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Kicking against a slight wind that would get stronger as the game went on, Carlisle had the first chance of the game on three minutes. Connor Tinnion, who having been sent off last Saturday presumably starts his three-match ban next week, setting up Andy Cook for a 20-yard right-footed drive that went wide of the visitors far-post.
Cook was to make no mistake five minutes later though as he netted his tenth goal of the season. Ryan Bowman and Matt Duffy combining neatly with a header and a lay-off on the edge of the Wrexham box that allowed Cook to hammer home a right-footed drive low into the near bottom corner from 15 yards out.
On 16 minutes the visitors had their first shooting opportunity but Blues goalkeeper Alex Mitchell was able to watch a 20-yard shot from Rob Pearson fly over the top of his crossbar. United were pressing again shortly afterwards though when Cook showed a good touch to take down a Simon Lakeland ball into the visitors penalty area.
Cook, shooting on the turn, seeing his goalbound effort blocked out for a corner. Tinnion curled that into the box, and with the ball only being part-cleared by a hard-pressed Wrexham defence, Cook smacked a right-footed shot across goal from 18 yards out which whistled inches wide of the far-post.
Carlisle did make it 2-0 though with 23 minutes on the clock when Cook, despite having his shirt pulled, made a great run in from the right-hand corner past two defenders before pushing the ball across to Liam Davison. United's attacking midfielder then seeing his powerful 12-yard shot with his right boot take a tiny deflection off a Wrexham youngster on it's way into the back of the net.
Shaun Law was the next Blue trying his luck on 27 minutes but, after cutting in from the right, he could only slice his 20-yard shot on his weaker left foot across goal and well wide of the visitors back-stick. On the half-hour mark it was Bowman showing some neat footwork as he dribbled in from the right to set up Cook for a right-footed shot on the penalty spot that was in all the way, only for Wrexham defender Kai Edwards to hack it away from the line.
Cook again in the action sixty seconds later when, after being fouled in the middle of the visitors 'D', he brushed himself down to hammer the set-piece inches wide of the far-post with his right boot. Wrexham had been slowly dragging themselves into the game though and some poor defending by Carlisle saw a nice move from the Welshmen end up with a 15-yard shot from Edwards being hammered past a relatively helpless Mitchell on 35 minutes.
The Red Dragons were having a good spell now as they played the ball around and on 40 minutes a shot from distance by Pearson went well wide of the United goal, then four minutes later came another bit of poor defending on a high ball from the Blues. The result of that being a fierce Matty Hurdman right-footed drive from 22 yards out in the right-hand channel that flew goalwards only to drift away at the last second and clip out off the side of Mitchell's far-post.
The last action of the first-half had seen a Pearson 22-yard shot easily saved by Mitchell, then the first action of the second-half saw Cook try an audacious shot straight from the kick-off that visitors goalkeeper Dan Staples was easily able to watch go wide of the target. The Wrexham number one though called into action two minutes later when Davison's right-footed shot from 22 yards out zoomed straight into his gloves.
With 50 minutes gone Jonny Blake was trying to repeat his scoring feat from last week, but after Cook's lay-off, he was unlucky to see his well-hit shot from the edge of the penalty area go straight at Staples. United, getting on top of things with the wind at their backs, then hitting two shots from 25 yards over the visitors crossbar within sixty seconds, the first coming from Law and then the second from Tinnion.
Bang on the hour-mark and some good hustling from Blake in the midfield area saw the ball break through to Bowman one-on-one with Staples, albeit with Wrexham defender Hurdman snapping at his heels. Staples stood strong though 12 yards out and made a great save as Bowman looked to side-foot a shot beyond him, Hurdman then able to hoof the rebound out for a throw-in.
There was a change on the right-hand side of the Carlisle midfield with 65 minutes gone when John Seaton came on for Law, but it was the visitors who had the next shot on goal when a speculative 25-yarder from Hurdman went well wide of Mitchell's left-hand post. The break in play seeing Wrexham make their first substitution of the game as Jordan Kane replaced Head upfront.
