Carlisle 0, Leeds United 2

May 16 2008 by Mark Douglas, The Journal

CARLISLE’S fairytale season concluded with the cruellest of twists as Leeds United – courtesy of an injury-time strike from Jonathan Howson – wrecked their Wembley dream on a frenetic night at Brunton Park.

Having seen their automatic promotion drive stall within touching distance of the Championship, Carlisle couldn’t have believed it could get much bleaker in the play-off lottery.

But it did get worse – much worse – when, with 90 minutes up, Howson turned his marker and drove a dagger through the heart of their hopes of claiming a return to the second tier of English football after a 22-year absence.

On reflection, Carlisle’s defeat was rooted in the fifth minute of injury time at Elland Road when Leeds snatched back momentum thanks to Dougie Freedman’s scrambled late goal and headed for the Brunton Park return 2-1 down.

It gave Leeds an undeserved lifeline and appeared to reinforce the doubts that had begun to creep into Carlisle’s play at the end of the season – doubts that came back with a vengeance during those desperate last seconds last night.

With the game and the season heading into extra time, the Cumbrians were guilty of a fatal hesitation in the box, allowing Howson the time and space to rifle a low shot past Keiren Westwood.

In truth, Carlisle were made to play second fiddle for long periods as they carried the distinct look of a team who had expended most of their energy carving out the first-leg lead which had put them within sight of Wembley.

Carlisle had ended that absorbing contest at Elland Road on the back foot and that was where they spent most of a one-sided first-half as Leeds exercised almost total supremacy. The Cumbrians’ hard-fought single-goal advantage – earned courtesy of some slick counter-attacking football at Elland Road – always looked vulnerable and, from the start last night, Leeds’ more seasoned performers turned the screw in midfield.

Midfielder Grant Smith had energised a partisan home crowd with a speculative effort as the sides exchanged early blows, but it was Leeds who looked the more organised and the more threatening as they looked to overturn Carlisle’s slender lead.

Referee Alan Wiley waved away early and credible claims for a spot-kick when Scott Dobie was felled by a robust Lubo Michalik challenge, but it was Leeds who were quicker into their stride as they recaptured their first-leg momentum early on.

It didn’t take long for their enterprise to have a tangible reward as Bradley Johnson, exploiting gaping space down Carlisle’s right-hand side, galloped to the by-line and picked out Freedman in the box.

The veteran striker fed Howson, and he drilled a left-foot shot past Westwood from close range to wipe out the aggregate deficit. Spurred on by their reprieve, Leeds began to pull away and should have edged ahead when Johnson again delivered a testing cross from the left that found Jermaine Beckford unmarked in the penalty area. But the Leeds forward was lacking composure and his header was guided wide of Westwood’s left-hand post.

Neil Kilkenny then snatched at a shot from inside the area after more sterling work from Freedman as Carlisle’s play became ragged and possession was surrendered with alarming frequency.

At that point Leeds’ first-half dominance was unceasing – and the under-pressure home side were creaking.

Evan Horwood, looking harassed as Beckford continued to make a nuisance of himself, sold his header back to Westwood dreadfully short, allowing Freedman to draw a good save from the outstanding home goalkeeper with a hooked shot. Simon Hackney alleviated the pressure with a driving solo run from deep in his own half, drawing the attention of three Leeds defenders before he was finally halted deep in his opponents’ penalty area.

That prompted the first flickering signs of a Carlisle fight-back as the Cumbrians began to turn back the yellow tide that was threatening to engulf them.

More patient approach work began to reap rewards as first Scott Dobie – striding into the path of Danny Graham’s intelligent lay-off – sent a rising shot just over Casper Ankergren’s goal and then Marc Bridge-Wilkinson carved out Carlisle’s best chance. Graham once again turned provider, glancing the ball into Bridge-Wilkinson’s path under pressure from former Newcastle defender Paul Huntington and Michalik, but the midfielder’s rasping low drive was repelled by a smart save from Ankergren.

While never matching the frenetic and enthralling pace of the first leg, the second half continued to be absorbing stuff as the game ebbed and flowed – with Carlisle a much greater attacking presence after the break. Bridge-Wilkinson was chief architect of the Cumbrians’ best opportunity, swinging a curling shot wide of Ankergren’s right-hand post.

The visitors continued to exert sporadic menace, with Freedman their greatest threat.

Westwood was once again called on to preserve parity over the two legs, pulling off a terrific sprawling stop to deny the veteran.

And Leeds went even closer from the resulting sequence of corners when Kilkenny found Johnson, who crashed his header against a post.

But in injury time McAllister’s men went one better, bringing Carlisle’s most successful season for a generation to a sad end.

CARLISLE UNITED: Westwood; Raven, Livesey, Murphy, Horwood, Dobie, Lumsdon, Grant Smith, Bridge-Wilkinson, Hackney, Graham. Subs (not used): Howarth, Thirlwell, Arnison, Taylor, Madine.

LEEDS UNITED: Ankergren; Richardson, Huntington, Michalik, Johnson, Kilkenny, Howson, Douglas, Prutton, Beckford, Freedman. Subs (not used): Lucas, Marques, Carole, Kandol, Hughes.

Goals: Howson 10, 90.

Attendance: 12,873. Referee: Alan Wiley (Staffordshire).