Wigan aim to make it nine successive League wins without conceding a goal

Second And Third Divisions

Wigan Athletic may be sitting on a seven-point lead at the top of the Second Division but their manager Paul Jewell will send his players out to face Notts County today urging them to avoid any temptation to throttle back a little in their quest for the title.

Wigan have not lost a League match since August, putting together an unbeaten run of 18 games, the most recent eight of which have been won without conceding a goal.

Yet Jewell is aware that, with Bristol City mounting a relentless pursuit, any slip-up on the part of his team is likely to be costly. Although City and Cardiff are level on points, the Robins have moved ahead of the Bluebirds as the principal threat to Wigan's dominance of the division with an unbeaten run spanning 14 League games, climbing from ninth to second. Significantly, they won 2-0 against Cardiff at Ninian Park last month.

Taking cup matches into account, they have not lost in 19 outings, their progress in the FA Cup having earned them a third-round trip to Leicester City on Saturday.

The City manager Danny Wilson is hitting his players with the same message as Jewell, imploring them to guard against complacency. They travel to struggling Wycombe Wanderers today but Wilson warns it could be as tough a fixture as any.

"The position we're in now means we are there to be shot at, not because we are Bristol City but because of our placing in the table," Wilson said. "Teams know they have to lift themselves to beat the top sides and I would expect Wycombe to do just that.

If Bristol City's record is impressive, then Luton Town's progress should not go unnoted. Joe Kinnear's side began disastrously after winning promotion from the Thitd Division last season, losing their opening four matches.

But, from 23rd on 17 September, the Hatters have soared to sixth place entering the new year, losing only twice in 15 matches. Kinnear takes his team to Chesterfield today with the play-offs in his sights.

"Our aim is to stay in the top six now," he said. "I wanted to get 43 points from the second half of the season for a total of 77 and we've got the first three against Wycombe.

"That should be enough for the play-offs, which would not be bad considering we started the season with four losses."

Having beaten Cardiff 2-0 at Kenilworth Road and been deprived of victory at Bristol City only by a last-gasp equaliser, Kinnear is confident of winning any play-off duel. "Wigan are grinding out results and Bristol City are going well so we could find ourselves playing Cardiff in front of a full house in their own backyard," he said. "But I would be happy with that."

In the Third Division, Hartlepool should stay firmly in place at the top by beating next-to-bottom Carlisle at home. However, the section's match of the day is probably the Lincolnshire derby, in which Lincoln City attempt to avenge August's 2-0 away defeat against the League newcomers Boston United, with a crowd of more than 6,000 expected at Sincil Bank.