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Like the Blues Huddersfield were missing their number one goal-getter as Gary Taylor-Fletcher watched the game from the stands while nursing a knee injury. With Danny Adams suspended for the Terriers Tom Clarke was drafted into the back-four at right-back with Andy Holdsworth switching flanks to left-back, while Danny Schofield replaced Taylor-Fletcher in boss Peter Jackson's five-man midfield. In goal for Town was ex-United hero Matt Glennon who kept his place in the side after a good performance against Bradford seven days earlier, that relegating one-time Charlton keeper Paul Rachubka to the bench.
It was certainly a well-contested game throughout, although that led to a slow opening to the match with both sides battling for possession in the middle of the pitch. That tough start to the game meant the first half-chance came in the 13th minute when traditional Carlisle nemesis Luke Beckett saw an 18-yard shot well blocked by Murphy, Simon Hackney then on-hand to complete the clearance for the Cumbrians. Two minutes later and the home side went close when centre-half Martin McIntosh powered in a 12-yard header after Michael Collins had swung a right-footed corner in, Keiren Westwood only managing to parry the ball out in front of goal but fortunately Chris Billy was well-placed to hoof clear.
The Terriers had seen the better of the play in the opening 20 minutes and they would make that count after 21 minutes when they went 1-0 up, typically enough through that man Beckett. Hackney the man at fault for Carlisle as his poor attempted pass back to skipper Kevin Gray only went straight to Beckett in the middle of the pitch 25 yards out from the Cumbrians goal. Pace certainly isn't ex-Huddersfield man Gray's strong point and that would prove to be the case as Beckett showed him a clean pair of heels to run in and fire home a powerful left-footed drive beyond Westwood and into the corner of the United net from 15 yards out.
Hackney thought he had atoned for his error just two minutes later when he sneaked in at the back-post to get on the end of a deep cross in from Blues right-back Paul Arnison. Hackney powering his header beyond the reach of Westwood only to see the assistant referee raise his flag for offside. After 26 minutes Westwood was sent scrambling across his goal-line as he tried to cover a looping 25-yard right-footed effort from midfielder Mark Hudson, the United keeper grateful to see the ball dip inches over his own crossbar in the end.
Westwood could do little about Huddersfield's second goal on 32 minutes when the Terriers were awarded an extremely debatable penalty by referee Jarnail Singh of Hounslow, Middlesex. The official judging, rather unwisely, that Murphy was guilty of hand to ball, even though he had his back to the action, as the Dubliner looked to block a cross in from the left by Beckett, it was a dire decision by Mr Singh to be perfectly honest. Beckett picked up the ball to take the spot-kick and despite a valiant attempt to save it by Westwood, which saw him get his fingertips to the shot, the ball nestled in the back of the Carlisle net.
So, 2-0 down after 32 minutes and with no away win this season things were hardly looking very rosy for the Cumbrians. United rolled their sleeves up but, after good approach by Zigor Aranalde, Hackney and Beckford, Lumsdon could only curl a poor side-footed effort well wide of Glennon's goal from 25 yards out. In the 40th minute came the first booking of the contest when combative Carlisle midfielder Paul Thirlwell was yellow-carded for a rough-house late challenge on Terriers right-winger Matthew Young.
United had been coming into the game a bit more now and the Blues gave themselves a lifeline in the game two minutes before the break with an outstanding goal from villain turned hero Hackney. The flying left-winger latching onto a pass in to him from Lumsdon, the ex-Woodley Sports man calmly taking the ball down on his chest before firing an unstoppable left-footed effort on the half-volley from fully 25 yards out past the despairing dive of Glennon and into the back of the Huddersfield net.
A nice move involving Kevin Gall, Beckford and Hackney a minute into the eventual four minutes of time added on saw United win a corner after Gall had seen a 18-yard shot blocked behind by Terriers centre-half Nathan Clarke. Lumsdon quickly stuck the flag-kick in and Murphy was inches away from sending it goalwards as the ball flicked just off the top of his head and went out on the far side for a Town throw-in, the Blues really taking things to the home side now as they looked to go in level at the break.
Tom Clarke had gone down heavily after colliding with Beckford at the corner and he would need to be stretchered off and substituted before the interval, Chris Brandon taking up the right-wing berth for Huddersfield with Young then dropping down a line to right-back in place of the stricken Clarke. The last action before the teams disappeared off back down the tunnel again came the way of United, a mishit cross by Murphy flying into the Town side-netting at the near-post with Glennon seemingly beaten if the ball had been a foot further to the left.
