After three victories in a row Carlisle travelled down to Lancashire in confident mode to take on a bottom of the league Stanley side, the young Blues still just missing Kyle Dempsey and Brad Potts through injury. It was the home side at the Crown Ground who started better though with Jordan Parker first saving a Josh Peake shot on six minutes before three minutes later the Cumbrians escaped when Adam Stockdale crashed an effort against the underside of the United crossbar.
A couple of half chance shots then came at either end before Carlisle took the lead with 27 minutes on the clock when Jack Wilkinson's attempted clearance fell nicely for Blues striker Alex Salmon (pictured) to race through and toe-poke a neat finish past Adam Smith in the Stanley goal. Only three minutes later and it was 2-0 to United when on the break Dave Symington raced away down the right before curling over a pinpoint cross to Salmon at the Accrington back-stick for a well taken close range finish. The only further action before the half-time whistle being a yellow card for Stanley's Ryan Hopper.
The home side were by far the brighter team after the break though and in the 55th minute Parker was forced to tip a Karl Dailey header onto the crossbar, before shortly afterwards Wilkinson nodded narrowly wide from a Hopper cross in. Marcus Carver then sent an effort off target before an inevitable Accrington goal came on 59 minutes, Peake and Carver combining well going forward with Peake the one shooting home into the United net. Stanley then completing a quick comeback just four minutes later when a Hopper free-kick up eventually dropped to the boot of Dailey in the Carlisle penalty area, Dailey then seeing his volley from there take a slight deflection on its way past Parker to make the scoreline 2-2.
Midway through the half and Accrington kept up the pressure as Carver shot over before with ten minutes to go Stanley hit the woodwork once more, Wilkinson driving a low effort against the base of Parker's right-hand post. United managed to make it alive through the home side's strong period though and the Blues even managed to nick a late winner just as we ticked into injury time. Brandon Gwinnutt chasing a long ball deep into Stanley territory before being inexplicably felled by Smith just inside the penalty area, Salmon then stepping up to confidently smash home the spot-kick for his hat-trick and a 3-2 win for the Cumbrians.
Accrington line-up :
Adam Smith, Jason Jeffries (Jack Sargent 40), Oliver Holden, Karl Dailey, Joe Wilkinson (Ben Proctor 85), Ryan Hopper, Jack Willison, Alex McPolin (Joe Greenhalgh 46), Adam Stockdale, Marcus Carver, Josh Peake.
Unused substitutes :
Andrew Dawber (GK) and Joe Dawson.
United line-up :
Jordan Parker, Will James, Lance McGlen (c), Josh Todd, Brad Staunch, Dillon Morse, Dan Jones (Brandon Gwinnutt 62), Jack Lynch, Mark Beck, Alex Salmon, Dave Symington.
Substitutes :
Tom Berwick, Patrick Brough, Jamie Clarey and Dale Minor.
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