England manager Steve McClaren missed a masterful performance from Emile Heskey as Wigan won 4-0 at home to Manchester City on Saturday. The Latics put their early season misery behind them at the expense of hapless City, whose fans turned on them at the end.
McClaren had been due to visit the JJB Stadium as part of the whistlestop Premiership tour he booked instead of his cancelled factfinding visit to Seattle this weekend.
Wigan got a call to say McClaren had cancelled his trip about an hour before kick-off.
It was a double disappointment for the Latics. Not only were they constantly snubbed by McClaren's predecessor Sven-Goran Eriksson, for whom owner Dave Whelan never made any secret of his dislike, but they also have a trio of realistic contenders for next month's friendly with Holland in Amsterdam.
Undoubtedly, one of them is Heskey.
The merits of the former Liverpool star have been debated long and hard. His mighty physique alone makes him a player of international potential but rarely in a 43-cap career which ground to a halt in 2004 did Heskey ever reach the standard a succession of managers believe he is capable of.
Latics boss Paul Jewell is the latest to try his luck and he has now been rewarded with three goals from his £5.5million record signing, the latest of which put Wigan on the road to a clinical victory over a desperately disappointing City outfit, who have now won just once away from home since December, picked up one point from five games on their travels this season, been dumped out of the Carling Cup by Chesterfield and were condemned by their own supporters in the most forceful manner imaginable.
Only 63 seconds were on the clock when Emmerson Boyce strode down the right flank after a neat four-man move, then sent over the low cross which Heskey sent flying into the top corner with a well-struck volley that gave Nicky Weaver no chance.
There was little Weaver could do about Wigan's second, which followed after just four minutes, as City skipper Richard Dunne suffered the kind of lapse in concentration which happens all too regularly for someone of his stature.
Weaver was coming to collect under no pressure when Josip Skoko drifted a free-kick deep into the Blues area. Yet the keeper was staggered to see Dunne not only appear in front of him but land his header in an unguarded net.
Given their appalling record away from Eastlands throughout 2006, the pitiful start did not bode well for the visiting fans who had opted to make the short journey up the M61.
For a while, City at least gave them reason to hope but, with Heskey starring in defence to stop Dunne scoring at the other end, their efforts proved to be in vain.
And, once referee Phil Dowd had ruled Leighton Baies had not deliberately handled Paul Dickov's cross inside his own area after an hour, the catastrophe continued.
Baines is another who, even more than Heskey, has reason to look forward to McClaren's next squad selection.
The full-back's forceful burst into the box went unchallenged, allowing him to square Kevin Kilbane's pass to the edge of the six-yard area.
Stephen Jordan fatally hesitated as he lined up his clearance and eventually succeeded only in blasting against Henri Camara, who had closed him down and was rewarded with his second of the campaign.
Within two minutes, Wigan had another, Heskey teeing up Antonio Valencia, who fired clinically into the corner.
Even with 11 senior players injured and 18-year-old Michael Johnson making his debut, sympathy for the Blues was in short supply from their long-suffering fans.
Cries of 'You're not fit to wear the shirt' rang out loud and clear. In some cases, in particular Bernardo Corradi and £6million Georgios Samaras, whose woeful efforts contrasted sharply with those of Heskey and Camara, the observation was astutely accurate.
With the exception of Dunne, Johnson and Joey Barton, the fight wilted away from the visiting ranks and it was only because Wigan took their foot off the gas the final margin of victory was not even greater.
For Pearce, alone in his technical area except for so-called lucky mascot Beenie the Horse, it was a very sobering experience and one which must once more raise genuine question marks over his long-term job prospects.
