Midfielder Jack Byrne will face his former club tomorrow afternoon as Oldham Athletic travel to the DW Stadium to take on high-flying Wigan Athletic.
Byrne spent 12 months with Wigan but found his opportunities limited due to a change of management shortly after his arrival. He knows tomorrow’s game will be tough but he’s looking forward to the encounter.
He said: “I was there for a year so I know how good their squad is and how good their players are but our starting 11 on its day can beat anybody.
“They have got a lot of strength in depth in their squad and that is probably why they are up there because they can change and freshen it up.
“I’m just enjoying my football and hopefully we get the win for Oldham, not for me. I’m looking forward to the game and hopefully we get the three points.
“I know some of their lads and they are good lads. I did enjoy my time there, I didn’t play as much as I wanted to but the manager got sacked who brought me in and it was difficult circumstances so it’s good to go back and hopefully we can play.”
Athletic sit just outside the relegation places but Byrne is confident the club can stay in the division.
“I think everyone is quite relaxed,” he commented. “We want to try and get to that 50 point mark as soon as possible.
“You could do that in a week but everyone is relaxed because we know the quality we have in the squad.
“Most of the games are very winnable that we are playing and we are looking forward to it. It’s in our hands but I can’t see us getting dragged into it that much.
“Considering the position we were in when I first came in, we hadn’t won in six or seven games, if you said to us now that we have to get in and around 12 points from the last 10 games then we would bite your hands off so everyone believes we are more than capable to get the points we need.”
With confident seemingly high in the camp, according to Byrne, he is encouraging all supporters to buy their Season Ticket ahead of the new campaign and gave them a flavour of what to expect.
He said: “Hopefully when we get through this season then next season will be exciting for us and we need to push forward and give the likes of Wigan and Blackburn a good run for their money.
“The way Richie wants us to play is attractive on the eye so it is hopefully going to be a good season. Hopefully we can get a few wins at the start of the season and build a bit of momentum, a bit like what Shrewsbury did this season.
“Hopefully we will be in and around the play-offs and be pushing because I think that’s what we are capable of.”