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After five minutes Derek Holmes charged down an attempted clearance outside his box from Wrexham keeper Michael Jones, the ball breaking across to Hawley who was quickly crowded out by the covering visitors defence. Five minutes later Jamie Price crossed in to the Carlisle back-post where Mike Carvill knocked the ball down into the path of Jamie Reed 12 yards out, Reed completely blowing the chance as he blazed way over the top.
Worse news was to come for Carvill on fifteen minutes when he was booked for his second foul on Neale McDermott in quick succession. With 20 minutes on the clock a Johnson corner, one of about ten in the first-half from Wrexham, was only part-cleared out to Levi Mackin who saw his well-hit shot headed over his own crossbar by James Krause. Johnson's flag-kick in from there seeing a bit of headed pinball before Johnson himself fired high, wide and not very handsome.
On 26 minutes Krause was caught ball-watching as Reed raced onto a ball over the top down the right-hand flank. Reed's pass pushed across to Marc Williams 18 yards out seeing the combatitive Williams blaze a shot miles over the United crossbar and into the Neil Centre car-park. After soaking up quite a lot of early pressure from the Red Dragons it was Carlisle who actually grabbed the first goal of the game on the half-hour mark.
Away on the break from another Wrexham attack Holmes played in Johann Smith down the left, Smith cutting in from the wing past Mike Williams and onto his right foot before hitting a 15-yard drive in which was deflected off the back of a defender straight into the path of Holmes bang in front of the Wrexham goal. Holmes being left with the simple task of knocking the ball home past an unguarded Jones and into the back of the visitors net.
Carlisle had a chance to double their lead on 34 minutes when yet another cleared Red Dragons corner saw the Cumbrians break and McDermott play a lovely slide-rule pass through the middle for Holmes to run onto. Lacking pace though Holmes was quickly caught up by Mike Williams and Lee Roche who crowded the big Scot out just as he should have been looking to fire in a shot from the edge of the visitors box.
The last opportunity of the half came two minutes before the interval when a foul by Krause on Johnson down in the Waterworks/East Stand corner saw Wrexham win a free-kick. As the cross came flying in Dan Kirkup seemed to go through the back of Marc Williams without getting a touch on the ball but referee Metcalfe waved away the visitors protests, the sides going down the tunnel shortly afterwards with United perhaps fortunate to be in the lead.
Unsurprisingly, with Swansea in mind, Blues coaching duo Greg Abbott and Eric Kinder made a change upfront at half-time with Hawley being replaced by Gary Madine, Hawley not really having had much of a chance to stretch his legs in the opening period. Similar to the first-half as well it was a quiet start to proceedings as both sides battled for possession, the stalemate eventually breaking in the 55th minute when Carlisle went 2-0 up.
McDermott laid a ball out to the overlapping Paul Arnison on the right, Arnison's clever chipped ball over the top seeing Madine break the offside trap and find himself all alone in the Wrexham penalty area with just Jones to beat. Madine doing that with great aplomb as he lofted a perfect lob over the stranded Jones and under the crossbar from ten yards out to score his tenth goal in five months in United colours.
Just before the hour mark a foul by Krause on Johnson on the United left saw Mackin knock the ball across to Robbie Garrett at least 25 yards out from the Carlisle goal, Garrett hitting a weak side-footer on the bounce straight into the arms of Blues keeper Chris Howarth. Another lull in the match came for a short spell before United found themselves 3-0 up midway through the half with a stunner of a goal from Johann Smith.
Smith on the left, having picked up a pass from Madine, cutting inside onto his right foot on the angle of the box before chipping what may have been a centre across goal, the ball curling straight over the head of Jones and into the postage stamp of the far corner as it pinged into the net off the underside of the bar. As the Blues players congratulated Smith and started the mickey-taking about it actually being a cross, Wrexham made their first substitution of the afternoon when they replaced Reed with Andy Fleming, Reed having earlier been injured in a challenge with Howarth.
With 20 minutes to go Mackin fired in an extremely speculative left-footed half-volley from miles out, and it was still miles out as it sliced away into the Warwick Road End. Three minutes later Carlisle made their second change when left-back Matthew Blake replaced centre-half Terry Stewart, Blake slotting into the middle of the back four for the rest of the game. Wrexham also brought on another substitute, Wes Baynes coming on at right-back for Price.
