A SLIGHTLY embarrassed Alan Mahon thanked Ipswich Town supporters for the reception they gave him even though he showed his gratitude by helping Wigan whack the Blues.

A SLIGHTLY embarrassed Alan Mahon thanked Ipswich Town supporters for the reception they gave him even though he showed his gratitude by helping Wigan whack the Blues, writes Derek Davis.

He said: "I was very happy with the way the Ipswich fans greeted me. It could have been difficult but they seemed to understand the situation."

And even though his new club dominated the Blues, with whom he enjoyed a 12-game stint earlier in the season, Mahon believes Ipswich are still capable of mounting a promotion challenge.

He added: "Ipswich are a very good team. They are a big club and I have no doubt they will be there or thereabouts, but I'm a Wigan player now and although I hope Ipswich go up it is only as long as they finish behind us."

The Irishman only completed his move to the JJB Stadium on Friday morning before travelling down with his new team-mates in the evening.

He said: "I didn't even know some of the lads' names out there on the pitch. It was not the best of debuts but I'm very happy with the result. I had a couple of chances at the start which I should have done better with and really we could have scored more."

Mahon put the disappointment of not making the move to Ipswich behind him and is already looking forward to making a genuine impression.

"It is a great move as it is just up the road from where I live and I feel I'm going to be part of a promotion push. This was a big result for us – we have moved up to third in the table."

Wigan boss Paul Jewell was delighted with Mahon's contribution – and to have snatched him away from Ipswich's grasp.

He said: "Alan has a lot of qualities. You saw that in his little cameos. He has good technique, good vision and I know he was highly thought of at Ipswich."

And Jewell hinted that Mahon would not be his last signing this season. He said: "The players were fantastic against Ipswich but we are always looking to improve and I would still like to bring in two or three more players."

Although Wigan dominated for the most part, Jewell was not letting his players rest easy and said: "Ipswich changed their shape and came at us but never really caused us any problems.

"We should have had even more goals. But that would be my only criticism of the team.

"I was a bit worried they might come into it at some point but really we should have been a couple of goals to the good even before we scored. That was as good an away first-half performance as you will see.

"To come to a place like Ipswich and get three points is great, especially in the manner we did."

The only blot for Wigan was the sending off for a second booking for Leighton Baines, who tangled with Tommy Miller after earlier being cautioned for diving.

Jewell said: "It was a harsh decision as I felt the two lads had just collided."

Wigan still have four of the top six sides to play and can take points off Norwich, Sheffield United, West Brom and West Ham.

derek.davis@eadt.co.uk