Carlisle United made it 4 league wins in a row after they took home three points against Altrincham thanks to goals from Georgie Kelly and Regan Linney in a match which saw both sides finish with 10 men.
Mark Hughes’ side came into this game full of confidence after an excellent performance last week at home to Aldershot and were looking to keep their push towards the top of the National League going, they had the only half chance of the opening few minutes as Archie Davies fired harmlessly over from long range.
United made just the one change to the lineup with Georgie Kelly coming in for the unwell Luke Armstrong and Kelly proved his worth in the 9th minute, attacking an excellent ball im from the left by Stephen Wearne and forcing Alty defender Lewis Banks to inadvertently turn the ball into his own goal to give the Cumbrians an early 1-0 lead.
Kelly thought he’d got a goal for himself just moments later as a Wearne free kick from the left found its way to the unmarked number 9 at the back post but Kelly’s celebrations were quickly cut short as the linesman had his flag quickly up.
Phil Parkinson’s side, who had only lost once at home in the league before today, weren’t going to let Carlisle have all the fun however and fired a warning shot in the 16th minute as Kahrel Reddin found Oliver Crankshaw just inside the penalty area but his effort was well saved down low by Breeze.
Altrincham continued their efforts for an equaliser and were given a golden chance moments later as referee Richie Watkins pointed to the spot after Kelly led with his arm when jumping into his man in an attempt to head away a corner. Jimmy Knowles stepped up to take the spot kick and the ex Accrington man made no mistake, firing confidently into the bottom left corner to level the scoring.
Carlisle did seem a little rattled in this phase of the game, picking up five yellow cards in about as many minutes, including one for manager Mark Hughes, and struggling to really keep any control of the ball, captain Terrell Thomas was the latest in this sequence and was arguably lucky not to get a worse punishment, being caught on the ball by Knowles before quickly bringing him down.
Alty were quick to every 50/50 ball, really making United work hard for their possession and always looking threatening going forward too with Crankshaw roaming the pitch and finding space and Reddin keeping the cautioned Cameron Harper on his toes.
Despite the positive showings by the home side however, they could do nothing to stop their former man Regan Linney in the 35th minute, jinking past a couple of defenders before smashing the ball into the top left corner from just outside the D to bag his 9th goal in 10 appearances this season.
The home side really should have had an equalier just before half time however, as Breeze rushed out to intercept an excellent through ball from Sam Reed and his sliding challege only knocked the ball as far as Knowles, who somehow managed to fire wide to the left of the gaping empty net.
HALF TIME: Altrincham 1 – 2 United
The Robins wasted no time in chasing another equaliser in the second half and would have had one were it not for some defensive heroics, as Archie Davies threw himself in front of a volley from Tom Crawford after an excellent ball from the right hand side by Crankshaw. They were inches away from their second goal again not long afterwards as a chipped cross from Banks looped over Breeze’s head and struck the foot of his right hand post before bouncing out and eventually being cleared by Carlisle
United’s job of holding onto the lead became even harder in the 54th minute as Harper once again brought down the ever threatening Reddin and received a second yellow card and his marching orders, leading to Jack Ellis filling in at left back and Carlisle being left a man short in midfield.
This seemed to light a fire under the visitors however and they almost doubled their advantage minutes later as Kelly stole the ball off of his man before attempting to square to Linney, but a superb last ditch interception by Isaac Marriott prevented Linney from doubling his tally for the day.
Altrincham continuted to try and make their man advantage count and came close a couple of times, with Ellis superbly shutting down a dangerous run by Reddin before Keaton Ward headed a tame effort into the arms of Breeze after a good ball in by Tylor Golden.
United sustained massive pressure in the last quarter of the game in a period which also saw Crawford receive a second yellow card for the home side and had Breeze to thank again, denying a Ward effort down low before Matty Kosylo somehow missed at the back post after an excellent ball in from the right hand side, and Carlisle held on to secure another massive three points on the road and take them second in the National League table.
FULL TIME: Altrincham 1 – 2 Carlisle United: Knowles (19′ pen) – Banks (9′ OG), Linney (35)
Altrincham: Hutchinson, Reed, Banks, Sassi, Golden, Marriott (Ward 68′), Osborne, Crawford, Crankshaw (Gale 67′) Knowles (Kosylo 80′), Reddin. Subs Not Used: Baines, Fallon, Kirk, Cooper
United: Breeze, Harper, Thomas, Mugabi, Davies (Feeney 84′), Ellis, Gilliead, Linney (Jones 80′), Wearne (Macadam 72′), Luamba (Ajiboye 80′), Kelly. Subs Not Used: Grant, Whelan, Lewis
How Did United Perform?
Carlisle will take a mixture of joy and relief from this match, after what was a very hard fought 3 points on the road against a very solid Altrincham side. We rode our luck at points especially towards the end of the game and were well under the cosh with 10 men, but the grit and determination to see out the game is very commendable.
I think we could have done with taking Harper off at half time, which is easy to say but Reddin was always threatening down their right flank and was giving him a lot of trouble all through the game, so it was something which really you could always see coming. The defence stuck to their task however and more Linney magic gave us a massive win to take home ahead of a huge game against York on Tuesday night.
Carlisle Player Ratings
Breeze – 8 (MoTM): Another impressive outing from our young stopper, commanding his area very well and making some vital stops to stop Altrincham nicking a point towards the end of the game
Davies – 7: A massive block towards the start of the second half played a big part in sealing our win, and he was threatening down the right hand side on occasion too.
Mugabi – 7: Couple of vital interceptions to stop Altrincham getting in and was excellent in the physical battles with the opposition forward line too.
Thomas – 6: Lucky in the first half when he got caught in possession, but otherwise largely solid at the back and has seemed to develop a good understanding with Mugabi.
Harper – 4: Constantly troubled by Reddin’s energetic running and dribbling and showed real indiscipline making the challenge that saw him sent off, leaves a hole to fill for Tuesday night now.
Ellis – 7: Often quiet going forward but his running and energy was vital in the defensive areas, shutting down a couple of threatening Alty attacks.
Gilliead – 6: Not as influential as he was against Aldershot, but worked hard in the midfield and has become very important for United in the middle of the park.
Wearne – 8: Carlisle’s biggest creative threat, being the catalyst for their two goals and showing great energy and desire to find space in between the lines.
Linney – 7: Often quiet in the game but had that little bit of magic when it counted, such a massive part of this United side and questions will be asked as to how we’ll cope without him when he needs a rest.
Luamba – 5: This right wing area is probably United’s biggest weak spot at the moment with both Luamba and Ajiboye really struggling to hold the place down, Luamba is positive and direct but struggles to keep a hold of the ball when he needs to.
Kelly – 7: Led the line well as he often does, maybe lucky to not get a harsher punishment when he conceded the penalty but was a constant handful for the Altrincham defence and is unlucky not to be credited with United’s opener.
Subs:
Macadam – 6: Hard to judge in the circumstances, did what he needed to.
Jones, Ajiboye, Feeney – N/A
Please note these are Craig’s opinions and nothing official!
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