SKY GAME OF THE WEEK - MATCHDAY 14/16

CARLISLE UNITED ....................... 3
DONCASTER ROVERS ................ 1


Up in the far north of England lies the city of Carlisle. It's the second most northerly city in England and is the first city that anyone coming south from Scotland via the M6. In the city of Carlisle lies Brunton Park, home of Carlisle United and where we are tonight for the Division 3 clash between Carlisle and Doncaster Rovers. Brunton Park is the largest football stadium in England where there is still a terracing for standing. One of the most interesting facts about the ground is that in 1953 the wooden grandstand was burnt to the ground and they sold Geoff Twentyman to Liverpool for £12,500 to enable them to rebuild the stand.


In 279, Carlisle United started in Division 3 and they had a tough season that seen them escape the drop by just 2 points, finishing in 19th. This made them one of the favourites to be relegated in Season 2 but they defied that tag and finished safely in 16th. Season 3 was much better and they surprised everyone by finishing 5th and earning a play off spot. Unfortunately, they lost to Barnsley at the semi final stage. The next season they failed to maintain that level what still finished in a respectable 10th in the table. Halfway through Season 5 they appointed their first manager in Aleks Polonczyk, a Polish coach, and he brought new players, new tactics and vodka to the club. The club were struggling but Aleks led them to some good results and they safely finished in 14th place. This season the fans are liking what they see and dreams of competing in the play offs again are high on their list of expectations. They currently lie in 6th and a win tonight would make them serious contenders for promotion.
Doncaster Rovers also started life in Division 3 and their first season went well as they finished in fourth place and went into the play offs. A home game with MK Dons didn't turn out the way they wanted and they lost out, meaning another season in Division 3. This defeat certainly didn't affect them and in Season 2 they repeated their fourth place finish and were back in the play offs. This time Bournemouth were the opposition but this time Doncaster had the experience and they cruised through to a Final meeting with Peterborough United. Doncaster were on the top of their game and the fans celebrated a victory and a place in Division 2. Division 2 had some class teams and it was always going to be tough for Doncaster and that proved to be the case with Rovers finishing second bottom and it was a swift return to Division 3. Doncaster were becoming a yo yo team and in Season 4 they finished second to give them another crack at Division 2. The yo yo team were expected to go down again in Season 5 and they didn't disappoint. Halfway through the season they appointed a manager called toffee. Who he was, nobody knows but he couldn't stem the run of poor results and after some heavy defeats, toffee had come unstuck and was shown the door. With Doncaster already relegated they appointed current manager Joe Jordan. The 6' 1'' former striker took on the job with the task of taking them back up and for the first time in their 279 history, keeping them up. They come to Carlisle tonight lying second top and are on target to keep the yoyo tag.

There are under 7,000 inside the ground for tonights clash making the stadium just over half full Doncaster have brought over 1000 fans from Yorkshire and they are housed in the East Stand. We are in the Main Stand and we have the team sheets in front of us. The Carlisle manager, Aleks Polonczyk, has went for a 3-5-2 while opposition boss Joe Jordan has opted for a 4-2-3-1.
The teams are:

CARLISLE UNITED: Malarz; Golla, Kedziora, Steenvoorden; Sobota, Vrdoljak, Uryga, Salamon, Maslowski; Cavenaghi, Lisandro.

DONCASTER ROVERS: Casteels; Chambers, Dunne, McCombe, Tasdemir; Konradsen, Bridcutt; Jairo, Vilhena, Nedelev; Yakubu

The teams are coming out of the tunnel and it has to be said that Doncaster have some good players in that line up with the likes of Yakabu, Nedelev and Bridcutt as well as the promising young Spaniard Jairo. Carlisle will look to Lisandro for inspiration. The forward already has 7 goals to his name and at 32 brings a lot of experience to the club.
Carlisle were to kick off, shooting towards the Warwick Road end of the park and it was Lisandro and Cavenaghi to get us underway. Off we went to the roar of the 7,000 fans inside the stadium and Carlisle launched an immediate attack with Uryga playing a long ball up the middle towards Cavenaghi but he was outjumped by Dunne and Doncaster started their first attack.  Nedelev took the ball down the left but Golla was there to knock the ball out for a throw. On 4 minutes Carlisle had the ball once more with Kedziora bringing it out of defence. He played the long ball once again through the middle towards Lisandro. The Spanish striker used all his experience to win the ball and bring it under control before slipping it to the left where Maslowski ran on to it at the corner of the penalty area. Maslowski took a pace forward before unleashing a superb shot that zipped along the turf and past the diving Casteels into the corner of the net. What a start for Carlisle as the fans went wild on the terracing and Maslowski was smothered by his team mates. Polonczyk jumped off his bench with his hands in the air and you could see how important this start was for Carlisle. It was a superb effort from the Polish wide man but the control and lay off by Lisandro was top class.

