Fratton Park promotion party moves step closer as former Portsmouth players continue charge

And that increased the likelihood of a Latics promotion party at Fratton Park as the season reaches its climax.

Jack Whatmough and Tom Naylor both started in the 3-1 success at Sincil Bank, after their moves to the DW Stadium last summer.

And former Blues assistant, Leam Richardson, is now nearing a memorable late-season return to Fratton Park, with Wigan due at PO4 on April 26 – the penultimate game of the season.

There’s every chance he could be celebrating promotion and even a title success by that stage, but the 42-year-old isn’t getting ahead of himself.

Richardson told Wigan Today: ‘We won't be getting carried away, that's for you guys.

‘All we'll be doing is making sure our consistency and our habits stay the same for the healthy challenges that lie ahead.

‘We know what's to come, and from the moment we leave the stadium, all our attention is on the next game, and that's Burton.

‘We've still got a number of games left, from which we need to pick up a number of points.

‘One thing we've worked so hard to make sure is that we're in control of our own destiny.

‘And if we keep controlling what we're doing, and our habits stay the same, then we'll determine our future.’