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Meanwhile for the Seagulls French centre-half Georges Santos returned to the Brighton starting line-up after missing the Carling Cup defeat at Southend in midweek with a slight neck injury. Santos partnering Joel Lynch in the heart of the Albion defence, with Adam El-Abd at right-back and Paul Reid shifting into midfield. Wantaway goalkeeper Wayne Henderson was named among the substitutes, as was gangly Swiss-born DR Congo international striker Maheta Molango, who was amazingly involved for the first time in two years, missing though was ex-Gillingham midfielder Richard Carpenter due to illness.
The Blues kicked into the sun towards the Warwick Road End in the first-half and came flying out of the traps against an extremely slow-starting Albion outfit. Infact it only took six minutes for the Cumbrians to take the lead, after what wouldn't prove to be the only bad defensive work on the day from Santos. The one-time Grimsby man completely misjudging a Zigor Aranalde long-throw as the ball bounced short of him and over his head to Hawley on the penalty-spot. The "Hitman" taking the ball in nicely on his thighs before turning his marker in Lynch and firing an unstoppable left-footed effort low past keeper Michel Kuipers and into the bottom corner of the visitors net - what a start!!
United's speed upfront was causing a poor Brighton back-line all kinds of problems and in the 11th minute Kuipers wrestled Hawley to the ground on the by-line as the Carlisle man chased down a long Peter Murphy ball up. Kuipers being unbelievably lucky to escape a yellow card from referee Jonathan Moss from Leeds, if incidents like that aren't a booking then I really don't know what are. Chris Lumsdon putting the free-kick in only for Lynch to head behind at the near-post for a corner, Lumsdon sending the ball in once more, and this time Murphy really should have done better for the Blues as he ran in unmarked only to head over the top from just eight yards out.
Four minutes later Hackney showed his pace down the left again as he skipped past El-Abd and got a cross in to the middle of the Brighton box, Hawley was the first on to it but he was stretching for a header and could only nod it over Kuipers' crossbar. Murphy went close again just sixty seconds on when an inswinging corner from the left by-line by Lumsdon was powerfully headed by the Irishman just past the Seagulls near-post from the centre of the visitors penalty area. After 24 minutes some great work by Chris Billy in midfield saw the ball fed to Gall down the right, the ex-Yeovil man sending a cross in which saw Lynch panic and slice the ball inches past his own goal with Kuipers stranded.
Dean Hammond was the first booking on the day in the 28th minute as he was yellow-carded for a foul on Lumsdon, with the Seagulls defence rocking badly, the next Albion action seeing Tommy Fraser replace Paul Reid, who had twisted his knee, sixty seconds later. A second goal was certainly coming for the Cumbrians and it finally did on 31 minutes after Hackney had been hauled to the ground down the left-edge of the Brighton box by Kerry Mayo. Aranalde stuck the free-kick in to the back-post which El-Abd could only head straight back to him across the goalmouth under pressure from Murphy, United's Basque left-back taking a quick touch before driving a low centre across goal which Gray, in a tussle with Santos, was able to bundle into the back of the net from close-range.
That 2-0 lead for the Blues seeing caretaker manager Dean Wilkins reorganise to a 4-4-2 formation as he shifted the hitherto underused Dean Cox to the right flank. As Cox saw more of the ball, then so Albion began to look a better proposition going forward, the youngster curling a useful looking left-footed shot inches wide of Westwood's far-post from 22 yards out after 34 minutes. The Blues were beginning to sit back a little bit too much on their lead now for my liking as they seemingly thought they could coast through the rest of the match unscathed.
The visitors had other ideas and in the 40th minute, after an earlier Alex Revell long-ranger went sailing wide, they had a great chance to pull the score back to 2-1. Dean Hammond sending a cross in from the right which Gary Hart headed back across goal from 12 yards out, only for Westwood to make a tremendous one-handed save when he pushed the ball around his near-post with the header arrowing towards the bottom corner. The Cumbrians were still hard at it up the other end though when a quickly taken Aranalde free-kick set up Hackney to cross in low from the left by-line, the centre zipping inches past the outstretched legs of Gall and Hawley in the Brighton six-yard box.
The score really should have been 3-0 to the Blues a minute before the interval after some appalling defending by Santos, the Brighton man firstly falling over the ball before slicing an attempted back-pass to Kuipers miles down the left-flank straight into Hackney's runway. The one-time Woodley Sports flyer putting a peach of a cross into the Seagulls back-post only for Gall, running in unmarked ahead of Mayo, to somehow slice his half-volley zooming wide of the target from the six-yard line.
