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Missing midfielder Simon Lakeland through illness and centre-half Dan Wordsworth suspended Carlisle were down to four substitutes on the bench, one of those faces being an under-16s defender in Laquan Biney - an area in which United have little strength in depth. The absence of Wordsworth today again seeing Matt Duffy move from left-back to centre-half with Matthew Brown swapping flanks from his usual right side to fill the gap, Jonny Blake then dropping back from midfield to fill Brown's vacant spot.
The visitors got in the first shot of the game in the opening minute but a 25-yarder flew wide of Blues goalkeeper Alex Mitchell's far-post. Five minutes later though and United took the lead when Andrew Cook picked up on some slack defending to release Ged Dalton down the right-hand channel. Dalton then sending in a low cross which was easy fare for Cook to side-foot home from four yards out to make the score 1-0.
In the tenth minute Gary Madine tried a 22-yard curler with his right foot across the Spireites goal, his effort flying away over the angle of far-post and bar. Shortly afterwards Mitchell, who made some excellent saves throughout, was forced into action twice in quick succession when a couple of sharp shots from mid-range Chesterfield efforts rained in on his goal.
After 14 minutes Madine held the ball up well before playing Cook in nicely down the right-hand channel, Cook seeing his right-footed effort from 18 yards out well saved by the Spireites keeper at his near-post. Three minutes later Carlisle skipper Stephen Hindmarch sent a lovely slide-rule pass through to Madine down the right, no-one was there to gamble on Madine's low cross in though and the chance was gone.
Midway through the opening period a ten-yard Chesterfield header from a corner was easily claimed by Mitchell. United then making it 2-0 on 25 minutes through their next attack on goal, Connor Tinnion playing the ball to Matthew Wood, with Wood then skipping past a defender before firing a powerful left-footed drive from 15 yards out across the visitors glovesman and into the far bottom corner of the net.
Sixty seconds on and a 20-yard Spireites free-kick, conceded by Tom Aldred, flew well over the top of the United crossbar. Cook then firing a right-footed effort across goal from 25 yards out, but wide of the far-post, as the Blues continued to press forward with the wind at their backs. Just after the half-hour mark Mitchell made a brilliant one-handed save, from a 12-yard left-footed half volley, after initially heading in the other direction as he tracked the Chesterfield cross in.
The busy Blues keeper was able to make an easy catch from a close-range header after a corner in the 33rd minute but it was Carlisle pushing up the pitch once more shortly afterwards. A nice move involving Madine and Hindmarch seeing Cook's low drive blocked before Madine and Hindmarch linked up again, Hindmarch slipped while shooting though and his 25-yarder trickled away wide of the far-post.
United did grab their third goal of the game after 38 minutes, Wood's header from eight yards out, following a Tinnion corner in, hitting the leg of a Chesterfield defender before squirming under the body of the Spireites goalkeeper as he looked to stop the ball low down on his line. Corners at both ends being wind-assisted througout the match as a strong breeze swirled around Brunton Park.
There was an eventful end to the half from the 44th minute onwards when a Chesterfield corner in was well taken down, the shot coming in being blocked over the top by Aldred, the Carlisle defender then heading away the resultant flag-kick in. The ball came back in again though and Mitchell made a good parried save from a fierce drive straight at him before he made an ever better stop at his near-post moments later when Duffy had failed to clear his lines properly.
Chesterfield had obviously got a good ticking-off during the interval and they came out strongly in the second-half with the wind in their favour. Three similarly well-hit shots from 20-25 yards out in the opening four minutes either flying wide of Mitchell's goal or going more or less straight at him as the Spireites pressed strongly in their efforts to find a way back into the game.
In the 55th minute Wood conceded a free-kick near the half-way line, the set-piece delivered in being fired over the top on the volley from 15 yards out by a Spireites attacker. Sixty seconds after having the chance to cut the deficit to two goals though the visitors found themselves 4-0 down. Dalton, away down the right-hand channel following Cook's neat pass, able to slide the rebound home under the Chesterfield goalkeeper after his initial 25-yard right-footed drive had been saved.
After 64 minutes Wood headed Tinnion's corner over the top of the Spireites crossbar from eight yards out. Then shortly afterwards, following a foul on Dalton, 22 yards out to the right of the Chesterfield 'D', Tinnion curled a left-footed effort inches wide of the visitors near-post. Spireites youth team manager Dave Bentley then making the first substitution of the game in the 66th minute as he made a change upfront.
