Carlisle United aim to make early statement of intent as Colchester United travel to Brunton Park

A new season is again upon us, with the early sense of anticipation and optimism loitering in the Cumbrian air, but early hope could easily turn into misery if Colchester United get a result at Brunton Park.

It’s very easy to be drawn in by the quiet confidence around Carlisle United at the moment, with memories of the blistering form shown by Chris Beech’s side in spells last season.

The Cumbrians are certainly dark horses coming into the new season, but the impressive signing of Zach Clough whilst maintaining the core of last season’s squad stands Carlisle in good stead.

Colchester United are embarking on a new era under former Watford coach Hayden Mullins, who takes charge of the U’s for first his full season as a manager.

There’s been much upheaval at the Essex based club, re-signing Frank Nouble whilst adding in the experience of Alan Judge, Freddie Sears, Cole Skuse and Luke Chambers from Ipswich Town. However, key players in Harry Pell, Kwame Poku and Jevani Brown have departed the club.

Mullins will be looking to improve on a 20th placed finish last season, which saw the U’s seriously threatened with potential relegation.

Team News:

Carlisle United:

Danny Devine seems set to miss out on Saturday’s opener, which was an unfortunately common theme last season. There are also lingering doubts over the fitness of Zach Clough, failing to play a full 90 minutes in pre-season, and it’s no secret Clough has struggled with his fitness in the past.

Rod McDonald and Morgan Feeney are back in contention at centre back after both struggling with different issues.

Beech’s main selection headache comes in the form of the front three. Manny Mampala has looked a natural fit in the centre forward role, but Beech may go with the more experienced three of Lewis Alessandra, Zach Clough and Brennan Dickenson.

Colchester United:

Hayden Mullins has seven new signings pushing for their competitive debut, though that level of change of personnel may mean the team takes a few games to gel.

Luke Hannant will attempt to repeat his scoring act of last season when he scored against the Cumbrians in the first game of last season for Cambridge United in the 9th minute.

Colchester players and fans alike will hope their long trip will be a profitable one.

Last time out:

Mist engulfed the JobServe Community Stadium the last time these two teams met, making it practically impossible for fans to follow anything on iFollow.

Carlisle United were still clinging to the hope of reaching the playoff spots, whilst Colchester were trying to edge away from the danger area.

Jon Mellish continued his epic goalscoring season, putting the Cumbrians ahead in the 29th minute, with a fine finish from a Dickenson corner. This made Mellish United’s highest-scoring midfielder since 1994.

There was penalty controversy in the second half when Omar Sowunmi was deemed to have fouled Josh Kayode in the area, but after a consultation with his assistant referee, Trevor Kettle reversed his decision.

The overturned penalty saw a swing in momentum, with Colchester given a penalty for Dean Furman’s reckless challenge on Frank Nouble. Callum Harriot stepped up to equalise for the U’s.

Harriot went on to double his total for the night and turn match-winner, sending a low 25-yard drive past Paul Farman in the 74th minute.

Chris Beech speaking to the Carlisle United media team about the opening day clash against Colchester United:

“They’ll provide a good test, but we will for them as well. It’s like anything you do in your life. We’re on a journey over a nine-month period, and of course you get excited about the first one, like you do on your first day on holiday, but if you’re lucky enough you might have another 13 days.”

“We’ve got the rest of the season, so it’s vital we look to prepare correctly and do our best, but to keep an eye on the longer game, and games, definitely. But I do want us representing everybody to the best of our abilities.”

Hayden Mullins talking to the Colchester United Media team about his expectations for his sides first game of the season:

“We’re looking strong and ready to go. There were a few bits we had to try and nail down today, but we’re chomping at the bit to get going on Saturday.”

“Carlisle are a big club and a strong side. They’ll be looking to get straight at us from the off and it will be a tough game to start, it will be a typical League Two game.”

Head-to-head:

Carlisle United and Colchester United have come up against each other 53 times in the past. The Cumbrians have had 19 wins against their southern counterparts, whilst the U’s have been successful in 23 of the fixtures. There have been 11 draws between the sides.

A large crowd is expected at Brunton Park, so Chris Beech will be hoping his team can match the expectation and provide a perfect result to convince fans to return in their numbers.

Colchester United will try to spoil the party in what should be an entertaining matchup between two potential promotion rivals.

Follow us on Twitter @ProstInt

[columns]
[column size=”1/2″][blog type=”timeline” posts=”10″ cats=”3056″ heading=”League Two” heading_type=”timeline” /][/column]
[column size=”1/2″][blog type=”timeline” posts=”10″ cats=”609″ heading=”EFL” heading_type=”timeline” /][/column]
[/columns]