The debate rumbles on. How good is an unbeaten start that has mostly been built on draws?

Eventually, you have to assume, Carlisle United will either win or lose a few games and their season will be shaped accordingly.

Until then, it is mainly one point per game - six draws from their first eight League Two matches - and fans are having to decide whether to be encouraged or frustrated by Keith Curle's eighth-placed side.

On balance, the former probably edges it, because their other two games have been victories.

But the broader stats suggest that this has been a unique but not necessarily exceptional start by the Cumbrians.

1. LEVEL PEGGING

In one respect at least, Curle's side are breaking new ground with their fourth-tier results so far in 2016/17.

Never before in United's history have the team drawn as many as six of their opening eight league games.

That covers 81 Football League seasons since 1928, and one in the Conference.

Remarkable stuff. And they've only drawn five of their opening eight games on three occasions, too.

It's official, then. In one particular area, this draw-addicted Blues side are very much a break from the norm.

2. HISTORY MAKERS

A couple of further slices of history are within United's reach over the coming weeks.

Already they are one of just four Blues teams to get this far into a league season without defeat.

It will take some effort to surpass the best unbeaten start - 13 games in 2004/5, United's only campaign in the Conference.

But where the Football League is concerned, they are getting closer to setting a new standard.

Here, the longest Blues unbeaten start came in 1989/90, when Clive Middlemass's team survived 10 Fourth Division games before Scunthorpe burst the bubble with a 1-0 win at Brunton Park.

The next best was in 1994/5, when Mick Wadsworth's men began with eight unbeaten - the same as the current side - until they tumbled 2-1 at Northampton.

The potential milestone is clear, then. If Curle's team avoid defeat to Wycombe, Doncaster and Colchester between now and October 1, they will have proved the most resilient starters in Carlisle's Football League history.

3. POINTS MEAN PRIZES

This is where a shot of reality is applied to the temptation to get too excited about United's unbeaten record right now.

Yes, it is a rare and creditable feat. But the league table is built on points, not simply on how low your score is in the L column.

In this regard, United's start doesn't look quite so remarkable.

In terms of points gathered, their current tally of 12 is not even as good as last season's at the same stage, when Curle's rebuilt squad began with 13 from their first eight games.

Indeed, six of the last 10 campaigns have seen a healthier eight-game start.

The only times in the last decade where this current team compares favourably, in fact, were 2014/15 (three points; relegation fight), 2013/14 (eight points; relegation) and 2009/10 (eight points; lower mid-table).

Other seasons to have kicked off better, meanwhile, include 2008/9's relegation scrap, when John Ward's faltering team picked up 13 points from their first eight games before plummeting down League One.

So, while the current zero under 'defeats' is certainly unusual, and impressive, the section that matters still clearly requires some work.

4. LEADERS OF THE PACK

If we are to measure the best Carlisle United starts by points, rather than simply staying unbeaten, the picture indeed changes - and certain teams return memorably to mind.

With the eight-game mark as our guide, the comfortable frontrunner in Blues history is that 1994/5 side, which stormed to seven wins and one draw under Wadsworth.

Some 22 points from a possible 24 were hoovered up, setting the tone for what would prove a glorious Division Three campaign.

And those habits clearly died hard in the mid-1990s, for just two seasons later the second-best United start was also achieved.

This time it was Mervyn Day's boys of 1996/7 who set off like a train, with five wins, two draws, one defeat and 17 points from the outset.

Middlemass's men in 1989/90 come in next, four wins and four draws from their unbeaten start getting them going with 16 points.

A comparable run was also made in 1950/1, when Bill Shankly presided over a record of five wins, one draw and two defeats, before the days of three-points-for-a-win.

The good news, perhaps, is that a golden season does not always require a storming start, Wadsworth's boys aside.

Carlisle's two other title-winning teams, for instance, were slightly slower burners. In 2005/6 they took 14 points from their first eight games, and in 1964/5 managed just nine (or 12, under three-points-for-a-win).

Reasonable figures, certainly. But also a reminder that conclusions need not be drawn quite this early.

5. FORTUNE TELLING

It is, not surprisingly, still too soon to forecast where Carlisle's destiny is this season, based on their efforts so far.

Keith Curle often refers to the 16-game mark as a better guide. That is certainly a more accurate weather vane than the eight-game stage.

As ever with stats, it can all depend on which ones you prefer.

With regard to unbeaten runs, the portents are good. Two of United's other three unbroken eight-game starts have ended in promotion (1994/5 and 2004/5). The 1989/90 team should have made it a hat-trick, but nosedived out of the play-off places late in the campaign.

In terms of points, though, it is a much less clear picture. The United teams with an equivalent tally of 12 after this many games have finished, respectively, eighth, 12th, 21st, ninth, first, 14th and 17th.

An average of 12th, then; bang in the middle. With this in mind - and with respect to what Carlisle are trying to achieve right now - it may be best for a little longer to defer to the great Paul Gascoigne: "I don't make predictions and I never will."

Carlisle United's longest unbeaten league starts

13 games - 2004/5

10 games - 1989/90

8 games - 1994/5, 2016/17

Carlisle United's best starts in points after eight games

22 points - 1994/5

17 points - 1996/7

16 points - 1989/0, 1950/1*

15 points - 1947/8*, 1959/60*, 1961/2*

14 points - 1928/9*, 1949/50*, 1981/2, 2004/5, 2005/6, 2007/8

13 points - 1951/2*, 1954/5*, 1963/4*, 1974/5*, 2006/7, 2008/9, 2010/11, 2011/12, 2015/16

12 points - 1930/1*, 1937/8*, 1955/6*, 1958/9*, 1964/5*, 1965/6*, 2012/13, 2016/17

*equivalent total had three-points-for-a-win, which started in 1981/2, applied