Don't forget, Supporters' Trust members, Junior Grecians and season ticket holders save 10% on full prices purchases!

Jungle Path Kiosk

The kiosk on the Jungle Path will be selling pints of Thatchers Big Apple, cans of Thatchers Gold and bottle of Carlsberg, as well as all the usual half time snacks including pies, pasties and beverages.

Food and Drink

One of the most important part of any match day! We have a wide range of hot and cold drinks and snacks available at the kiosk for away fans. CONTACTLESS CARD PAYMENT NOW AVAILABLE!

In the Fan Zone, the bar and Kenniford Farm's van will also be open for refreshments and hot food.

Kiosk Menu

Kenniford Farm will also be in the Fan Zone with their wide range of local produce including hog roast rolls and chips.

Match Day Programme

The matchday programme the Grecian has a new look for this season, with designers Curtis Sports giving it a refresh!

Saturday's issue is a sixteen page special, priced at just £1!

Previous Encounter

Exeter City 0 Wigan Athletic 2 (21 October, 2023) | EFL Sky Bet League One

Exeter City were punished for missed chances, as they were beaten 2-0 by Wigan Athletic at St James Park.

Report an incident

We pride ourselves on the atmosphere we create on a match day, the passionate support from our fans is appreciated by everyone, particularly the players. We consistently win awards for our family engagement and supporter experience. Help us to keep it that way and please ensure that passion for your club does not develop into unwelcome behaviour.

Thank you for helping us to make sure everyone has an amazing matchday experience.

You can read all of the ground regulations here.

If you want to report and incident:

Please either contact your nearest steward, or text 'help ecfc' to 62277.

Match Reports

📝 Match Report: City 0 Wigan Athletic 2

4 November 2023

It was Groundhog Day for Exeter City as once again they were beaten 2-0 by Wigan Athletic, despite plenty of chances in the FA Cup First Round.

City created some great chances throughout the game but were punished as they were unable to capitalise on effort after effort. Thelo Aasgaard poked in a rebound to put Wigan ahead before Steven Sessegnon sealed the tie in the closing five minutes with a curled effort.

Manager Gary Caldwell, who was watching the game from the gantry following an accumulation of yellow cards, named four changes from Tuesday’s game. Pierce Sweeney, Vincent Harper, Jack Aitchison and Yanic Wildschut came into the starting XI to replace Admiral Muskwe and Kyle Taylor who are on the bench. Jack Fitzwater and Demetri Mitchell missed the game due to injury.

City’s defence, who were set up in a four, didn’t have a lot to do in the opening ten minutes as City dominated possession in Wigan’s half of the pitch. The Grecians had the best of the chances, playing short passes on the edge of the box and delivering lofted balls into the box to be headed wide of the target. Wildschut was causing the Wigan right-back problems with his pace and strength, getting in behind on multiple occasions, just lacking the final ball.

As the clock ticked over the 25th minute, Wigan were enjoying some sustained possession of the ball. The Latics’ Scott Smith released a venomous strike from the edge of the box, forcing an impressive save from Vil Sinisalo. Down the other end, the Wigan goalkeeper pulled off, arguably, an ever better save to deny Zak Jules whose header had the trajectory to nestle into the bottom corner.

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A City corner nearly ended in disaster. Sweeney played the ball short to Ryan Trevitt, who turned and passed. The ball found its way to Harry Kite, City’s furthest man back, who took a shot from distance: this shot was blocked by a Wigan man and the rebound sent Martial Godo on a threatening counterattack. Kite, who took the initial shot, tracked back and put in an excellent sliding challenge to steal the ball from Godo and end the attack. The referee, who had been lenient throughout the first-half, deemed this a booking-worthy offence and so Kite picked up a yellow.

The teams went into the break level as City failed to convert any of their 12 first-half shots. In what was threatening to be a re-run of their meeting a fortnight ago, City would have to be more clinical in the second-half if they were to avoid a replay in two weeks’ time.

