Had the ex-Wigan manager returned to the DW Stadium with ex-Wigan midfielder Lee Cattermole in tow, we could have been looking at an entirely different story.

And had Kenwyne Jones not missed the match through suspension, Sunderland would have had a greater physical presence in both boxes and a more suitable target for the multitude of long balls lone striker Darren Bent so manfully tried to get on the end of.

The absence of either fatally undermined Sunderland's hopes of success.

But it was in midfield where Sunderland were really found wanting in the type of match where Cattermole's ball-winning, attack-destroying qualities were so sorely needed.

Sunderland's list of awful away defeats this season might not exactly qualify as a roll of shame, but certainly it's the black mark on the Black Cats' season so far – Burnley, Birmingham, Stoke, now Wigan.
And not just the defeats but the manner of them.

You can't help but feel that these are the games Cattermole would have excelled in; the gritty, unglamorous games against the lesser lights; games played out on hostile fields where snap and snarl are more important than finesse and flair.

Sunderland had more than enough of the latter in the shape of Steed Malbranque, Jordan Henderson, Andy Reid and Kieran Richardson.

But, with a wound-up Wigan matching Sunderland's five-man midfield, none of the Black Cats' quartet could get to grips with the game and, at times, defensive midfielder Lorik Cana was in danger of being overwhelmed as his team-mates treated the ball like a hot potato.

The signs were not good from the start, despite more than 5,000 travelling Sunderland fans offering noisy backing.

Richardson lofted a hopeful shot high and wide from the first attack, but Wigan's greater focus soon began to tell, Charles N'Zogbia whistling a right-wing cross through the six-yard box which the unmarked Hugo Rodallega turned into the side netting at the far post.

A better chance was carved out in the seventh minute when Rodallaga and Jason Scotland combined to set up Paul Scharner – the Austrian midfielder's fine shot from 20 yards directly in front of goal providing a real test for Marton Fulop, who dropped to his left and held the low shot with both hands.

Sunderland remained slipshod, gifting possession under pressure and, as Wigan's high-tempo game paid dividends, the home side visibly grew in confidence.

Wigan had made only one change from the side humiliated 9-1 at White Hart Lane the previous week, with Maynor Figueroa replacing hapless Erik Edman at left-back.

But so hard did Wigan work and so out-of-sorts were Sunderland that keeper Chris Kirkland went untested before the break.

Sunderland, too, made a solitary change, with Michael Turner returning from suspension to replace John Mensah, and the central defender had his hands full as Wigan made full use of widemen Rodallega and N'Zogbia.

A brilliant covering tackle from Cana in the 18th minute ended one dangerous Wigan approach as it reached the Sunderland area and in the next minute the Wearsiders almost created a goal out of nothing to turn the game on its head.

A chipped ball from Malbranque to Bent saw the striker turn on the edge of the area to face goal, but Emmerson Boyce produced a challenge to rob the striker as he shaped to shoot from 15 yards.

That did not settle Sunderland, though. The jitteriness remained.

And it almost cost them just before the half-hour when Scotland took advantage of lacklustre defending at the end of a flowing move to crash a shot against Fulop's left-hand post despite the attentions of a surging Cana.

Turner was booked in the 29th minute for being too forceful in tackling Scharner from behind and this time Rodallega's free-kick from the left almost forced an own goal – Turner's header about to sneak inside Fulop's right-hand post before the Hungarian stretched every sinew to fingertip it around the post.

Sunderland remained under pressure up to the break and manager Steve Bruce would have been a relieved man to get his players in with the scoreline still goalless.

He had a few frank words with them during the interval and sent them with out with rearranged personnel and line-up – the ineffective Malbranque replaced by Fraizer Campbell alongside Darren Bent as Sunderland switched to 4-4-2, hoping to provide more of a test for
Wigan's defence.

Sunderland improved. They could hardly get any worse.

And chinks started to appear in Wigan's armour – Reid's shot from range was deflected just over Kirkland's bar.

From the corner, the ball reached Phil Bardsley and his long-range shot from the right was similarly deflected over.

The Black Cats' best chance to take the lead came in the 54th minute when a slick passing move down the left saw Reid flight a delightful ball over to the far post. Bent won it on the edge of the six-yard box but headed across the face of goal.

It was the spluttering effort of a misfiring side; a rare flash of class but it was not to last.

"We were slightly better in the second half with the change in formation," sniffed Bruce.

"Slightly better, but that was all.

"Overall though, we didn't do anywhere near enough."

Wigan came close to getting a breakthrough just after the hour when
they moved the ball upfield quickly and substitute Jordi Gomez's shot from the edge of the area was blocked out for a corner, which Figueroa headed straight at Fulop.

Sunderland were visibly trying to gain composure and a couple of times balls into the Wigan box caused consternation – Campbell, in particular, having a great opening only to slip as he looked to pull the trigger – but the moment that mattered came a quarter-of-an-hour from time when Sunderland finally paid the price for their below-par performance.

Just a few minutes earlier, Rodallega – labelled one of Bruce's "dodgy signings" at Wigan by chairman Dave Whelan in the build-up – had brought an excellent save out of Fulop, wriggling clear of Turner and driving in a low shot from right of goal.

The Colombian followed that up with a shot wide from range as the game really began to open up.

But he finally got his reward for perseverance when Scharner was allowed time to loft a ball over the top from the centre circle, Rodallega bouncing Da Silva off the ball on the left-hand edge of the area before zeroing in on goal and sliding a low shot past the advancing Fulop from a narrow angle.

"Not so dodgy there," reflected Bruce.

Sunderland looked short of ideas in the minutes that followed, Reid and Bent earning needless bookings, but they revived when Bolo Zenden and David Healy were brought on in the 84th minute and they went on all-out attack.

Cana headed just over the bar, Henderson had a shot blocked and Zenden had an effort deflected inches wide, but Sunderland still finished the game without testing the Wigan goalkeeper once.

That stat completed a miserable afternoon for Bruce, who has now lost in humbling fashion to both his former Premier League clubs, Birmingham and Wigan.

When the FA Cup draw was made yesterday, the Sunderland manager would probably have preferred Chelsea, Liverpool or Arsenal, rather than any of Huddersfield Town, Sheffield United or Crystal Palace.

The only crumb of comfort that could be had for the travelling fans was in the performance of Sunderland target Maynor Figueroa, who the club are hoping to attract in the January transfer window.

He misses a game and his side concede nine; he returns after a spell out with injury and Wigan keep their first clean sheet in eight games.

Sign him up!