DAVID Whelan, who suffered a broken leg in Blackburn Rovers' last FA Cup final appearance, will make a nostalgic return to Ewood Park on Saturday, January 3 - as chairman of Wigan Athletic.
The former Rovers full back has done a Jack Walker, albeit on a smaller scale, at Springfield Park and Wigan were delighted with last night's FA Cup third round draw which paired them with Premiership opposition just down the road.
Whelan is no stranger to the modern Ewood, often hosting re-unions for his old team-mates in an executive box sponsored by his company JJB.
But the FA Cup clash - the first - between the two clubs will be a special occasion.
Winger David Lee, who scored Wigan's second round winner against Yortk City will also be anticipating a great day out. For the former Bolton star has been a lifelong Rovers fan.
The two clubs have never met in League football and, while there have been friendlies and pre-season games between them, the only previous competitive clashes came in the Football League Cup of 1986-87.
Rovers won the away leg 3-1 at Springfield Park and completed their safe passage to the next round with a 2-0 success at Ewood.
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