Carlisle United vs Barrow AFC Match Thread

[SayitagainSam]

Carlisle Utd. forum comment.

Barrow look relegation fodder on that performance.

Even with our side decimated with injuries we completed dominated them and the bizarre red card should have been academic with the chances we squandered beforehand.

You can see why they did well at Conference level, they're a team of bruisers always in the ear of the ref.

But at League level you need a bit of craft and guile to break teams down and even when they had an extra man they were poor on the ball.

We had better performances across the piece but you would expect that against a struggling side like Barrow.

Have to respect the opinion of your opponents, yes?

[conquistador]

Can't really argue with that, there needs to be big improvements all round.

[russell_anderson]

luckily I didn't see today's game but I was talking to a well-known poster on hear a few weeks ago I told him (hope I'm wrong) that I thought the board made a mistake by going for Dunn without seeing what candidates were available, I also said we needed 2 quality forwards and he said plus someone like Rooney in midfield i said I don't think we'll play like that so far I'm right !

I've been harping on about the loss of Rooney since the day he left. It should have been obvious to anybody who watched Barrow last season that everything went through him. Hardcastle and White were quick and great ball winners but almost every ball from those 2 and the back 4 went to Rooney and all the creation came from him. I don't believe it was possible to replace him from anybody in the National League or anybody we could afford in the EFL but we needed to get somebody who was a creator. As somebody said, I think the idea was that Gribbin would be that player but, although he definitely has a sweet left foot, up to now he struggles to get into the game. IMO, it would have been better to offer Rooney the money we've spent on 2 or 3 players who are nowhere near good enough if that would have kept him at Barrow. Also agree with you that we need at least 1 more good striker because I can't see that any of the ones we have other than Quigley are good enough at this level.

[HenneysKnee]

The way I understand it Rooney didn’t want to move back up to the football league?

Hardcastle and Jones will be fine in the Hardcastle and White roles from last season but Hardcastle is not the man to play behind the strikers

[Kieran]

always hard for newly promoted teams.

That's not really true is it? At every level, promoted teams often start well. Some don't, some do.

[russell_anderson]

The way I understand it Rooney didn’t want to move back up to the football league?

Hardcastle and Jones will be fine in the Hardcastle and White roles from last season but Hardcastle is not the man to play behind the strikers

That's the official story but it's amazing how a good contract will change a player's mind. I like to bet that Rooney is getting a fair bit more at Stockport than we offered him as will be Croasdale who we were on the point of signing according to the guy called AFC Fylde Source who has got every one of the Fylde transfers out correct. If we can't match the money other teams are paying then we can't but for such a key player I'd make an exception even if it meant not signing a couple of the players we have signed and giving the money spent on them to a much more valuable asset. It may be that wouldn't have helped but I doubt it very much and I'm sure that is what we will have done to keep Quigley and sign Platt. You have to identify your key players and do everything within your finances to keep those as the top priority.

[blue nige]

The way I understand it Rooney didn’t want to move back up to the football league?

Hardcastle and Jones will be fine in the Hardcastle and White roles from last season but Hardcastle is not the man to play behind the strikers

I'd go further i really like hardcastle but he's no captain in fact because of this i think he's trying too hard which is effecting his performance !

[Methuselah]

Having just watched the match I,m afraid Barrow looked all over the place.There was far too much passing back even when we were up Carlisle's end.We are missing some of our key players,Matty Platt being an example who would have made a difference and also a striker who is able to hit the ball the moment the opportunity arises without thinking about it too much.The team slowed the game down too much and looked unsure about what to do next.I just hope they do click and get back to how they played last season, when they were playing with one touch passes.

[Lightflood]

We can't and won't play like we did last season the dynamics of the team and management have changed for better or worse we need to move on. What to, I'm not too sure !

[CH BAFC]

always hard for newly promoted teams.

That's not really true is it? At every level, promoted teams often start well. Some don't, some do.

