Leicester City 2 Carlisle Utd 1 (FA Youth Cup fourth round): At the home of the Premier League champions, the ground where Mahrez and Vardy and Ranieri have worked their spells, Carlisle United’s valiant run in the FA Youth Cup ended last night.

There was no further fairytale at a stadium that produced plenty in 2016. But United were dogged and competitive against Leicester’s under-18s, and ran them close for good spells as the home side’s extra quality narrowly told.

It has been an admirable effort throughout this season’s competition from Darren Edmondson’s young Blues, who strung together three successive away wins before falling to Trevor Peake’s side here.

And the experience of playing at the King Power Stadium is something they can all treasure and take inspiration from, even as Leicester edge into the fifth round at Middlesbrough.

They will also have learned from their examination against players who will one day hope to catch Claudio Ranieri’s eye. Forwards Elliot Webber and Layton Ndukwu were particularly dangerous and Leicester also benefited from some of the breaks United could have done with themselves.

Yet, even if their attacking play was compelling at times, it drew a very spirited spell from Edmondson’s teenagers, who scored impressively through Cameron Salkeld to make a much closer game of it than the home side will have thought likely whilst 2-0 up.

Salkeld, who has a first-team goal this season, now has one at an end where Jamie Vardy couldn’t stop scoring last campaign. In the 42nd minute he broke onto a ball from Kieron Olsen and showed impressive accuracy to finish across keeper Cameron Yates from a tight angle.

That was United’s highlight from a first half they had to fight hard to stay in. After the break, a couple of very near misses denied them what would have been a memorable comeback as they continually refused to buckle, the crossbar cruelly denying Jack Egan in the 88nd minute.

However much Carlisle were underdogs last night, at least Edmondson had the rare luxury this season of having a squad largely free from injuries. This enabled the academy manager to name Max Brown in his starting line-up, after the forward has missed several weeks with a thigh injury.

This further boosted a side containing Salkeld and Jordan Holt, both of whom have enjoyed cameos in Keith Curle’s first team this campaign.

And so, just about the strongest side Edmondson could pick walked out at this lavish stadium hoping to emulate previous famous feats by Carlisle in the Youth Cup, notably 2009’s stunning win at Manchester United, and 2006’s run to Anfield in the quarter-finals.

Against a home side looking to capitalise on the pace down the middle of Kanya Leshabela and the tricky forward play of Webber, the challenged seemed considerable in the early stages.

Yet Edmondson’s side dug in well, Rhys Groves doing well to dispossess Webber, with a couple of promising breaks involving Egan showcasing Carlisle’s counter-attacking potential. They survived one scare, when Bacon sent a poor kick straight to Leshabela but quickly atoned with a save, but a further wave of Leicester pressure pushed the young Blues back and led to the opening goal: an inswinging corner from the left, and Bacon’s attempted punch under pressure going into net off Calvin Ughelumba.

The scorer was one of the bigger players on the pitch and sought to give Trevor Peake’s side a further advantage when driving down the left and shooting narrowly wide.

Carlisle were one pass or glance away from opening up the hosts in response, while captain Holt did his best to set a strong tone in midfield, but Leicester’s individual quality was clear at times, even if there was plenty of fortune about their second goal, when Webber drove in from the right and saw his shot take a huge deflection as it looped over Bacon.

As Carlisle tried to venture forward in reply, they had to be wary of further Leicester raids. Ndukwu was at the heart of several of them, as Bacon had to be alert to save a handful of low shots, Webber also threatening in the box.

One near United miss was suffered by Joe Breen, who whipped a low free-kick narrowly wide after Brown had made good headway. Left-back Breen then did well to thwart Webber at the other end, Ndukwu then thumping another shot just over the bar as Carlisle struggled to escape their defensive third and perhaps also their nerves.

Yet there were signs of good pressing from United as the half drew on, Egan testing Leicester keeper Cameron Yates with a volley from the edge of the box after Brown had done well down the right.

And then, shortly before half-time, Carlisle got themselves back into the game, pressing well in the Leicester half and opening them up as right-back Olsen won a determined 50-50 and drove forward to feed Salkeld, whose finish from the right nestled just inside the far corner.

This was the sort of opportunism, and composure, that Carlisle needed to find again in the second half, whilst also keeping the back door closed.

It was ajar when Webber sneaked in to head against the bar in the 46th minute, while Bacon needed to be watchful when another deflected shot spun towards goal.

Simran Thandi also tried his luck for Leicester, but Carlisle also tried to test the home side’s nerves when possible, Breen doing further good work down the left. Further Leicester pressure required centre-halves Groves and Luke Taylor to clear their lines well, while Morgan Brown tested Bacon after a Leshabela break.

Then, though, Carlisle so nearly got the second they craved, as Salkeld opened them up through the middle and put Kieran Hall through, but keeper Yates stood up and saved well.

Hunting the next, key goal, Leicester made some progress down the right through Thandi and Ethan Hodby but Bacon got behind sub Conor Tee’s firm finish.

Carlisle came back and saw an Egan corner glanced millimetres out of scoring reach in the six-yard box.

Salkeld was seriously testing Leicester at times with his pace and drive, while Ndukwu’s miss eight minutes from time kept the tie alive. Egan then so nearly took full advantage two minutes from time with a measured shot from the left, but the crossbar denied United’s No7 a dramatic equaliser.

Ndukwu replied by hammering United’s woodwork while Bacon saved another on the line as this game rattled along to an entertaining conclusion: a losing but highly courageous end to an admirable all-round effort from Edmondson and his boys.

Leicester: Yates, Thandi, Ughelumba, Morgan Brown, Pascanu, Johnson, Hodby, Dewsbury-Hall, Webber (Tee 63), Ndukwu, Leshabela. Not used: Heaven, Harrison, Gruno, Gill.

Goals: Ughelumba 13, Webber 25

United:Bacon, Olsen, Breen, Watson (Adewusi 63), Taylor, Groves, Egan, Holt, Hall, Max Brown (Cowburn 77), Salkeld. Not used: Goldthorpe, Hutchinson, Ashton.

Goals: Salkeld 42

Ref: Robert Massey-Ellis