Straight from that Mitchell goal-kick and it was almost 3-1 again as Cook's headed flick-on landed on the bounce for Bowman to lob the ball right-footed 18 yards out over the advancing Staples, sadly for United though it went over the crossbar as well. That being Bowman's last action in the match as he was replaced upfront by Scot Chris McDougall on 70 minutes.
Moments later and Blake, McDougall and Seaton showed some good inter-linking play to feed the ball across to Cook on the right-hand edge of the Wrexham box. Cook's hammered cross-shot on his right foot seeing McDougall just unable to knock it home from an extremely tight angle on the far by-line, the ball actually coming away from goal before the visitors number one pounced on it.
In the 72nd minute Carlisle came as close to conceding an equaliser as they would when Blake, behind Nick Rushton charging forward, seemed to push the Red Dragon in the back and therefore to the floor, only for a penalty to not be given, much to the chagrin of the Wrexham coaches Joey Jones and Stuart Webber, plus a healthy following of away supporters.
Cook was trying to score the goal of the season sixty seconds on as he flicked the ball up two or three times 15 yards out before thumping a right-footed volley in on the turn which unfortunately, from a Carlisle perspective, went straight at the Wrexham goalkeeper. Cook then the provider in the 74th minute as McDougall curled a 20-yard left-footer goalwards which was easy for Staples to take.
Wrexham brought on Declan Walker for Aaron Malton after 77 minutes as they moved to three upfront in their quest for a late leveller, but it was United pressing with ten minutes left. Lakeland's neat pass to Davison seeing the Carlisle midfielder's 15-yard right-footed shot flick off a defender then the top of the crossbar on it's way over. The resultant Blake corner seeing Cook head wide of the Wrexham far-post from eight yards out.
The Blues could perhaps have done better on 82 minutes when McDougall's lay-off from a loose ball fell a little bit too close to Tinnion, with the Carlisle left-winger not able to shift his feet quickly enough as he ended up slicing his 20-yard shot wide of the target. The next effort on goal coming from Wrexham's Pearson moments later but Mitchell, who had little to do all game, was able to watch it fly well wide from 20 yards out.
United were looking by far the more likely side to score again though and on 87 minutes McDougall showed some nice skill in the far corner before curling in a lovely cross which Seaton, on the penalty spot, headed inches over the Wrexham crossbar. Cook then setting up Tinnion sixty seconds later for a left-footed 20-yarder, which again, zipped inches over the top.
The last minute found the roles reversed as Tinnion's cross saw Cook, stretching at the back-stick, toe-poke a right-footed volley wide from ten yards out. Cook, with the clock showing two minutes of injury time, then breaking forward on the way to seeing his right-footed shot from 15 yards out on the left pinging off a Wrexham defender straight into the side-netting, the resultant Blake corner coming to nothing.
So, in stark contrast to the first-team, that is five wins on the bounce now for the United youngsters. Again, two names not mentioned in the match report being the centre-half pairing of skipper Tom Aldred and Jamie Cleary, both players, bar a couple of little errors, performing well behind a midfield that worked hard to give them plenty of cover throughout the match. United's next chance to bag another win coming next Saturday when they return to league action at Gillford Park at home to Bury in an 11am kick-off.
United line-up :
Alex Mitchell, Simon Lakeland, Matt Duffy, Tom Aldred (c), Jamie Cleary, Jonny Blake, Shaun Law (John Seaton 65), Liam Davison, Andy Cook, Ryan Bowman (Chris McDougall 70), Connor Tinnion.
Unused substitutes :
Mark Gillespie (GK), Steven Swinglehurst and James Wood.
Wrexham line-up :
Dan Staples, Jack Jones, Johnny Hunt, Josh Marsh, Kai Edwards, Rob Pearson, Matty Hurdman, Aaron Malton (Declan Walker 75), Obi Anoruo, Marc Head (Jordan Kane 66), George Stewart (Nick Rushton 46).
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