Alas, the authorities at the recently-renamed stadium were unable to reveal how many pies had been sold at the away end in consecutive visits from the sporting clubs of Wigan in the space of 25 hours.

The rugby league team for which the town has long been famous had been due to visit on Sunday but their Super League fixture had to be brought forward at short notice when Huddersfield Town won their FA Cup replay at Leicester last Tuesday, the Latics' fifth-round tie having been pre-selected for live coverage by ITV.

That provided one measure of the remarkable strides Wigan's football club have made over the last two decades under Dave Whelan's ownership, as did the fact that they arrived as Premier League aristocrats in their ritzy black and yellow change strip. Huddersfield were cast as working-class heroes in their old-fashioned blue and white stripes. As the ground announcer said, after reading a list of Latics substitutes including Di Santo, Henríquez, Beausejour and Al Habsi, "lots of good Wigan names in there".

The rugby team had also been forced to abandon cherry-and-white tradition by playing in a change kit of mostly mauve to avoid clashing with Huddersfield's grand old claret and gold but they included eight Wiganers in their 17-man squad, watched proudly by their coach Shaun Wane, another local man. That is one contrast between the games that is easily explained by the cash and global reach of the Premier League. It seems more peculiar that football managers, whether the smartly suited Roberto Martínez or Mark Robins in his tracksuit, watch the game from the edge of their technical area, whereas former rugby league bruisers such as Wane and Huddersfield's league coach, Paul Anderson, sit with laptops in the stand.

Huddersfield may have been the birthplace of the Northern Union breakaway that led to the formation of rugby league, at the George hotel opposite the railway station in 1895, but the five-figure support the Terriers continue to enjoy leaves no doubt that it remains a football town – even with Anderson's Giants still top of the Super League table, thanks to Saturday's 22-10 win against Wigan.

In Wigan, Whelan's investment has dragged football to parity with rugby, at least, and the town's split sporting personality was neatly summed up on Sunday. While around 1,400 Latics fans took advantage of discounted ticket prices – £10 and £5 for concessions, as part of Huddersfield's imaginative attempt to fill the ground at short notice for a televised match – the town's rugby folk stayed at home for the final of the Ken Gee Cup for local amateur teams, between St Patrick's and St Jude's. In both Huddersfield and Wigan, there is surprisingly little crossover – only hundreds, or possibly even dozens, would have seen both matches over the weekend. Latics ensured a 1-1 draw between the towns.