Shrewsbury 1 Wigan 5 - Report and pictures

Three goals in nine second-half minutes turned the game in the dominant Latics' favour.

Yanic Wildschut (58), Jason Pearce (61) and Will Grigg's 66th-minute penalty extended Wigan's unbeaten run to 19 league games.

Grigg made it 5-1 in the third minute of time added on to inflict Town's 11th home League defeat of the season.

Remarkably, Sullay Kaikai's sixth goal in as many games and 11th in 20 matches had given Town a 29th-minute lead.

That was only for superb on-loan Everton midfielder Conor McAleny to cancel that out within four minutes.

To compound Shrewsbury's misery, Junior Brown limped off with what looked like a hamstring injury after 51 minutes.

And Zak Whitbread was sent off on his recall from injury for bringing down Grigg for the penalty.

That left boss Micky Mellon with his two most experienced centre backs suspended for next week's trip to Millwall, as Nathaniel Knight-Percival started a three-match ban today.

Shrewsbury Town (4-2-3-1): Halstead 6; Grimmer 6, Grandison 5, Whitbread 5, Brown 6 , (Sadler 51, 5); Black 5, Wellens 6 (Smith 67, 6); Whalley 6, OGOGO 7, Kaikai 6 (Cole 82); Vassell 5.

Subs not used: Mangan, Clark, Akpa Akpro, Leutwiler (gk).

Wigan (4-3-3): Jaaskelainen; Wabara (Barnett 50), Pearce, Daniels, Warnock; Morsy, Power, Perkins; McAleny (McCann 70), Grigg, Wildschut (Jacobs 75).

Subs not used: Davies, Colclough, Vuckic, Nicholls (gk).

Referee: Nicholas Kinseley (Essex).

Town made two changes to the side that drew 1-1 to Port Vale, with a switch of formation to 4-2-3-1, the first time Mellon has started with that system this season.

Fit-again Whitbread, who had missed the previous four games with a hamstring injury, and Ian Black replaced Knight-Percival and Andy Mangan.

Captain Knight-Percival was suspended after his sending off against Vale, while Mangan dropped to the bench.

Player of the Season contender Abu Ogogo took the Town armband for the first time from the start in place of Knight-Percival.

Wigan started the better side and McAleny had the first sniff at goal in the sixth minute, but screwed it well wide from 20 yards after Dave Perkins touched a free kick square.

The first serious chance arrived on 12, when £1m former Walsall striker Grigg worked it inside from the right for right back Reece Wabara, but he mis-hit his shot straight at goalkeeper Mark Halstead.

McAleny was in the thick of things and was again the man on set-pieces, this time from a free kick on the right hand corner of the box only for his curling shot to fly a yard over.

Yanic Wildschut threatened on the break when he beat Richie Wellens then got the better of Jermaine Grandison before pulling it back for Sam Morsy, who rolled it well wide.

Nothing had been seen of the Town attack until the 24th minute.

A superb cross from Shaun Whalley saw Kyle Vassell poised to nod home only for Donervon Daniels to make a vital headed clearance at the near post.

Town made the breakthrough with their first attack - and a needlessly conceded corner when veteran keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen failed to keep in a backpass before he cleared.

That man Kaikai needed no second invitation to stab home from close range, after Daniels sliced horribly from Whalley's corner and Jaaskelainen couldn't hold it.

It was Kaikai's sixth goal in six games and his 11th in 20 games for Town - and a rare non goal of the season contender.

The goal has brought the previously quiet Kaikai to life and he threatened to go inside then veered outside before firing just wide with a left-foot drive on the half hour.

Lifted by scoring from their first attack, Town threatened again when Black's chip put in Vassell, but he delayed his shot and was crowded out.

But just as Salop were starting to get on top territorially, Wigan restored parity with a deserved equaliser.

On-loan Everton midfielder McAleny, who had been the best player on the pitch, controlled a poor header from Grandison.

He cut across his own box and produced an unstoppable volley that looped over Halstead and into the roof of the net from 20 yards.

Wigan seized the initiative again and on 38 it took a vital foot from Junior Brown to block McAleny's sidefooted effort after Perkins drove at the heart of Town's defence.

Town weathered the storm however and a minute before the break, Vassell produced a sweet turn and shot on his left foot that whistled just wide from 20 yards.

Both teams made changes shortly after the break as the sunshine came out at the Meadow.

Wigan brought on one-time £3m defender Leon Barnett for Wabara five minutes into the restart which saw his former West Brom team-mate Daniels switch from centre back to left back.

Town were forced into a change on 51 when Brown was forced off after appearing to pull a muscle at the back of his knee, Mat Sadler coming on.

Wigan took the lead with the first real attack of the second-half.

McAleny cut in from the left with Town seemingly outnumbered and his low drive cannoned off the base of the far post with Halstead beaten and Wildschut buried the rebound.

Three minutes later, the Latics made it 3-1 when Pearce powered home a header from Max Power's inswinging corner after Halstead had smothered when Grigg beat the offside trap.

Five minutes later, things went from bad to worse for Town when Whitbread was sent off for bringing down Grigg as he skipped around him in the box when put clean through.

Grigg stepped up to make it 4-1, sidefooting high to Halstead's left to give the keeper no chance.

That effectively killed the game as the tempo dropped in the sunshine and Wigan had little trouble retaining control.

There was a glimpse of a second goal for Town on 87.

But sub Dom Smith's point-blank header hit Stephen Warnock on the line from Whalley's inswinging free kick, after sub Leon Barnett tripped Vassell right on the edge of the box.

On 90, Halstead superbly denied Wigan a fifth goal when he somehow got a hand to Power's point-blank shot.

But he was powerless to stop the rampant visitors as Grigg fired home to make it Wigan's nap hand in the third minute of time added on.