After 77 minutes Carvill, who had moved upfront to partner Marc Williams in the enforced absence of Reed, pulled a goal back for the visitors. Carvill chasing a long ball down the right-hand channel and cutting in past Blake as the United man slipped to the ground. Carvill then sending a lovely curled finish with his left foot across Howarth and into the far top corner of the United net, the ball just clipping the underside of the crossbar on it's way in.
Johann Smith was trying all his party tricks now and things were starting to get a little bit tetchy as the Wrexham players tried to get the ball off him, matters coming to a head in the 80th minute when Garrett was booked after scything down the United man in full flight. Three minutes later another Smith run saw him lose possession down the left before the ball broke first to Vipond then Luke Joyce 22 yards out, Joyce dragging a poor right-footed shot across the visitors box and out for a goal-kick.
In the 85th minute a cross in from the right by Fleming saw Arnison try to head the ball back to Howarth, a trick he had been doing all afternoon. This time he was caught out though as his header hit Marc Williams and fell at the feet of the Wrexham striker, Arnison doing well to recover and block the shot of Williams over the top. The resultant corner from Fleming eventually, after the ball had been part-cleared, seeing Mike Williams head over the Carlisle crossbar from close range.
Sixty seconds later Johann Smith claimed his second goal of the game with an oustanding solo effort, Smith beating three men down the left before cutting back from the by-line and smashing an unstoppable right-footed shot low into the near bottom corner of the Wrexham net from eight yards out. On 87 minutes Smith played in Shaun Vipond fully 28 yards out, Vipond being desperately unlucky to see his powerful right-footed effort thud off the inside of the near-post, zoom inches in front of the goal-line, and spin out for a Wrexham goal-kick on the far side.
In the last minute of the game, as the electronic scoreboard signalled one minute of injury time, a ball by Mackin down the right-hand channel found Carvill on the edge of the Carlisle box, after his earlier goal though Carvill could only this time sidefoot a weak shot into the arms of Howarth. Shortly afterwards Garrett sent a dreadful effort in from 22 yards out with his right foot which dribbled across the United box and out for a goal-kick.
Despite it now being the 93rd minute play continued and from a Fleming corner in the ball came straight to the feet of Baynes beyond the Cumbrians back-stick. Baynes firing in a fierce 18-yard drive that flew across the target and pinged out off the inside of Howarth's far-post, Carvill unable to do anything with the rebound as he somehow managed to scoop it over the crossbar from six yards out.
More fun was yet to come as well sixty seconds later when Carvill again chased a ball over the top down the right-hand channel. Howarth also looked to challenge for possession as he raced from his line and he fairly flattened Carvill, who had knocked the ball away from goal, as he ran out of the Carlisle box. Howarth was yellow carded for the challenge and the last chance of the game, after four and half minutes of the sixty seconds of stoppage time, saw Fleming fire the direct free-kick inches over the top.
United line-up :
Chris Howarth, Paul Arnison, James Krause, Dan Kirkup, Terry Stewart (Matthew Blake 73), Luke Joyce, Shaun Vipond, Neale McDermott, Derek Holmes, Karl Hawley (Gary Madine 46), Johann Smith.
Unused substitutes :
Adam Bradley (GK), Matthew Brown and Dan Wordsworth.
Wrexham line-up :
Michael Jones, Jamie Price (Wes Baynes 73), Neil Taylor, Lee Roche, Mike Williams, Robbie Garrett, Josh Johnson, Marc Williams, Jamie Reed (Andy Fleming 66), Levi Mackin, Mike Carvill.
Unused substitutes :
Chris Maxwell (GK), Chris Marriott and Mark Stewart.
Referee - Mr L Metcalfe.
Attendance - 42.
Results in the division this week :
Bury 2-2 Accrington Stanley (Mon)
Chester 3-1 Rochdale (Mon)
Bury 4-2 Manchester City (Wed)
Carlisle 4-1 Wrexham (Wed)
Preston North End 2-0 Blackpool (Wed)
Rochdale 1-0 Chester (Wed)
Tranmere 1-2 Accrington Stanley (Wed)
Updated Reserve Team Table : Click here
United's Reserve Team Results : Click here