Tommy Rocks Wigan

I'm not sure if passing my ticket up to enable someone else to experience the Grove on matchday was my best decision of the weekend. I was fortunate enough to meet yet another Gooner in the local as I took up my position in front of the big screen, and less than two hours later I was thinking I had missed something quite astonishing.

From my viewpoint I have to accept that Wigan came to play in a way that others have certainly not. I both winced and grinned (I know, but trust me!) when Landzaat produced a fabulous finish to put the Gunners on the back foot. Henry wasted two golden oportunities to give Arsenal a half-time advantage, but you could not help but feel that Wigan had earned their moment in the sunshine. Surely the hosts would brush them aside in the second half?

Impressed as I was in the opening forty-five minutes with both sides, Phil Dowd was driving me (and thousands of others!) nuts with his refereeing. Kolo Toure found himself in the book for his only foul of the contest, and from the moment Wigan scored the only criticism you could level at them was their blatant time-wasting, led by keeper Kirkland. Let's get one thing straight, you cannot blame them for their professional approach, it's down to the official to put a stop to it and he didn't. It would come back to bite him on the backside!

The turning point came, after yet more blatant time-wasting, principally from the aforementioned Kirkland, when Heskey made rather too much of a Flamini challenge towards the end and in so doing denied his team the chance of a clinching penalty. What followed was pure theatre.

Ten minutes from the end Flamini avoided an offside flag and his fierce cross found its way into the net via Wigan's Fitz Hall. Grace was cast to one side as Henry offered Kirkland the ball to hold on to, along with a few words which were clearly not offered in a conciliatory tone.

Minutes later Adebayor and Baptista linked up to provide Rosicky a rare header for his first Premiership goal. This was fabulous football to snatch a late victory against a surprisingly dogged opponent. Cue more hilarious time-wasting from Lehmann, and a yellow card from the hapless official who had condoned such behaviour for an hour or so.

Let's get this right, Lehmann deserved his punishment, and he will not be afforded the opportunity to take part in the Carling Cup Final as a result. Just as well he wouldn't have played anyway! How on earth did he get treated so after Wigan had, understandably, made an art of the using up of minutes in the preceeding hour?

I have to confess that, although the right side won, we did for once enjoy a degree of fortune that is not normally afforded to us. Wigan showed enough to suggest that if there is an almighty then neither West Ham nor Charlton will be able to catch them before the season's end (sorry Watford, you are already what is technically referred to as buggered!).

Also a huge vote of thanks to Jens, who certainly saved the day when touching Heskey's first-half sidefoot on to the post when disaster loomed large. That was a wonderful moment in a surprisingly absorbing contest.

So Arsenal are now a mere point behind this weekends 'bargain sale' purchase, Liverpool, with a game in hand, and a superior goal difference. Attention now turns to the cup competitions, and our old mates at Bolton. Fingers crossed, fellow 'holics.