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Carlisle welcome Hartlepool to Brunton Park tomorrow, looking to continue an impressive record. The Cumbrians are clearly on top, having won 29 and lost only 12 of the 47 games played between the two sides in Carlisle.
Recent home form against Hartlepool has been poor though and last season the Blues lost 1-0 at Brunton Park on a Tuesday night in late October. The match was the penultimate one of John Ward's managerial reign and the visitors took all three points when James Brown scored in the 28th minute as 5,637 fans looked on.
Two years ago in League One the Blues defeated Hartlepool 4-2 at Brunton Park on New Year's Day of 2008 in front of 7,496 spectators. Two goals from Joe Garner and single strikes from Jeff Smith and Simon Hackney giving Carlisle the upper hand over a brace of goals from Richie Humphreys for the visitors.
Before that game United's dire run of results in the early part of this decade had seen them actually lose their previous five matches at home to Hartlepool. The most recent league defeat coming in the 2002-03 season in the bottom tier of English professional football. The visitors sticking a big pin in the John Courtenay takeover balloon as 10,684 fans crammed inside Brunton Park for the first game under a new regime only to witness a comfortable 3-1 win for the 'Pools.
Mark Tinkler opened the scoring for Chris Turner's Hartlepool a minute before half-time with their lead then being extended two minutes after the break thanks to Richie Humphreys. Tinkler grabbed his second goal of the game in the 77th minute before Brian Wake netted with what would only be a consolation strike for the Blues three minutes later.
Carlisle's biggest win in their Football League history came at home to Hartlepool in the Cumbrians first season at that level. The Blues winning 8-0 in the old Third Division North in 1928-29, the goals, in front of 7,346 spectators, coming from a Jim McConnell hat-trick (three of his 42 for the season), a David Hutchinson brace, Billy Robinson, Billy Ward and Alfred Agar. That 8-0 win coming after the Cumbrians had already hammered 'Pools 6-2 at Brunton Park in the first round of the FA Cup in the 1926-27 season.
Hartlepool's best margin of victory in their eleven wins in Carlisle has twice been by three goals to nil. The first of those successes coming in 1955-56 in the old Division Three North as 4,718 spectators looked on. The latter victory was much more recent as it happened in the August of the 1999-2000 fourth tier campaign. The goals coming from a brace by former Blues-loanee Chris Freestone and a single strike by Tommy Miller in front of 4,033 spectators.
For a detailed analysis of the head-to-head between the two sides, click here
| Recent encounters between the teams | |||||
| 2008/2009 | Tue 27 Jan | Hartlepool | 2 - 2 | Carlisle | LGE1 |
| 2008/2009 | Tue 28 Oct | Carlisle | 0 - 1 | Hartlepool | LGE1 |
| 2007/2008 | Tue 01 Jan | Carlisle | 4 - 2 | Hartlepool | LGE1 |
| 2007/2008 | Tue 02 Oct | Hartlepool | 2 - 2 | Carlisle | LGE1 |
| 2004/2005 | Tue 02 Nov | Carlisle | 0 - 1 | Hartlepool | ASSM |
| 2002/2003 | Wed 01 Jan | Hartlepool | 2 - 1 | Carlisle | LGE2 |
| 2002/2003 | Sat 10 Aug | Carlisle | 1 - 3 | Hartlepool | LGE2 |
Recent respective form guides
Carlisle have performed reasonably at home of late, winning three, drawing one and losing two of their last six matches at Brunton Park. A total of ten goals have been scored by the Cumbrians in those games, with seven conceded.
Hartlepool meanwhile have an average to poor recent record on the road, seeing them win just one, draw two and lose three of their last matches away from home. While the Pools have netted a healthy nine goals in those games, a bumper 12 have hit the back of the wrong net.
Carlisle find themselves struggling down in 17th position in the League One table having picked up 20 points from their 18 matches played so far. Hartlepool's 23 points from their 18 games contested on the other hand sees them lie just inside the top half of the table, in 12th position.
For a detailed analysis of team form guides throughout the leagues, click here
| Last six games form guide | P | W | D | L | F | A | P |
| Carlisle | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 9 | 12 |
| Hartlepool | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 9 | 7 |
FootyMad's prediction ...
It's a close one to call, but the Footymad panel think that the reasonable form at home of the Cumbrians is going to see them scrape past Hartlepool.. Home Win
| Sequence statistics | |
| Carlisle | Not drawn a match in their last six. |
| Hartlepool | An overall losing run of two games. Not won in previous two away matches. |