Wigan Athletic secured a thrilling 3-2 win over Aston Villa Under-21s in their opening group game in the Vertu Trophy. The Latics took a 2-0 lead at the break, thanks to goals from K'Marni Miller and Adam Moseley. However, Aston Villa Under-21s mounted a comeback in the second half, levelling the scores with two goals in quick succession. Wigan Athletic responded with a brilliant goal from Dara Costelloe, securing their first win of the campaign. Gary Caldwell praised his team's reaction to the visitors' late equaliser, saying, 'It's really important to win, although we made really hard work of it in that second half.' The Latics' manager acknowledged that his team were excellent in the first half, but struggled to maintain their shape in the second half. He added, 'I thought our shape was very good, and we looked very dangerous on the counter attack.' Wigan Athletic currently sit 18th in League One, with 0 points from 1 game, and a goal difference of -1. They are 3 points behind leaders Huddersfield in the title race.