Carlisle came out for the second-half following on from where they had left off late in the opening period, Hackney and Beckford combining well only for Hackney to cross in too deep beyond the reach of the raiding Gall and Lumsdon. Five minutes in and Young brought down Billy 25 yards out for the Town goal, Aranalde stepping up to hammer the set-piece disappointingly wide of Glennon's far-post with his left foot. In the 52nd minute Hudson tried a hopeful effort from just outside the United 'D' after turning Murphy well, Westwood able to hold the Town man's shot easily on the bounce though.
After 57 minutes Lumsdon stuck in a dangerous cross from the right which Glennon was only able to punch away straight to the feet of Gall 30 yards out in the right-hand channel. Gall couldn't hit the target though as his first-time right-footed half-volley flew well over the top of the Terriers goal. Three minutes later a slide-rule pass from Jonathan Worthington between Murphy and Gray found Beckett, the ex-Chesterfield forward's first touch was poor as he looked to clain his hat-trick though and Westwood was able to scoop up the loose ball as he raced off his line.
Just after the hour-mark Gall skipped away down the right-flank and sent a lovely ball in across the middle of the Town penalty area, Beckford hadn't anticipated the pass though and the chance was gone as the ball flew away to safety from a Terriers point of view. With 65 minutes gone the Blues earned a free-kick after Young had fouled Hackney out on the left, Aranalde curled an outswinger into the Huddersfield box but Murphy could only launch a powerful 12-yard header inches wide of Glennon's far-post.
Just moments later, with the home goal leading an unbelievably charmed life, Arnison latched onto a nice lay-off from Gall to unleash a right-footed effort from just outside the Terriers penalty area, once more though the shot flew off-target as Arnison was put under pressure by Holdsworth, the powerful effort zooming just over the top. Beckford was the next Blue to fire in a shot after 68 minutes, yet again though the right-footed 20-yard drive went over Glennon's crossbar. Sixty seconds later United boss Neil McDonald made his first change of the game as he went to a more attacking formation by bringing on Glenn Murray for Lumsdon.
With 20 minutes left to go Thirlwell conceded a free-kick when he brought down midfielder Andy Holdsworth 25 yards out in the left-hand channel. Town must have been reading from the Cumbrians shooting manual though as Holdsworth dusted himself down to blast the set piece well over the top of the United goal with his right foot. The game went through a slightly quiet spell for a while now but it exploded into life again on 77 minutes when Aranalde sent a dangerous low pacey cross in from the left, Glenn Murray just inches away from connecting with the ball as it zoomed across the Huddersfield six-yard line.
With ten minutes left home manager Peter Jackson introduced his second substitute of the afternoon when he took off the hard-working Beckett and brought on veteran striker Andy Booth. Beckett leaving the field to a standing ovation from the 9,566 home fans in the Galpharm Stadium, the Blue Army making up 1,264 of the 10,830 total attendance. In the 82nd minute both Arnison and Brandon went into the book for a bout of handbags after Brandon had fouled the Cumbrians defender out on the right-flank, the Blues using the break in the play to make a change as they brought on Derek Holmes for the ineffectual Beckford upfront.
Five minutes to go and Holmes laid the ball into the path of Arnison 25 yards out down the right-hand channel, Arnison firing in a fierce first-time drive which was certainly goalbound only for the ball to ping away off the legs of Hudson. With sixty seconds left on the clock you finally began to realise that it wasn't going to be Carlisle's day after Collins fouled Thirlwell just to the right of the Huddersfield 'D'. It was perfect territory for the left foot of Murphy but once more luck was against the Cumbrians as the Dubliner's shot thudded off the underside of Glennon's bar, Young somehow hacking the loose ball away from danger.
Two minutes into the four added on at the end of the game Glenn Murray couldn't have gone any closer as he headed an inswinging Hackney corner literally centimetres wide of the Town back-stick with Glennon rooted to his line. Sixty seconds later and it was Thirlwell who almost grabbed that elusive equaliser when Glennon made a smart save low down at his near-post to block out the United midfielder's 18-yard right-footed drive. The last chance coming the way of Gall just before the final whistle, only for the Welsh frontman to slice a mid-range shot horribly wide, that effort somehow putting the icing on the cake on a day where the Blues could have played until midnight without finding that late leveller.
Post-match quotes :
Huddersfield boss Peter Jackson said :
"I was relieved to hang on for the win. We've played a lot better and not picked up the points. We controlled the game for the first 40 minutes but we then allowed them back into it."