Carlisle United secured their place in the hat for the FA Cup 3rd round draw with a battling win over managerless Brentford in an enthralling game at Brunton Park thanks to a superb goal from James Berrett and a brace from striker Lee Miller.
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LINEUPS:
Carlisle began the game fielding an attack minded 4-5-1 formation, with Lee Miller up top on his own and on loan Manchester United striker Tom Lawrence operating on the left hand side of midfield.
Subs:
Brass (GK)
Livesey
Roddan
Potts (Lawrence – 64′)
Symington (Chimbonda – 82′)
Guy
Noble
Despite reports that Brentford were planning to field their fringe players, the Bees sent out a team which signaled their intent to go for the win as they began with a 4-3-3 like formation, with Donaldson and Grigg playing in especially advanced wide positions and Trotta manning the middle.
Subs:
Saunders (Saville – 84′)
El Alagui (Trotta – 68′)
Logan
Fillo
Reeves (Diagouraga – 59′)
Button (GK)
Nugent
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MATCH REPORT
1st Half
There were indications in the early proceedings of this game that Uwe Rosler’s departure for Wigan the same morning of the match had affected them negatively as they found it hard to outclass a determined Carlisle lineup. They struggled to get any passing going and often resorted to long balls up the field from their back line. A very even first 10 minutes of the game saw Brentford have the first opening of the game, as on loan Fulham striker Marcelo Trotta tried his luck from a good 30 yards out, only to see his shot fall comfortably into the arms of keeper Fleming, playing today due to Ben Amos not having permission from Manchester United to compete in the cup while on loan at Carlisle.
The Cumbrians, not to be outdone, returned the favour as ex England U18 captain Courtney Meppen-Walter broke forward from the halfway line and unleashed a 35 yard thunderbolt which fizzed just past the upright of Richard Lee’s goal. Carlisle very nearly found the breakthrough just past the 10 minute mark in what had been a well balanced game up to this point as James Berrett swung in a corner from the right hand side, Sean O’Hanlon timed his run perfectly and got his head onto the ball roughly 6 yards out only to see his header tipped onto the bar by Lee, a save which wouldn’t have looked out of place in a top flight game on Sky Sports.
Carlisle’s determination was evidently shown, especially by their back line as they put in several crunching challenges, and unfortunately many of these were punished by the referee who looked like he couldn’t wait to award Brentford free kicks, no matter how good the tackles were. Brentford centre mid Adam Forshaw took advantage of this in a very notable incident, as he skipped past a challenge before throwing himself to the floor, an act evident to seemingly everyone in the ground apart from the match officials. O’Hanlon applied the most crucial of these challenges, stopping Trotta from unleashing a shot from well inside the penalty area.
The hosts could have crafted another opening 20 minutes in but a 3-on-1 chance was wasted as Lee Miller attempted a pass to David Amoo, despite Lawrence being open on the opposite side of him. Amoo attempted a drive, but his shot was well blocked by Jake Bidwell. Brentford were struggling to mount any real offense but midway through the first half they had a half hearted penalty shout as Matty Robson got into a tangle with Marcelo Trotta but referee Andy Woolmer, despite his early tendencies, was having none of it. The hosts really took control of the game on the half hour mark as they began to pepper the Brentford penalty area, not allowing the visitors to get out of their own half.
Carlisle continued to look for the opener as Amoo broke into the box on the left hand side of the field and laid an inch perfect pull back to James Berrett who had his effort from 18 yards blocked superbly thanks to more brave defending from Brentford left back Jake Bidwell. Lee Miller attempted a spectacular overhead kick on the rebound, but couldn’t get his effort on target.
Ghanaian midfielder Prince Buaben was not enjoying his best half, as he failed to find his mark with his passes and showing an inability to beat his man, although his defensive work was admirable. The multi million pound strike force of Brentford were unable to create any clear cut chances against a resolute Carlisle back line despite their numbers in attack. Graham Kavanagh’s men continued their dominance, and 10 minutes from time they came very close to a spectacular goal as Lawrence ushered his team mates away from a 40 yard free kick and lashed it towards the net however Lee dealt with it well, palming it out to the side despite the ball dipping right in front of him.
Carlisle finally found their breakthrough in first half stoppage time as some neat work from Lawrence down the left hand side allowed him to find Prince Buaben on the edge of the area and the ex Watford man made up for his mistakes as he set up James Berrett, who struck a marvelous 25 yard rocket into the top right corner, giving Lee little chance to get anywhere near it, a goal which gave the hosts the lead that their first half performance merited.