City came out in the second-half looking most likely to score. Aitchison shimmied past three players on the left-side of the pitch, running at the Wigan box but failing to get a shot off. City’s best chance of the initial flurry came as James Scott hit the ball on the half-turn from close range and sent the ball over the bar and into the Big Bank. City continued to dominate the chances and if either team were going to score it looked to be the Grecians: they just needed a moment of inspiration.

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Whilst they needed a moment of inspiration, City got the opposite. Against the run of play, Wigan found a good opportunity to shoot, and did so. Sinisalo made a fantastic save to deny Jordan Jones but Aasgaard was the first to the ball and poked in to put the visitors ahead. City would need to turn this around if they wanted to continue in this competition.

In a bid to spark a change from the gantry, Caldwell brought on Muskwe to replace Zac Jules in a positive change. Wigan’s goal took the wind out of City’s sails and whilst they remained to put the pressure on, their chances had less energy and looked less threatening. The Wigan defence remained strong as they locked down, keeping at least two players between the ball and the goal at all points.

In the closing five minutes, Wigan put the nail in Exeter City’s FA Cup coffin and matched the scoreline from their last trip to Devon. Sessegnon picked up the ball on the edge of the box and curled a wonderful effort into the top-right corner, beating Sinisalo and sending the Latics through to the second round. Much like the league fixture a fortnight ago, a late goal proved a sucker punch with the Grecians punished for not being clinical enough in the final third.

Exeter City: Sinisalo, Jules (Muskwe 65’), Aimson (C), Hartridge, Trevitt, Scott (Taylor 75’), Wildschut, Kite (Richards 89’), Sweeney (Diabate 75), Aitchison, Harper.

Unused subs: MacDonald, O’Connor, Cunningham.

Wigan: Tickle, Smith, Sessegnon, Morrison, Jones, Humphrys, Hughes, Godo, Clare, Adeeko, Aasgaard.

Subs: Amos, Lang, Magennis, McManaman, Pearce, Rekik, Shaw, Smith, Stones.

Referee: Craig Hicks.

Attendance: 3,512 (136 away).

Ticket News

🎟️ Tickets and Hospitality: Wigan Athletic FA Cup (H)

Join us for some magic of the FA Cup

1 November 2023

Exeter City's Emirates FA Cup first round clash with Wigan Athletic will take place on Saturday, November 4 in a 3pm kick-off at St James Park.

Ticket prices have been reduced for the match with the following prices:

Thatchers Cider Big Bank

Adults: £15 advance/£17 on the day
Seniors: £12 advance/£14 on the day
18-23s: £12 advance/£14 on the day
Under-18s: £8 advance/£10 on the day
Wheelchair areas: £12 advance/£14 on the day

Optimising IT Adam Stansfield/Nevada Construction Main Stand

Adults: £20 advance/£21 on the day
Seniors: £17 advance/£18 on the day
18-23s: £17 advance/£18 on the day
Under-18s: £13 advance/£14 on the day
Wheelchair areas: £17 advance/£18 on the day

How to Buy

Tickets are available via your online ticketing account or in the club shop.

Hospitality

Why not upgrade your City experience with matchday Hospitality!

The ECFC Supporters Trust Suite

Access the lounge up to 3 hours prior to kick-off
Reserved seat in the main stand
Freshly prepared two-course meal
Half-time tea and coffee
Complimentary matchday programme and teamsheet
Dedicated lounge host
Pre-match player interview
MOTM interview
MOTM presentation
Large screens showing Sky Sports and BT Sport
Premium cash bar with table service

How to Buy

Hospitality is available for just £45 per-person.

For further information or to join the waiting list, please call our commercial team on 01392 411 243 Option 5, email commercial@ecfc.co.uk, or online via newtickets.ecfc.co.uk.

Exeter City FC

Standings

📝 Match Preview: Wigan Athletic (H)

Kevin Nicholson's thoughts

Match Tickets

How to Buy

The Kit

How to follow

Exeter City on social media

Key Timings

Matchday Family Fun

Previous Encounter

Report an incident

📝 Match Report: City 0 Wigan Athletic 2

🎟️ Tickets and Hospitality: Wigan Athletic FA Cup (H)

How to Buy

Hospitality