Goals either side of half time have helped Wigan Athletic claim a narrow victory over fellow promotion chasers Brighton & Hove Albion in the Championship.
The hosts started the afternoon in lively fashion, testing Ali Al-Habsi early on through Leonardo Ulloa following good build-up play from David Lopez.
Brighton dominated possession for much of the first period, but fell behind against the run of play in the 21st minute. James McArthur latched onto a poor clearance and tucked the ball past Tomasz Kuszczak in the Seagulls' goal.
The home side almost responded immediately when Dale Stephens unleashed a screamer that had Al-Habsi well beaten, but his strike rebounded back into play off the underside of the crossbar.
It could have been 2-0 at the interval, but Martyn Waghorn could only curl his effort wide following a Wigan counter-attack, leaving everything to play for in the second period.
The Latics doubled their advantage early in the second period through Chris McCann, who rose highest in the area to meet a Waghorn corner and head home.
Brighton pulled a goal back in the 78th minute through Ulloa, who was on hand to guide the ball home after Matthew Upson nodded on Andrea Orlandi's corner, but 12 minutes plus stoppage time were not enough for them to find an equaliser.
Mark Langshaw