Well its up to us to prove that statement right, i have faith, only 4 games in.

[barrowaberdeen]

First half? Dreadful

Second half? Better but not great under a terrible ref

On we go. Not one pf these look better than us

[Desmond2-2]

The way I understand it Rooney didn’t want to move back up to the football league?

Hardcastle and Jones will be fine in the Hardcastle and White roles from last season but Hardcastle is not the man to play behind the strikers

That's the official story but it's amazing how a good contract will change a player's mind. I like to bet that Rooney is getting a fair bit more at Stockport than we offered him as will be Croasdale who we were on the point of signing according to the guy called AFC Fylde Source who has got every one of the Fylde transfers out correct. If we can't match the money other teams are paying then we can't but for such a key player I'd make an exception even if it meant not signing a couple of the players we have signed and giving the money spent on them to a much more valuable asset. It may be that wouldn't have helped but I doubt it very much and I'm sure that is what we will have done to keep Quigley and sign Platt. You have to identify your key players and do everything within your finances to keep those as the top priority.

[SwearFilter] man Rooney has gone forget about him. Mark Mac and spirit of, need to take those rose tinted off, that was dreadful.

[spirit of 1990]

That's the official story but it's amazing how a good contract will change a player's mind. I like to bet that Rooney is getting a fair bit more at Stockport than we offered him as will be Croasdale who we were on the point of signing according to the guy called AFC Fylde Source who has got every one of the Fylde transfers out correct. If we can't match the money other teams are paying then we can't but for such a key player I'd make an exception even if it meant not signing a couple of the players we have signed and giving the money spent on them to a much more valuable asset. It may be that wouldn't have helped but I doubt it very much and I'm sure that is what we will have done to keep Quigley and sign Platt. You have to identify your key players and do everything within your finances to keep those as the top priority.

[SwearFilter] man Rooney has gone forget about him. Mark Mac and spirit of, need to take those rose tinted off, that was dreadful.

If part of that is aimed at me, where did I say it wasn’t dreadful (which most of it was) I was only pointing out that we have a new set-up, from manager, back room staff, to style of play & players. I’m certainly not wearing any rose tinted glasses, just saying I’m prepared to give it a bit of time before I start panicking.

Too many got too carried away with their predictions of where we’d finish this season...it was always going to be a season of learning - and possibly struggling.

[EHB]

Terrible first half. Red card really changed the game.

We played some decent stuff in spells without really hurting them.

Definitely concerned though. Underhwhelmed when we signed Dunn. Agree I feel like it was a ‘lazy appointment’.

We need platt back ASAP. And Ntilhe.

Dixon - good again. Solid.
Brown - not good enough.
Brough - ok For first start
Jones - tough day and terrible end to it. Has credit in bank from first few games though.
Beadling- ok solid enough. Carried ball out well at times
Barry - better second half got forward well. Not sure much quality with final ball.
Jones - best player for us by a mile
Hardcastle - worked hard tried probably too hard. Nice passes now and again. Probs better playing a bit deeper.
Biggins - lazy. Do see potential though. Could see him better playing wide right in a 4. Needs some tough love.
Quigley - tried too hard. Coming deep too often. Too easy frustrated. I think he’d be much better middle of 3.
Angus - rapid, definite handful. Would like to see him wider.

I think we need to go to a 4-3-3.

Quigley in middle with Angus bit wider. A winger needed urgently. Kay maybe til then. Jones, hardcastle sitting with another workhorse in there.

[Kieran]

Not one pf these look better than us

I disagree Steve, I think they've all looked better than us with the possible exception of Stevenage. That is not a good Carlisle side, but they were comfortably better than us in every department. That's not to say we're necessarily a million miles away, but we're certainly missing a couple of key ingredients that I think are unlikely to come from within the current squad of players as it stands right now.

I don't think the referee was particularly bad either, by and large he got most things right. The late penalty shout is one you might see given sometimes, but I do think Hardcastle went down easily.