United boss Eric Kinder moments after responding in kind to the change in the 68th minute when he brought on young centre-half Biney in place of Blake. The consequent reshuffle seeing Brown move to his normal right-back spot, Duffy return to his usual left-back role, and the trialist slot into the spare centre-half position.
You had to feel sorry for Biney too as within sixty seconds of him entering the fray for his debut at this level Chesterfield had made the score 4-1. A Spireites midfielder being allowed to run too far unchallenged as his 22-yard shot was saved by Mitchell, with one of the visitors strikers then being able to toe-poke the rebound into the back of the United net from close range. John Seaton then replacing Wood in the Carlisle engine room before the kick-off.
After 73 minutes Tinnion was yellow-carded for a foul, then five minutes later Tinnion was again in the thick of the action as his initial corner then resultant shot were both cleared. His next cross in then seeing Cook send a glancing header onto the face of the Chesterfield crossbar from eight yards out, Dalton then having his shot from the rebound blocked before the ball was finally hacked away from danger by a Spireites defender.
With 79 minutes on the clock a Chesterfield corner saw a header zoom wide of Mitchell's far-post, Blues boss Eric Kinder then making his third and final change of the game when Michael Dowson came on for Dalton in midfield. Two minutes later the Spireites made it 4-2 when a poorly hit shot from a free-kick 22 yards out completely wrong-footed Mitchell when it pinged off the legs of a Chesterfield player as it flew into the opposite bottom corner of his net.
Mitchell then being somewhat bizarrely booked for time-wasting as he hoofed the ball away in disgust towards the half-way line, as if the resultant kick-off was going to be taken from anywhere else. The yellow cards not stopping there as a Chesterfield midfielder was booked for a late lunge on Hindmarch. Madine's 22-yard right-footed effort from the dead-ball hitting the outside of the Spireites far-post as the Blues looked to get back on the goal trail.
With time ticking down in the 88th minute Seaton was brought down out on the United right. Brown's free-kick in seeing Cook head over the top from 12 yards out. In the first minute of injury time Carlisle grabbed the last goal of the game to make it 5-2 when, following some excellent hold-up play and a pass into him by Madine, Cook skillfully rounded a defender then the goalkeeper down the left-hand channel as he slid the ball home into the net from a tight angle.
The last chance of the match coming almost straight from the kick-off for the Spireites when a ten-yard header from a left-wing cross flew straight into the arms of Mitchell. So, nine wins from their last ten matches now in all competitions, along with 27 goals scored, leaves the young Blues going into their second round FA Youth Cup at Mansfield Town on Tuesday night with real confidence.
United line-up :
Alex Mitchell, Jonny Blake (Laquan Biney 68), Matthew Brown, Matt Duffy, Tom Aldred, Matthew Wood (John Seaton 69), Ged Dalton (Michael Dowson 79), Stephen Hindmarch (c), Gary Madine, Andrew Cook, Connor Tinnion.
Unused substitute :
John Jamieson (GK).
United goalscorers - Andrew Cook (6, 90), Matthew Wood (25, 38) and Ged Dalton (56).
Results this morning, Youth Alliance Cup Round Two, 11am kick-off :
Northern Section
Blackpool 0-2 Preston North End
Burnley 5-1 Shrewsbury Town
Bury 2-4 Hartlepool United (12noon)
Carlisle United 5-2 Chesterfield (1pm)
Lincoln City 0-1 Mansfield Town
Rotherham United 1-3 Rochdale
Stockport County 1-2 Hull City (11.30am)
Wigan Athletic 3-1 Morecambe
Southern Section
Bristol Rovers 0-5 Colchester United
Cheltenham Town 3-3 Oxford United, Oxford United won 4-2 on penalties
Gillingham 0-1 Brentford
Peterborough United 2-1 Southend United
Plymouth Argyle 0-5 Brighton & Hove Albion
Queens Park Rangers 2-0 Luton Town
Swindon Town 1-2 Rushden & Diamonds
Wycombe Wanderers 8-0 Hereford United
Fixtures in the division next Saturday morning :
Port Vale v Walsall (playing Friday)
Accrington Stanley v Morecambe
Bury v Macclesfield
Carlisle United v Blackpool
Chester v Wrexham
Oldham v Preston
Rochdale v Burnley
Tranmere v Stockport
Wigan v Shrewsbury
Youth Team Results : Click here
Youth Team Table : Click here
Youth Team Reports : Click here
Youth Team Squad : Click here