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This was their fifth game without a win and it left manager Paul Jewell bemoaning his sides lack of a cutting edge as Forster showed them the way with two clinical finishes.
Reading, who made a somewhat slow start to the campaign, rise up to fifth spot, just four points off the top of the league. Meanwhile, they also sit top of the form table. However, the Royals are playing Stoke next weekend who are bottom of that table. Given the team's poor record against the bottom sides this year, it looks omnious.
His first came on 53 minutes when he drilled a low shot past John Filan and his second came in the dying moments as the Wigan defence stood off and allowed Forster to blast home from eight yards.
In between, there was some exciting football from both sides with the home side probably having the lions share of the play but unable to turn thier possession into goals.
They went close in the first half when Andy Liddell brought a fine save from Reading keeper Marcus Hahnemann and after the break a 25-yard screamer from Nathan Ellington brought the best out of the Reading keeper.
But the visitors always looked the more dangerous with Forster proving a constant threat.
Two first-half saves from Filan denied the Reading hitman and only an excellent stop after the break denied Forster a well-deserved hat-trick.
Reading were dangerous right from the off, clipping the woodwork inside of the first couple of minutes as if to warn the Wigan rearguard that the Royals were in town to amend Wednesday's defeat to Chelsea.
After a mis-shapen opening period, the visitors took the lead early in the second halof, catching the Latics with the old counter-attacking sucker punch that served the side so well last season.
Livewire Nicky Forster was both the creator and the executioner of the fifty-fourth minute move.
A goal down, the home side pressed for an equaliser throughout the rest of the game but to no avail. Indeed, Reading perhaps looked the more likely scorers as they threatened to knock the stuffing out of Wigan with another goal on the break.
The Latics laid seige on the Reading goal in the final quarter, but a few heart-stopping moments survived, Fozzy once more pounced on the break, sliding the ball past Filan to send the Royals faithful home happy.