Perhaps a lifetime as an Evertonian getting the thin end of the wedge in Merseyside derbies has steeled him for what is needed, or perhaps that calm demeanour has helped Wanderers find the mentality they to succeed when they had wilted under pressure for a decade before?

A third straight win against Wigan Athletic could not have been better timed, for this had been the hardest week Schumacher has had at the Wanderers helm.

Legitimate questions were being asked about the direction the club was taking after a sequence of results and performances that simply did not cut the mustard with Bolton’s demanding fanbase.

Sam Dalby got very little change out of referee Steven Martin (Image: CameraSport – Lee Parker)

Josh Sheehan and Max Conway show their joy after the opening goal of the game (Image: CameraSport – Lee Parker)

Rumours of developing rifts and dressing room bickering were fleshed out by the defeats against Peterborough United and Port Vale, and with Bolton’s transfer window yet to take off in any meaningful manner the mood of uncertainty could be entirely forgiven.

And yet with one wonderful wave of Josh Sheehan’s right foot 82 minutes into a game Wanderers thoroughly deserved to win, Schumacher found the ‘reset’ he had craved.

If there had been issues in the Whites camp, then like every other problem in life they can be discussed and resolved with the right attitude and application. Whatever was said in the team meetings between Tuesday night and Saturday morning can stay behind closed doors, but it worked, because this was the most together a Bolton team has looked in some while.

Wigan had built up ‘The Derby’ with a fever-pitch social media campaign and got their reward, the gate of 15,121 their biggest at home since, well, Bolton’s last visit in April.

There is no doubting the significance of this fixture, its importance to both sets of fans and the impact this scoreline could now have on their respective club’s season.

To refer to it as a Derby, however, is like branding every Sunday ‘Super’ or every goal a ‘worldie’ – Bolton shares a border with Wigan, that much is true, and a hearty dislike has brewed between the two clubs since they first met in 1983, but they also neighbour Blackburn, Bury and Salford. How many ‘derbies’ can be declared before the word loses all meaning?

Proper derbies are fought between two sporting rivals from the same city. When you need to cite the 1972 Local Government Act to legitimise the link between Wigan and Bolton via Greater Manchester, you are on to a loser right away.

Semantics aside, the 4,600 supporters crammed into the away end to see if Schumacher’s hold on the local rivals could continue, and but for one Harrison Bettoni chance in the second half, barely a moment went by that Wigan looked capable of causing an upset.

A tactical shift to 3-4-2-1 suited the occasion. Amario Cozier-Duberry doubled up with wing-back Jordi Osei-Tutu on a dangerous right flank to cause frequent problems for Ryan Lowe’s side, with Max Conway often finding a willing partner in Xavier Simons on the left.

Defensively, Bolton were solid, with debutant Jack Bonham in goal exuding a calmness which stood out a mile in the circumstances. The back three of Chris Forino, George Johnston and Eoin Toal all stood strong, letting practically nothing by, but such was Wigan’s lack of threat, their afternoon passed by without serious incident.

Up front, Mason Burstow operated in a withdrawn role behind Sam Dalby, continuing to hint at a return to serious form with his general play, although a snatched opportunity after Sam Tickle’s spill midway through the first half shows he still needs to sharpen up in front of goal.

Dalby’s work as the focal point of the attack was rock solid. In what was probably his best outing in a Wanderers shirt, he got precious little out of referee Stephen Martin, wrestling and scrapping with Will Aimson with back to goal. His hard work helped the Whites camp out continually in the Wigan half, though, and though clear-cut chances were infrequent, it is a rare thing indeed to feel so comfortable on enemy territory.

Conway had a header deflected wide, Chris Forino nodded one on to the roof of the net in the second half, and as the game edged tensely towards its conclusion, whichever side found the next moment of quality was clearly going on to win.

Bettoni missed a sitter after Callum Wright got in behind Bolton for the one and only time on the afternoon. Schumacher added John McAtee and Kyle Dempsey for some extra energy, later revealing that he had considered pulling Sheehan rather than Simons, as he was carrying a yellow card.

Josh Sheehan races away after scoring in the 82nd minute against Wigan Athletic (Image: CameraSport – Lee Parker)

View from behind the goal as Josh Sheehan’s shot flies past Sam Tickle to open the scoring (Image: CameraSport – Lee Parker)

Moments later, the advice of Richie Kyle and Mark Hughes turned out to be a gamechanger. Wigan were camped in their penalty box and had already cleared a couple of crosses when Matt Smith’s header landed nicely in front of Sheehan 20 yards out. He hit a shot down the middle of goal – later revealing that he’d added some ‘swaz’ – and the trajectory fooled Tickle, who grasped at thin air as the ball sailed into the net, igniting a cacophony in the stand behind him.

All the doubt, the concern, the cynicism that had followed those folk into the stadium before lunchtime had given way to pure unbridled joy.

If there is a complaint, and this being  Bolton makes that a prerequisite, it is that the Whites should have scored a second.

Dalby and Cozier-Duberry had chances to extend the lead as Wigan floundered and their fans filed quietly out of the building.

Bolton’s fans didn’t seem to mind. They had long since been taunting three sides of the stadium with their own repertoire, the ultimate terrace slight.

When ref Martin signalled the final whistle another eruption of noise came from the away end and the celebrations could begin. George Johnston’s cheeky jig in front of a handful of lingering Wigan supporters was risky but how often have we seen opposing players pressing our buttons in exactly the same way?

George Johnston roars to the skies after victory against one of his former clubs (Image: CameraSport – Lee Parker)

Wanderers fans celebrate the victory against Wigan Athletic (Image: CameraSport – Lee Parker)

As the pitch emptied, the away fans were held back on police advice. ‘Seven Days is Too Long’ – Chuck Wood’s classic Northern Soul floor-filler belted out at full volume, and Schumacher, who gave the stand one last show of appreciation from afar as he attempted to start the post-match interviews, would probably agree.

“There only two things you can guarantee being a football manager,” he said, having found a corner of relative quiet away from the booming Tannoy. “Hard work and criticism.”

And so it goes. Expectation won’t change once the hangovers fade and the social media backslapping calms down, and the next three points at stake is no less important to the promotion effort.

Can they do it again on a cold Tuesday night in Stevenage?