Bang on the 45-minute mark visitors left-winger Alex Frutos crossed in for the onrushing Hammond, but fortunately for the Cumbrians his 12-yard header flew straight into the hands of Westwood. The last chance of the first-half came the way of the Blues in the final minute of the two added on after Murphy had made a surging run forward from his centre-half spot. Murphy's quick one-two with Hackney seeing the Dubliner cross into the Brighton box, Hawley was unable to get a good connection on his shot though and the ball dribbled wide of Kuipers' far-post. The half-time whistle being blown seconds later on an excellent 45 minute performance from Carlisle against a shellshocked Seagulls outfit.
With Brighton now needing at least two goals in the second-half boss Wilkins made a change during the break, the beleaguered Santos being replaced with ex-Atletico Madrid frontman Molango. That meaning Hart moved into the right-back spot with El-Abd going across into the middle of the Seagulls back-line. To be fair to Molango the visitors certainly looked more dangerous upfront due to his introduction but the second period started in similar fashion to the opening one, Carlisle in charge of proceedings as Albion seemed to do nothing but pass the ball into touch constantly, it was like watching Rugby Union at times.
It was quieter fare though as United sat back on their lead with Brighton seemingly unable to string any kind of passing move together. In the 50th minute Gray looked to get on the end of an Aranalde long throw-in to the Seagulls near-post but he was quickly crowded out. Two minutes later the Cumbrians tried to rectify their dire record of scoring from direct free-kicks as Hawley turned on to a Lumsdon touch-off with everyone expecting a shot from Murphy or Aranalde. The United striker had to produce all the power himself though from 22 yards out with no run-up and his right-footed shot proved an easy low take for Kuipers.
Shortly afterwards the Blues had another chance of a third goal when Gall sped onto a neat lay-off from Hawley down the right-hand channel, Gall hitting a fierce shot across goal from 15 yards out which Kuipers did well to get down quickly to and save at his near-post. United taking their foot off the pedal gave the visitors heart though as they had a lot more possession, Hammond seeing Westwood expertly tip his goalbound 12-yard header, from a Frutos free-kick in, over the top of the Cumbrians crossbar.
In the 63rd minute Hart was booked for dissent by Mr Moss after he protested too much about a foul conceded by him on the impressive Hackney. The game really did go through a quiet spell now though with only long-range efforts from Frutos and Revell forcing Westwood into any kind of save, the United keeper certainly not troubled by either shot. The next point of any note coming after 72 minutes when Raven was booked for a foul on Hammond, the Carlisle man further injuring his troublesome groin in the challenge, Arnison eventually coming on to replace the limping Cumbrians right-back two minutes later.
Albion made their third and final change of the match with 78 minutes gone as Sam Rents took the place of Frutos, that didn't stop the Blues though as they woke up the game and made the scoreline 3-0 just four minutes later. A lovely slick passing move by Carlisle resulting in the ball being with Hawley out on the left-angle of the Brighton box. The United frontman reversing traditional roles with Hackney as he sent an excellent cross in to the far-post over the head of Mayo for the diminutive Blues winger to head back across Kuipers and into the net from five yards out.
The Seagulls finally gave their 364-strong travelling band of supporters, out of a disappointing total Brunton Park attendance of 7,704, something to cheer about with three minutes left after Murphy had slipped when controlling a long ball up by Hammond on his chest. That allowing Revell to nip in on the loose ball just outside the edge of the Cumbrians box, the ex-Braintree striker running on and firing in a right-footed 15-yarder that just crept under the full-length dive of Westwood and into the Carlisle net.
Bizarrely enough that goal seemed to give the visitors some real purpose and the last three minutes, plus the three minutes of added on time, would prove to be by far their best spell in the game. Fraser wasting a great opportunity just sixty seconds after Revell's goal to make it 3-2 and see a nervous ending to the match for United fans, the youngster steaming in on a cross by Lynch only to thump his header inches over the top of the Carlisle crossbar from 12 yards out.
Revell tried to get himself on the scoresheet again two minutes into injury time as he hammered in a left-footed 25-yarder from the left-hand channel but Westwood was well placed to take the powerful effort in on the bounce. The final whistle coming sixty seconds later on a game in which the visitors never really woke up until the second-half and by then it was too late for them to really get anything out of the game after a storming opening 45 minutes from the Blues.
Post-match quotes :
A fuming Dean Wilkins, Brighton's caretaker-manager, said after the game:
"The players have had a few plaudits lately but they have had to ask questions of themselves here. We've played a lot of games recently and the preparation was as good as it could have been for the game. The players have got to take a good look at themselves and decide how much responsibility they really want to take."