Carlisle get an early lead

Great start for the Cumbrian side. Doncaster kicked off one goal behind and we waited to see how they would respond. We waited, and we waited. There seemed to be a lack of energy as Doncaster attacks were easily snuffed out. Carlisle were happy to fall deep and deny Doncaster any space. Yakubu was isolated up front and although he managed to hold the ball up a couple of times the support was too slow to arrive and ultimately the ball was lost. As the game went on, Doncaster began growing into it and were gradually getting control of the midfield. Nedelev and Jairo were trying to make progress down the wings but the Carlisle defence were holding firm. There were 25 minutes on the clock and Doncaster were yet to threaten the Carlisle goal. Jordan was in his technical area trying to urge his team on and they were trying their best to respond. On 27 minutes Bridcutt started a promising move with a net pass to Nedelev on the left. Nedelev showed lovely feet as he got past Golla but the Carlisle defender was having none of it and blatantly pulled back the Doncaster winger. The referee had the easy decision of making Golla the first player in the book and he held the yellow card aloft towards the defender. The free kick was launched into the middle but it was just a nice height for Malarz to come and claim. Doncaster were definitely on the ascendancy but Carlisle were getting a foot in everywhere and the visitors were still finding it hard to get in behind the defence. On 36 minutes Konradsen found some rare space in the middle of the park and he came forward before playing the ball into the feet of Yakubu on the edge of the box. The Nigerian striker, who despite being tall and lanky showed some excellent close control, played the ball out wide to Jairo on the right. Jairo, to his surprise, had plenty of space and he made a beeline towards the box. Steenvoorden tried to close him down but a quick shuffle from Jairo outfoxed the defender and was almost clean through with only Kedziora moving towards him. Malarz advanced from his goal but before he could get into a good position, Jairo simply passed the ball past him and into the net. Jairo turned to celebrate with his team mates as the band of Doncaster fans went wild with delight. It was the first opening Doncaster had created and they took full advantage. The calmness of Jairo as he beat Malarz was way beyond his years.

Jairo grabbed Doncaster's equaliser

It was a deserved equaliser as Doncaster were the better side. Carlisle got us underway once more but Cavenaghi was dispossessed on the halfway line by Bridcutt who strode forward before sending a through ball to Yakubu. Yakubu ran on to it and sent a shot towards the Carlisle goal that Malarz just managed to turn it away for a corner. It was more of a scrambled save than a confident one and unorthodox would probably be the best way to describe it. Nedelev sent in the corner which was cleared by Kedziora. Doncaster had Carlisle under pressure with the Cumbrian side now looking as though they were trying to hold out until half time. On 41 minutes Doncaster came forward once more. They were now finding gaps in the Carlisle defence as they tried to get the goal to put them in front. The ball was played out to the menacing Nedelev. He held it up and spotted the run of Tasdemir inside him. He slipped the ball through to him and Tasdemir ran on, easily slipping by the already booked Golla. Malarz advanced from his goal and Tasdemir, on seeing this, tried a cheeky chip that didn't fool Malarz and the keeper managed to palm the ball away for another corner. Tasdemir just tried to be too clever and if he had held his nerve a bit longer, he could probably have placed the ball past the keeper. Once again the corner was cleared by Kedziora and Carlisle had a breakaway. Salamon ran forward with the ball and tried to play a pass through to Lisandro but it was intercepted by McCombe who immediately sent it forward again to Tasdemir, who was still coming back from the corner. Tasdemir ran through the midfield, easily shrugging off a challenge before hitting a power shot that Malarz had to look smart to and the keeper tipped the ball over the bar. Malarz had saved Carlisle two or three times now as Doncaster piled on the pressure. The corner was gathered by Malarz and he cleared the ball up to the halfway line. Carlisle tried to move forward but they had made little impact since their 4th minute goal. A few more exchanges in midfield took place before the referee brought the first half to a close. The players headed towards the tunnel and there was no doubt Jordan was the happier of the two managers with Polonczyk's face expressionless.

