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Playing the game at Ewen Fields, Hyde United - a club who are in big financial difficulties at present, saw the match take place on a dry pitch that was actually a decent surface. Carlisle having the first chance of a goal on the tightly cut grass as Madine played a lovely one-two with skipper Marc Bridge-Wilkinson but sadly for the latter the ball ran through on the bounce to Oldham goalkeeper Josh Ollerenshaw.
Five minutes later and it was United who scored the first goal of the game after Adam Collin had punched a cross into his box long and out to Madine. The Carlisle striker then showing a nice piece of control and then a swift turn as he skipped past two Latics before feeding the ball on into the run of Tinnion down the left-hand channel. Tinnion, from 15 yards out, striking in a powerful left-footed drive that flew into the net off the body of Ollerenshaw.
Bridge-Wilkinson and Madine were linking up very well in the early stages, that prompting Oldham coach Lee Duxbury to shout to his midfielders to start occupying the space that Bridge-Wilkinson, playing as the link up 1 in a 4-4-1-1 formation, was dropping into. The pair doing it again in the 12th minute, the result being a weak left-footed 20-yarder by Madine straight at Ollerenshaw.
Carlisle nearly made it 2-0 five minutes later when Bridge-Wilkinson and Madine set up Gavin Rothery for a shot from inside the right-hand of the Oldham box. Rothery though pulled his shot wide, but Tinnion didn't give up on it and, sliding in at a tight angle at the back-stick, his shot hit the outside of the post.
Patrik Tischler, one of five Latics in their sixteen on loan for the season from the academy set-up of Hungarian outfit MTK Budapest, was the most impressive Latic on the night and he was hauled down by the otherwise pretty faultless Evan Horwood with 20 minutes on the clock. Horwood seeing yellow for his troubles from a strict referee who issued four bookings in the game - as many as I have seen in a reserve game.
Two minutes later and Tischler struck in a thunderous right-footed drive from distance which was well parried wide by Collin. Tischler then again involved in the resultant Phillip McGrath corner only to head it over the top from 15 yards out. Just seconds on and Madine was away down the middle as he ran onto a Michael Burns pass, Madine's progress though being rapidly halted by a pull back from Oldham centre-half Andy Owens.
Considering the referee had been overly fussy so far we were all expecting the red card to be waved at Owens but surpisingly it was only yellow, Bridge-Wilkinson then, right-footed 25 yards out, cracking the free-kick straight into the wall. United again attacking in the 28th minute when Tinnion's lobbed ball in from the left was headed over the top by an unmarked Madine in the middle of the penalty area.
Graham Kavanagh, playing in a deeper position in central midfield, tried to score a cheeky goal for the Blues shortly afterwards when, after nicking the ball off Owens, he tried to chip a rapidly backtracking Ollerenshaw, his 45-yard right-footed effort though just skimming off the roof of the net with Ollerenshaw beaten.
Bang on the half-hour mark and Bridge-Wilkinson gave the ball away to Chris Rowney who then fed possession to the pacey Norbert Csiki, the Hungarian's 15-yard left-footer forcing a good save out of Collin. Ryan Brooke then following up on the rebound 18 yards out only to see Collin make another good stop from his powerful right-footed effort, United then able to clear easily from the following couple of McGrath corners.
After 35 minutes Tinnion, stretching backwards in the middle of the box, was unlucky to see his header from a Burns left-wing cross bounce off the top of the crossbar and over, Burns then on the other side of the coin conceding possession four minutes later. The result of that being a foul by Richard Keogh on Tischler 30 yards from out, the big Hungarian putting his full weight behind the right-footed free-kick as it flew miles over the empty stand and into the distance.
The bad point of the night for Carlisle came on 42 minutes when Madine, after landing awkwardly earlier, had to concede defeat to an ankle problem, Ryan Bowman coming on in his place upfront, Bowman's first action being to be flattened by Ferenc Fodor who went straight in the referee's notebook. The last point of note in the half coming two minutes into stoppage time when Burns, from a lovely Bridge-Wilkinson pass over the top, could only half-volley a left-footed lob wide from eight yards out to the right of goal.
