- Peter Atherton played for Wigan and Wednesday
- Atherton now coaching with Latics
- Former defender hails six-year stint
Wigan Under-18s coach and former Owls captain Peter Atherton has hailed his time at Hillsborough ahead of the cross-Pennines weekend clash.
Atherton – who kicked off his playing career with the Latics before signing for the Owls via Coventry in 1994– made a combined total of 375 appearances for the two clubs.
He is now enjoying life on the other side of the white line with the Wigan academy and said:
“I really enjoyed my time at Sheffield Wednesday.
“Going from my hometown club here to Coventry City and then to Sheffield Wednesday was a big step for me.
“Hillsborough is a massive stadium and they were flying high in the Premier League at the time with plenty of international players. It really was a fantastic experience.
“I’ve got very fond memories and the club certainly has a special place in my heart along with Wigan of course.”
Atherton represented the Owls for six seasons and says his time spent playing alongside a raft of household names helped shape his current career path.
He explained: “Playing with the likes of Chris Waddle, Chris Woods and John Sheridan was a great way to develop my game, they were top players.
“There was a broad spectrum of top players across the six years I was there, names like Wim Jonk, Paolo Di Canio, Benito Carbone.
“Blending those types of players with the British-based players certainly helped everyone learn new things about playing football.
“I was captain at the time, so as managers changed and brought in new players I had to learn all about the new characters coming in, but that was part of my developing as a player.
“It’s helped me in my current role because I’ve seen the different cultures involved in football.”