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It was the Saddlers who started the better as the players got used to match action again and in the second minute a long range strike from influential skipper Aaron Forde deflected in on goal off Brad Potts, Jon Ball then having to make an excellent one-handed save to keep the scoreline at 0-0. Walsall stopper James Wren then on duty eight minutes later as he punched the ball away off his line at his near-post after Dave Symington sent in a mishit cross from the right.
Shortly afterwards and it was back to Ball when he had to tip a deflected cross in from Jake Jones over his crossbar, Forde then sending a ten-yard looping header up in the air for Ball to catch from the resultant Mellors-Blair corner in. The Blues then missing a good chance to take the lead in the 17th minute as Mckenna's flag-kick in went inches behind an unmarked Mark Beck, the United striker therefore only heading back across goal and wide of the near-post from close range.
Four minutes later and Symington struck in a long-range shot that was an easy one for Wren to take. Then just before the half-hour mark Beck was fouled by Tom Hayes for a Carlisle free-kick 35 yards out, the determined Symington though wasting the opportunity as he slammed a right-footed drive straight into the Walsall defensive wall. United missing out on another good chance after 33 minutes when Phil Towler sent a nice pass through for Mckenna, the Blues youngster dallying a little too long on a 15-yard shot however as he allowed Hayes to nip in with an excellent block tackle.
Mckenna then turned provider five minutes later when he fed in Matt Osmond for a powerfully hit left-footed 25-yard strike in on goal that was well held by the impressive Wren. The Saddlers then forced into a disappointing substitution from their own perspective on 41 minutes when useful looking central midfielder Forde had to be replaced due to injury, with Mitch Botfield then coming on in his place as the captain's armband was passed on to centre-half Hayes.
Moments later and Towler made an excellent run forward, with Beck acting well as a decoy, but his right-footed curler from just outside the penalty area drifted away wide of Wren's left-hand post. Just before the interval and Carlisle left-back Kieran Cahill sent a low cross in from the left but Osmond had just over-run it and his attempted flick from almost behind himself pinged away wide of the target off his left boot.
The game started to kick into action now as we awaited our half-time cuppa and a minute into injury time Osmond's headed clearance on a Connor Deards cross fell straight to Botfield 20 yards out, the Saddler though only slicing his right-footed half-volley well over the top. The last action of the opening period coming shortly afterwards when Towler played in Mckenna for a looping left-footed shot from just inside the Walsall penalty area which dropped straight into the grateful gloves of Wren.
As for the second-half, well that couldn't have started any worse for the Cumbrians as the visitors managed to get themselves 1-0 up within about 40 seconds of the restart. Mellors-Blair allowed far too much time on the Paddock side of the pitch to put in a low cross to the Carlisle back-stick from which Cahill was a little a bit on his heels to start with. The United defender then only able to slide the ball into his own net from close range under heavy pressure from the running-in Jones behind him.
After 49 minutes the Blues had a chance to level when Symington nicked possession away from Hayes down the right, Hayes then pulling the Carlisle man back as the referee waved advantage and allowed Symington, with Hayes now inches behind him, to shoot right-footed from 15 yards out only to see Wren make an excellent one-handed save. Mckenna then two minutes later setting up Towler for a right-footed 20-yard drive which was neatly pushed away from danger by Wren, who was probably Walsall's man of the match on the night.
United then missed another very good chance to score after 57 minutes when Osmond, following a foul on Beck, curled in an absolutely perfect ball with his left foot onto the Saddlers six-yard line, only for Potts to somehow head back across goal but wide of the near-post as we all expected the net to bulge. Bang on the hour-mark and it was almost Walsall making it 2-0 though when a Mellors-Blair cross in from the right flicked off the head of Cumbrians skipper Steven Swinglehurst straight to Joey Butlin six yards out for a header that brought a top-notch one-handed leaping save out of Ball.Shortly afterwards and Swinglehurst was in the thick of the action again as he had to make a good block on a Butlin shot from just inside the United box, then in the 62nd minute the Saddlers were still pressing when a Jones flag-kick in from the East Stand/Warwick corner was headed over the top by Mellors-Blair from close range at the Carlisle far-post. Jones and Deards then linking up sixty seconds later for a Deards 18-yard right-footed drive that saw Ball make yet another good save in the United goal.
The Blues were really rocking during this period of the game and midway through the half Towler was yellow carded by referee Joe Buglass for a foul on Jones, with Jones himself then in the 70th minute hitting a left-footed shot in from the middle of the Carlisle 'D' which proved to be a relatively easy one for Ball to take. Six minutes later and Ball saw late a left-footed shot by Jack Cresswell from long range and in the end he did well to make a good parried save away to his left-hand side.
An under-pressure United were looking their most dangerous on the break and shortly afterwards Mckenna sent Beck away but Beck ended up having to check back and lay a pass into the path of Osmond 15 yards out in the middle, Osmond from there scooping a left-footed effort over the top with Cresswell snapping away at his heels. Walsall then responding as they looked to double their lead in the 77th minute, but Ball was able to watch a Deards right-footed shot from distance disappear away well over the top.
Blues boss Eric Kinder then made his only substitution of the game five minutes later when midfielder Towler was replaced by striker Dan Jones as United looked to find an unlikely looking equaliser in the closing stages of the game in which they struggled in front of goal throughout. It was the visitors pressing again in the 83rd minute however when a bout of pinball in the Carlisle box eventually saw Ball have to make an excellent reaction save from a close range Butlin strike.
The Cumbrians did concede a goal that more or less ended the tie two minutes later however, and once more it wasn't from an actual shot. Deards pushing an inswinging low cross into the middle from the left wing that evaded a ruck of bodies in the Carlisle penalty area and ended up nestling in the far bottom corner of Ball's net. The Saddlers then making a change in personnel before the kick-off as Aaron Williams came on in place of left-winger Jones.
You started to get the feeling that United wouldn't score if they played all night when sixty seconds later Mckenna sent a deep corner over to the Walsall back-post but an unmarked Potts hit his right-footed half-volley from eight yards out straight into Wren's side-netting. The Saddlers getting their shots on target again in the 87th minute however as once more Ball made a pretty good save when Williams thumped in a right-footed drive from the middle of the Carlisle 'D'.
As we ticked into injury time the Blues got a couple of late potshots in but firstly Mckenna's right-footed strike from distance was easy for Wren to take, then Jones sent a left-footed half-volley wide from 20 yards out. Those efforts really being the story of the night as Carlisle exited the FA Youth Cup on an evening where, allied to some nervy defending at times, nothing would go right in front of goal, which is something it certainly needed to with Saddlers stopper Wren performing well for the visitors.
United line-up :
Jon Ball, Lance McGlen, Kieran Cahill, Brad Potts, Steven Swinglehurst (c), Josh Todd, Dave Symington, Phil Towler (Dan Jones 82), Mark Beck, Ben Mckenna, Matt Osmond.
Unused substitutes :
Craig Whinham (GK), Adam Gill and Mark Sloan.
Walsall line-up :
James Wren, Ben George, Malvind Singh Benning, Jack Cresswell, Jamie Tank, Tom Hayes (c2), Will Mellors-Blair, Aaron Forde (c1) (Mitchell Botfield 41), Joey Butlin, Connor Deards, Jake Jones (Aaron Williams 85).
Unused substitutes :
Liam Maher (GK), Daniel Cresswell and Jason Wellings.
Referee - Joe Buglass (Walker-on-Tyne).
Attendance - 119.
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