Two minutes into the second-half and all United's good work in the first period was quickly undone when Tischler played a pass into the feet of McGrath on the break. Blake's unfortunate slight slip while turning allowing McGrath to run in and fire a 12-yard right-footed shot across Collin and into the far corner of the Carlisle net for a Latics equaliser.
Collin though able to make a save five minutes later when Oldham captain Paul Black's cross in from the left found Tischler looping a header up into the air from the centre of the Blues penalty area. United however quickly picking up the pace again to regain the lead on 54 minutes, Bridge-Wilkinson's cross in from the right being parried out by Ollerenshaw straight to Kavanagh in front of goal, the Cumbrians player-coach left with a simple two-yard tap in.
The next 14 minutes or so was nothing but a story of substitutions as in the 57th minute Fodor, who didn't have the best of games, was replaced by Liam Dawson in the heart of the Oldham defence. The 66th minute for the Latics then seeing Tom Eaves and Kirk Millar come on for David Kalnoki Kis and Csiki respectively. Then two minutes later it was Carlisle's turn as Keogh came off and Jamie Cleary entered the fray at right centre-half.
While Kalnoki Kis was hoofing a water bottle into the distance in disgust at being substituted, Oldham manager Lee Duxbury, with a Hungarian coach also next to him throughout, was barking out instructions to change from a 4-4-2 to a 4-3-3. The main gameplan seemingly being "Josh, look at Tom, kick it at Tom, he's 6'4", as the long ball looked to go longer.
After 76 minutes Carlisle were pushing forward once more as Burns laid a nice pass out to Horwood down the left, Horwood having been overlapping at pace on that flank all evening to great effect. It was another good cross from Horwood too which Ollerenshaw could only push away from goal.
Kavanagh's chip back in again then seeing Djeny Bembo-Leta made a hash of clearance, Tinnion picking up on the loose ball only to snatch a little at his left-footed volley from ten yards out and pull it wide. The break in play seeing the Blues make their third and final change of the match when Liam Davison replaced Bridge-Wilkinson, Burns then being booked for a foul on Bembo-Leta in the 81st minute.
Four minutes later it was Tinnion and Horwood combining once more, Horwood's terrific cross in from the left just falling inbetween Tinnion and Bowman as Black was able to clear. The tables turned after 87 minutes when Horwood threw the ball into the feet of Tinnion and Tinnion turned and hammered in a 20-yard half-volley, sadly for the Blues though it was straight into the gloves of Ollerenshaw.
The Blues put together some fantastic passing in the final 15 minutes as the Latics hardly got a touch of the ball, a third goal thoroughly deserved by the time it came sixty seconds into stoppage time. Bowman showing great composure as he chased down a well placed Horwood ball over the top, rounded Ollerenshaw in the left edge of the box and then slammed the ball into the net from ten yards out past an Oldham defender on the line.
Oldham line-up :
Josh Ollerenshaw, David Kalnoki Kis (Tom Eaves 66), Paul Black (c), Chris Rowney, Ferenc Fodor (Liam Dawson 57), Andy Owens, Phillip McGrath, Djeny Bembo-Leta, Patrik Tischler, Ryan Brooke, Norbert Csiki (Kirk Millar 66).
Unused substitutes :
Anthony White (GK) and Szabolcs Csorba.
United line-up :
Adam Collin, Jonny Blake, Evan Horwood, Richard Keogh (Jamie Cleary 68), Steven Swinglehurst, Graham Kavanagh, Gavin Rothery, Michael Burns, Gary Madine (Ryan Bowman 42), Marc Bridge-Wilkinson (c) (Liam Davison 76), Conor Tinnion.
Unused substitutes :
Mark Gillespie (GK) and James Wood.
Reserve Team Results : Click here
Reserve Team Table : Click here