Five minutes before halftime, Danny Mandroiu of the Imps tied the score. Over the course of the ninety minutes, two goals by Joe Taylor and one by Reeco Hackett were disallowed for offside in Lincoln City’s favour.
And it looked like the points would be shared until Hughes’ late first-time volley struck gold.
“The first goal, Charlie starts it and it’s an amazing piece of play,” Maloney said.
“And then from set plays or any sort of strike, he’s so clean when he hits the ball.
“They’re a really good side, and we tried to control the game.
“It’s a brilliant result against a big team.
“They’re really hard to beat, and I like their management and what he’s done. It’s an excellent club.
“Acknowledgment to the players; even though we’ve pushed them throughout the season and succeeded in our goals, winning is still what you want.”
Josh Magennis made a significant impact, Liam Morrison was outstanding when he entered the game, and Jason Kerr was excellent until he attempted to play despite a back injury. Today, like they have presumably done all season, the substitutions had a major impact.
“I’m really pleased with both our performance and the outcome.”
Maloney went on to say that, despite Wigan having mathematically secured a League One spot over the week, he was impressed with the first thirty minutes of the match against the highly skilled opposition.
It was outstanding, and the first thirty minutes were at the highest level we’ve seen in any game this season,” he said.
“You watch that first goal and the talent and players that we had in that move, it was an amazing goal. I talk a lot about Wigan DNA and bringing it back.”
“Watching it was a genuine delight.”
There are just two games left for Latics: the season finale at home against Bristol Rovers and a trip to Portsmouth.
