Wigan Athletic reached the final of the FA Cup for the first time in their history thanks to a 2-0 victory over Millwall at Wembley this evening.
Shaun Maloney opened the scoring in the first half for the Premier League side, while winger Callum McManaman made sure of the outcome in the closing stages.
Sports Mole has looked back over the clash to determine if the result was a fair one.
Match statistics:
Millwall:
Shots 6
On target 0
Possession 44%
Corners 7
Fouls 15
Wigan:
Shots 11
On target 7
Possession 56%
Corners 10
Fouls 4
Was the result fair?
Today's encounter pitted a Premier League side against a Championship team and that is exactly how it looked. Wigan were better with and without the ball and deservedly head through to the final.
Millwall's performance
What will disappoint those connected with Millwall was an apparent lack of fight for at least an hour. That's not accusing the players of not caring, but they just didn't seem too bothered about closing Wigan down and as a result the Premier League side kept the ball with ease. The second half was a little better, but they still failed to work Ali Al-Habsi in the Wigan net. A number of their supporters also let themselves down massively by fighting among themselves and with the police.
Wigan's performance
It was all too easy for Wigan today and at times it showed in their performance. Despite dominating the first half, they were only able to score one goal. Perhaps they then took their foot of the gas as Millwall rallied, but in the end they regained control to seal their passage through.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Callum McManaman: The young winger may have been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons recently, but he reminded everyone today what great potential he has. Time and again he caused problems to the Millwall defence and was eventually rewarded with a goal. Some players may have shot earlier, but the 21-year-old showed great composure to round David Forde before rolling the ball into an empty net.
Biggest gaffe
In all honesty, there were very few errors from either side. So, perhaps harshly, the award will have to go to Millwall's Jack Smith for his role in the first goal. The midfielder failed to track the run of Maloney, who buried the ball in the net from inside the area. It was good movement from the Wigan attacker, but Smith will be disappointed with the part that he played well.
Referee performance
Michael Oliver became the youngest referee to take charge of an FA Cup semi-final, but he didn't let that hamper his concentration. The official was astute throughout and kept on top of any late challenges.
What next?
Millwall: It's a quick turnaround for the Lions, who play host to Watford on Tuesday night.
Wigan: Attentions turn back to Premier League survival on Wednesday evening when Wigan travel to Manchester City.
Liam Apicella
