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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Ricky Charlesworth

Jamie Carragher watches son score first senior goal in 6-0 win against Liverpool

When your dad made more than 500 top flight appearances and won a boat-load of trophies for a team like Liverpool, there will always be some way to go to live up to those achievements.

For James Carragher, he is just making the first step on what he hopes will be a career just as successful as his old man Jamie. The 19-year-old was tipped to make a senior breakthrough last season after penning his maiden professional deal, but after a handful of cup outings he suffered a bad injury in an EFL Trophy match last November.

The incident saw Carragher, a defender just like his dad, stretchered off after sustaining a nasty-looking knee injury. He would spend two months on the sidelines before only making one further appearance that season.

Now back to full fitness, he is looking to try and make the breakthrough by registering his league debut with the Latics after their promotion back to the Championship last season. Whilst he will have to wait until later this month to realise that particular aim, he has now scored his first-ever goal at senior level.

And ironically it came in a game against Liverpool. Wigan easily swatted aside a Reds' XI in a pre-season friendly on Tuesday, with Leam Richardson's side running out convincing 6-0 winners at the DW Stadium.

And for Carragher junior, who had his dad watching on from the stands, he got in on the act by side-footing home the hosts' fourth goal of the game. It was a perfect day for the youngster, with a clean sheet aiding his cause as he looks to enter the new season full of momentum.

Last season, prior to sustaining his injury, he was tipped for big things by one of his dad's old England colleagues. After coming off the bench for the final 15 minutes of an EFL Cup draw against Hull City - his senior bow - Carragher kept the shop shut to help force penalties - with Wigan coming out on top in a marathon shoot-out.

Speaking at the time, ex-striker Kevin Phillips said of the youngster: "(It's) incredible, just the way he tackles. It's great to see a young lad leaving a club like Liverpool because he wants to go and play football.

"Maybe there's a bit of influence from his dad, but you can just see there with his arm up (appealing) he looks like he's going to be a hot prospect. I'm really looking forward now to watching him develop over the years."

Wigan's other scorers in the rout against Liverpool were Callum Lang, Tendayi Darikwa, Tom Pearce, Stephen Humphrys and Jack Whatmough. The win made it three from three in pre-season. After winning the League One title last term they will be hoping to carry momentum into the new campaign. They open up at home to Preston North End on Saturday, July 30.

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