WIGAN, England, Nov. 23 (UPI) -- Players of the Wigan soccer team said they'll repay the ticket cost to fans who traveled to London only to see the team fall 9-1 to Tottenham.
Jermain Defoe scored five goals, including three in a 7-minute span of the second half, in keying the rout for Tottenham. The 9-1 drubbing suffered Sunday by Wigan, which trailed just 1-0 at halftime, was the second worst in the history of Premier League soccer.
Wigan team leader Mario Melchiot, in a posting Monday on the team Web site, said the team "as a group of professionals, we were embarrassed by the way we performed."
He also said, "We feel that as a group of players we badly let down our supporters (Sunday) and this is a gesture we have to make and pay them back for their tremendous loyalty."
It is thought about 550 fans made the trip from Wigan to London for the game and the average price for a ticket to the Tottenham-Wigan match was about $175.
