Carlisle, having only one first-choice defender in their starting eleven, kicking off the match with one second year, six first years, one trialist, two under-16s and one under-15 lined up as follows :
Andy Cook - Ryan Bowman
Michael Hepplethwaite - Simon Lakeland - Stephen Hindmarch - Shaun Law
Michael Dowson
Steven Swinglehurst - Matt Duffy - Jonny Blake
Alex Mitchell
The Shrimps started brightly and almost took the lead with just two minutes on the clock when a good run down the left saw a pass cutback to the Carlisle penalty spot. The resultant right-footed shot seeing Mitchell make a sharp parried save. United came back though and five minutes later Cook, after being brought down just outside the Morecambe 'D', dusted himself down to hammer the free-kick right-footed into the defensive wall.
Cook getting another shooting chance moments later only to see his right-footed effort from distance deflect away off a Shrimps defender. Carlisle put a good move together going forward after 13 minutes as Dowson, Cook and Lakeland all combined to set up Hepplethwaite 15 yards out in the left-hand channel, Hepplethwaite from there firing a left-footed drive across goal and wide of the Morecambe far-post.
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Cook had a left-footed shot from distance easily saved moments later, then bang on the half-hour mark Morecambe almost took the lead. A Lakeland foul 40 yards out on the left seeing a free-kick come in deep to the Carlisle back-stick, Mitchell should perhaps have come out to claim the ball and it was then left to Hepplethwaite to hack off the line from the resultant close-range Morecambe header.
Shortly afterwards Dowson thumped in a powerful left-footed effort from just to the right of the 'D' which the Shrimps keeper needed two attempts to keep hold of as the ball bounced in front of him. A Morecambe shot then going well over the top of Mitchell's crossbar from a similar position at the other end with 34 minutes gone.
It was soon Carlisle attacking again though when Lakeland set up Hepplethwaite for a shooting opportunity 18 yards out in the left-hand channel. Despite the goalkeeper being stood up he bizarrely chose to save Hepplethwaite's left-footed effort with his feet, the ball then rebounding away to Law who sliced a half-volley with his right boot wide of the near-post from just outside the penalty area.
Just as I was thinking to myself that the game had 0-0 written all over it I managed to jinx things good and proper as Morecambe took the lead in the 39th minute. Duffy and Swinglehurst getting themselves in a right old pickle at the back as they gave the ball away straight to a Shrimps midfielder. The Morecambe man getting an excellent connection on a 22-yard right-footed toe-poker as his shot flew high past Mitchell and into the United net.
In an effort to find an equaliser Carlisle went to 4-3-3 after the interval, the side, with numerous players having to play out of position now lining-up as follows :
Michael Hepplethwaite - Andy Cook - Ryan Bowman
Stephen Hindmarch - Michael Dowson - Shaun Law
Steven Swinglehurst - Matt Duffy - Jonny Blake - Simon Lakeland
Alex Mitchell
Morecambe were still pressing though and two minutes into the second-half a good opportunity was wasted for the home side as a shot from close range was fired over Mitchell's crossbar. Then after 50 minutes a nice cross in from the Shrimps right-winger, who has impressed in both league games, saw a 15-yard half-volley deflect away behind off Duffy, the resultant corner coming to nothing.
Steam was pouring out of everyone's ears in the Carlisle camp seven minutes later when what seemed like a perfectly legitimate goal was disallowed. A deep Hindmarch cross up from the right seeing Cook outjump the Morecambe glovesman on the penalty spot to head goalwards. A posse of home and away players then chased the ball down as it dribbled over the line, but, despite no United player touching it, the flag amazingly went up for offside.
The Blues were all over the Shrimps now and just after the hour-mark a Hindmarch corner saw Bowman, unmarked six yards out, fall to his knees in despair after heading over the bar. Cook, from a Hepplethwaite pass to him, trying to do all the work himself on 63 minutes as he beat two Morecambe players only to find another Shrimps defender race across and block his 18-yard shot.
You began to get the feeling that Carlisle were never going to level matters when, two minutes later, after Swinglehurst had been fouled over in the far corner, Law swung the free-kick into the Shrimps box. Hindmarch flicking a header on at the near-post only to see it crash down onto the line off the underside of the crossbar, with a Morecambe defender then able to clear the loose ball.
Midway through the half Lakeland's right-footed cross flew off the body of Hepplethwaite, 12 yards out, straight at the home keeper. Then, with 69 minutes gone, a Mitchell free-kick up for an offside was headed on by first Cook and then Bowman as the Blues looked to profit, once more though the Morecambe glovesman was on hand to make a comfortable catch.
The equalising goal finally did come for the Cumbrians with 20 minutes left after Hepplethwaite had sent Cook away into the left-hand side of the Morecambe penalty area. It was a tough angle for Cook on his weaker left foot but he still produced an authoritative finish from 15 yards out as he hammered his shot across goal and into the far corner of the Shrimps net.
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Carlisle's leveller seemed to have given Morecambe a kick up the backside and they produced the miss of the season after 74 minutes. Another good cross in from the right to the far-post seeing the centre-forward head back across goal to an empty space about two yards out. A Shrimp looking like he had the easiest chance in the world as he ran in with the ball dropping to his right boot, somehow though he managed to blaze his effort over the top.
We were hoping for a Jimmy Glass moment on 77 minutes when United's substitute goalkeeper John Jamieson replaced Hepplethwaite upfront. Both teams were now starting to run out of gas a little though in the closing stages and the next chance came six minutes later when Hindmarch, eight yards out, headed a Law corner wide of the Morecambe near-post. The break in play seeing the Shrimps make their only substitution of the game on the right-hand side of midfield.
No more real chances were forthcoming to break the deadlock late on and the last action of any note came in the 85th minute when Hindmarch was somewhat harshly booked for a foul on the Morecambe left-back. So, nearly there now, just one game left to go in this horrendously truncated season, that last match being at home to Preston on Saturday morning, kick-off 11am at the Sheepmount.
United line-up :
Alex Mitchell, Jonny Blake, Steven Swinglehurst, Matt Duffy, Simon Lakeland, Michael Dowson, Shaun Law, Stephen Hindmarch (c), Andy Cook, Ryan Bowman, Michael Hepplethwaite (John Jamieson 77).
Unused substitute :
Matthew Brown.
Fixtures in the division this week, Saturday morning unless stated :
Rochdale 2-3 Preston (Mon, 2pm)
Accrington Stanley 0-2 Tranmere (Wed, 2pm)
Burnley 5-0 Port Vale (Wed, 2pm)
Morecambe 1-1 Carlisle United (Wed, 7pm)
Preston 0-3 Wigan (Wed, 2pm)
Accrington Stanley v Wigan
Bury v Burnley
Carlisle United v Preston
Oldham v Walsall
Port Vale v Morecambe
Final fixture in the division next week :
Burnley v Wigan (Mon)
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