HALF TIME:   CARLISLE UNITED   1   DONCASTER ROVERS   1

The players emerged for the second half and at first sight there were no changes to either side. Carlisle were needing to up their game if they were to get anything from the game while Doncaster just needed more of the same and the goal would surely come. It was Doncaster to kick off and we were on our way again. The ball was played out to Nedelev, who had caused Carlisle plenty of trouble in the first half. With Golla already booked, the full back had to be careful with his challenges and that gave Nedelev more reason to attack him. This time Golla got the better of him and Carlisle tried to launch an attack. The ball forward was a poor one though and it went out for a throw. Things were looking a bit more even now as Doncaster struggled to settle back into their rhythm. Five minutes into the second half, Salamon had the ball in the centre of the park for Carlisle and he played it forward to Cavenaghi. The South American held up the ball with McCombe coming to put pressure on him. He then played a lovely pass with the outside of his foot to Lisandro in the box. The experienced Spaniard, under pressure from Dunne, quickly took one step to the right before sending in a shot that foxed Casteels in the Rovers goal and ended up in the back of the net. The Carlisle fans erupted as Lisandro turned away and all of a sudden Carlisle were back in front. The front two had combined brilliantly but the way Lisandro took out Dunne with one feint to the right was impressive. Again Polonczyk was out of his dug out with his arms in the air while Jordan sat stoney faced with his right hand man. It was a blow for Doncaster who had it all to do again. Off we went once more with the Yorkshire side looking to hit back straight away. Again they fed Nedelev on the left but he was quickly shutdown by a Carlisle defence that had certainly tightened up. Carlisle were getting a foot in everywhere as Doncaster huffed and puffed. Things had changed around since half time and while Carlisle were not exactly putting Doncaster under a huge amount of pressure, they did seem to have an extra half yard on their opponents. The visitors were now finding their supply to Nedelev and Jairo on the wings being cut off as the defence stepped up and marked tighter. We were almost halfway through the second half now and Doncaster had failed to muster a shot at goal.

Uryga was controlling the midfield

It was Carlisle who created the next chance on 67 minutes with Uryga finding some space in midfield to move forward. Uryga was forced to drift to the right but he managed to swing a cross to just inside the box that was met by Lisandro who attempted to send a looping header towards goal but Casteels got up well to take the ball with both hands. It was a bit ambitious from Lisandro but it was still better than anything that Doncaster could manage since the break. Carlisle had taken control of the game and the midfield were outplaying the Doncaster midfield and looked far more likely to play the killer pass that could lead to a goal. On 75 minutes Polonczyk decided to make a change by taking off three players. Whether this was a wise decision with Carlisle being on top was yet to be seen but they had been running about all over the park and perhaps tiredness was the main reason for the change. Off came Steervoorden, who seemed to be carrying a knock, Uryga, who had worked tirelessly in the middle of the park, and Lisandro who was feeling the pace. Applause was evident for Lisandro, a big favourite among the Carlisle fans. On came Symington, Bochniewicz and Piatkowski with the latter duo being another couple of Polish players brought to the club by the manager just to try and fuck me up with the spelling of their names. It was a throw to Doncaster on the far side and Chambers took a long one towards Yakubu just outside the box on the right hand side. Yakubu ran along the front of the box, teasing the defenders to come and challenge, before laying off to Tasdemir, who had once again made a run forward. The left wing back tried going down the touchline before cutting inside and into the box and trying a low curling shot to the far post that Malarz had to get down quickly to, to save. It was Doncaster's best effort of the second half as they tried to set up a grandstand finish in search of the equaliser. The visitors were pushing more men forward now but this was leaving gaps at the back that Carlisle could exploit with the right pass. Carlisle were still holding firm at the back as Doncaster probed for the opening that could bring them the much needed goal. On 82 minutes a Doncaster attack broke down and Carlisle were on the break. Bochniewicz sped forward with support from Cavenaghi and Piatkowski. Doncaster were left with Chambers and Dunne at the back. Bochniewicz played it wide to Cavenaghi with Chambers going out to meet him. Cavenaghi headed to the corner of the box but Chambers went in with a tackle that was deemed to hard by the referee and he blew for the free kick. Carlisle players were raging as the referee refused to show any colour of card, with Carlisle claiming Chambers had prevented a goalscoring opportunity. The ref stuck by his decision and it was a free kick just wide of the box. Sobota and Vrdoljak stood over the ball. Sobota walked away as Vrdoljak stepped back to take the kick. The Croatian ran forward and sent a high curling ball that flew into the top corner of the net with Casteels left stranded. Carlisle fans erupted while the players ran towards Vrdoljak. What a free kick from the Croatian. It gave Casteels no chance as the perfectly placed kick flew by him. 3-1 and surely that was the goal that settled this game. Polonczyk was out in the technical area once again with hands in the air. Doncaster players looked a beaten side as they trudged towards the halfway line to take the kick off once more. After it had settled down we were underway again as Doncaster looked to try and salvage something from the game. Carlisle were having none of it though and they snapped at the heels of the visitors with the determination of a team that knew they had the game won. On 85 minutes Carlisle were on the attack again as the ball was played out to Piatkowski. The Pole went down the touchline under the attention of Chambers and just before he reached the byeline he sent in a cross that Salamon turned towards goal forcing Casteels into a diving save, palming the ball away for a corner. The corner came in and was won by Dunne flicking the ball out for a throw on the far side. Doncaster tried to attack again but there were many weary legs out there and they just didn't have the pace to trouble the back three of Carlisle. It wasn't long before the referee brought the match to a close and Carlisle had taken a massive three points for them while Doncaster would head back across the A66 with nothing to show for their efforts.