HALF TIME: Carlisle United 1 – 0 Brentford (Berrett, 45+1)
SECOND HALF
The visitors started the 2nd half in a way which made them look much more like the team that has battled their way to 4th in League One this season. Carlisle appeared to be sitting much deeper and operating much more defensively than in the first half, which appeared to frustrate their supporters. Just minutes in the second half, Adam Forshaw found himself some space in the left hand side of the penalty area and he lashed a shot across the box which Donaldson was just inches away from as he slid in, in an attempt to turn the ball into the net.
Meppen-Walter attempted to build some Carlisle momentum as he put in a string of 3 or 4 good challenges in quick succession. One of which was again punished by the referee, despite appearing to get the ball. Brentford continued their good start to the second period as they began to pass the ball far more effectively and cutting down on the long ball game. They could and maybe should have found a leveler as a delightful through ball from Toumani Diagouraga set up Will Grigg on the right hand side of the penalty area, but he could only find the side netting as he attempted to beat Fleming.
The visitors, under the guidance of assistant manager Alan Kernaghan, first team coach Peter Farrell and sporting director Mark Warburton, very nearly split their opponents wide open as George Saville, on loan from Chelsea, found Clayton Donaldson on the outside of the box with a ball from halfway, but he was well stopped by Carlisle left back Matty Robson. Brentford attempted to add some energy to the game, bringing Jake Reeves on for Diagouraga 15 minutes into the second half.
Carlisle were not showing any of the determination or football that had given them the lead in the first half and were allowing Brentford too much time to play their football, and the away side nearly found a leveler as right back Alan McCormack cut inside and fired a low left footed drive towards the bottom right corner, but Fleming made a good save with his leg and turned the ball away.
All of Brentford’s pressure finally paid off in the 63rd minute, as Lawrence lost track of McCormack, who did superbly to break into the box and drilled a low cross across the box, a cross which unfortunately hit Pascal Chimbonda and trickled into the net. It was a game of two halves up to this point and Brentford looked like they were going to edge the match. Carlisle attempted to change things as they brought on Brad Potts for Tom Lawrence, Kavanagh opted to move Amoo to the left hand side while Potts went to the right hand side of midfield, a position which he had not played at in his Carlisle career previously. Brentford made their second change of the game just minutes later with a straight swap as they brought Farid El Alagui on for Marcelo Trotta, whod had put in a much improved performance in the 2nd half.
Five minutes later, Carlisle found a goal completely against the run of play, as Lee Miller got onto a long ball and put the pair of Brentford centre halves under pressure, he managed to get a head on the ball and it eventually fell to Berrett and he pulled it back to Miller, who slotted into the bottom left corner to give the hosts a perhaps undeserved lead.
Just a couple of minutes later, Amoo, who had largely been kept quiet by McCormack after moving to the left side, used his pace to get past the Irishman and break into the box before being tripped by his marker. Lee Miller picked the ball up and calmly drilled his penalty into the bottom left corner. The game looked sewn up for the hosts, whose supporters were already licking their lips at the prospect of a big draw in the next round of the FA Cup. Carlisle attempted to inject some energy into the game as Pascal Chimbonda was withdrawn for David Symington, who took his place on the right wing as Potts moved back to right full back, despite putting in an excellent performance going forward.
Brentford had nothing to lose at this point and they had to go for it, they made the decision to bring on Sam Saunders for George Saville, changing their formation to what was effectively a 4-2-4, with Donaldson and El Alagui playing through the middle with Grigg and Saunders supporting them from very advanced wide positions.
The Bees made the last few minutes of the game uncomfortable for Carlisle as Paul Thirlwell gave away a silly free kick 30 yards out, fouling Saunders. He floated in the free kick to the far post and combined with fellow substitute El Alagui, who took advantage of Carlisle’s inability to clear the ball and headed the ball just past Fleming, who will have been disappointed to see the ball sneak past him at the near post.
Carlisle held their ground and despite the late fightback, secured a well earned win.
FULL TIME Carlisle United 3 – 2 Brentford (Berrett – 45+1′, Miller – 73′, 77′ (pen)) – (Chimbonda – 63′ (og), El Alagui – 86′)
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Analysis
Overall, Carlisle just about deserved their win, but they should not have allowed Brentford to come back in to the game the way they did, if you give a team like Brentford too many chances they will punish you, but the way Carlisle kept their strike force quiet was very impressive. Meppen-Walter was excellent after his long time away from football and Miller put in quite a decent shift as a lone striker. McCormack and Diagouraga were particularly solid for Brentford in my opinion and their front 3 began to show their quality in the second half, but luckily for Carlisle, it wasn’t enough to give their side the advantage.
My Man Of The Match: Courtney Meppen-Walter
Attendance: 2,581 (173 away fans)
Referee: Andy Woolmer
Under The Floodlights 