MATT Robson’s wonderful equaliser helped Carlisle United recover from an indifferent first-half performance and heap the pressure on a Walsall side who have now gone six games without a victory.
It could have been better as the Cumbrians created a string of gilt-edged chances to win the game, only to fall short at the final hurdle of actually putting the ball into the back of the net.
“We weren’t happy with our first-half performance at all, ” manager Greg Abbott said.
“We went with three at the back again because it had earned us a clean sheet last week, but we found ourselves lacking in attacking sense. We changed things around at half-time and we played some fantastic football.
“It’s one we are looking at and wondering how we haven’t come away with a win.”
Jamie Paterson was the main threat as the home side kept knocking at the door and he supplied the cross from a set-piece for Will Grigg to open the scoring with a firm header.
“Their man got a yard at the free-kick and that makes a difference,” Abbott admitted.
“You can analyse every goal you concede, but sometimes it comes down to good movement from the strikers.
“We had one with Lee Miller late in the second half, when he got onto a Berrett free-kick, where he’d made the same kind of run. Unfortunately their keeper produced a quality save, or we’d be talking about a carbon copy goal that had won us the points.”
The Cumbrian reshuffle after the break, including the introduction of a fired-up Francois Zoko, brought one-way traffic and a deserved equaliser when left-back Robson stunned the stadium with a blistering 36-yard free-kick.
Carlisle upped the pace after that stunning thunderbolt and Lee Miller’s saved header was quickly followed by the miss of the day when striker Zoko took a touch from a McGovern cross, spun away from his man and then scuffed his shot past the gaping target.
“We had one or two really good chances to get ourselves in front, and that’s part of the game that we know we have to improve on, ” Abbott concluded.
“We keep saying this, but the good thing is that we are earning the right to play our football and we’re creating some really good goal scoring opportunities.
“The confidence is there, so we just have to keep going and the goals will come.”
WALSALL: Walker, Beevers (Peterlin 73), Lancashire, Smith, Sadler, Paterson, Chambers, Taundry, Hurst (Nicholls 57), Grigg, Jarvis (Bowerman 73). Subs (not used): Martin, Grof.
Booked: Hurst, Paterson, Smith.
Goal: Grigg 33.
CARLISLE UNITED: Collin, Livesey (Zoko 46), Michalik, Murphy, Tavernier, Noble, Thirlwell (Taiwo 77), Berrett, Robson, Miller, Loy (McGovern 69). Subs (not used): Curran, O’Halloran.
Booked: Noble. Goal: Robson 50.
Referee: Lee Collins (Surrey) Attendance: 3,831