FULL TIME:   CARLISLE UNITED   3   DONCASTER ROVERS   1

So an entertaining tussle at Brunton Park sees Carlisle take the points after a much improved second half performance. Doncaster played well in the first half but had no answer to Carlisle's energy after the break. The result sees Carlisle climb above Huddersfield into 5th position while Doncaster fall from 2nd to 4th but they are still only 3 points behind leaders Crewe.

We spoke to the managers after the game and this is what they had to say. First Carlisle boss Aleks Polonczyk:

Aleks, good result. How happy are you with the performance tonight?

I am very happy with the result, Doncaster are a strong team and have had a very good start to the season so to be taking all 3 points at the end of the day is definitely a job well done. We will celebrate with a shot of vodka or ten and move on and focus on the next game.

Despite his age, Lopez Lisandro looks to have been a great signing for you. That's 8 goals after the game tonight. How valuable is he to the team?

Lisandro is like the alcohol content in Polish vodka the most integral and vital part, provides the kick and defines the team without him we would just be plain and boring like a bottle of water. His age and experience provides inspiration to the younger lads in the team and at 32 he still has a lot to give

Doncaster were looking good in the first half but you turned it around in the second . What did you say to the players at half time?

We have been working on the system all season, the boys know what is expected. We sat in the dressing room had a shot of vodka and I just told them to focus on what we discussed and went over in training and we will prevail.

Up to fifth in the table. You think you have the quality to push for promotion?

At the start of the season I said I am aiming for a top 10 finish, all the pundits at the start of the season predicted relegation or one place outside the relegation zone. Its a long season we have had a good start with only two defeats so far, but like drinking the finest Polish vodka you take it one shot at a time. There are a lot of good teams in the league I have faith in the boys but we will not get carried away or we will end up with sore heads and a horrendous hangover at the end.

Thanks Aleks and you and the boys have a good night.

Well I wonder what the tipple will be for the Carlisle boys tonight.

Next Joe Jordan:

Joe, it didn't happen for you tonight. Is your away form a concern?

Well we've played 8 away games so far this season in the league and got something from 5 of them I'll definitely look to improve that as the season goes on but I don't think it's a concern.

You were the better side in the first half, were you disappointed with the second half display?

Yes I was also disappointed with the 1st half display up until we got the equaliser then looked as if we maybe could of went on to win the game but fair play to Carlisle they stuck at it and got the win.

Do you think in hindsight, that you should have made a change during the second half?

No not really we haven't made a change in the 2nd half all season and we sit in 4th position which is good.

You have Walsall at home on Saturday. Will you be making changes?

Yes two key players which include Modeste and Torres will be coming straight back into the line up and new signing Hohn will be replacing Richard Dunne who leaves to go to SD Eibar during this week.
So that's it for another game of the week. Its well done to Carlisle and unlucky for Doncaster, who I am sure will soon bounce back. We will see you for the next game coming up on Saturday night with the match report available on the Sunday night. Bye bye.


Fannie Licker @ Brunton Park, Carlisle