There is no such thing as a short hop around League Two at the best of times for Carlisle United’s supporters, and 2019/20 – whose fixtures are released tomorrow – will add a few extra miles to the travelling.

Blues fans routinely top the 10,000 mark over 23 away days and it is much the same next term, despite the six-club change to the division’s line-up.

Out of the fourth tier have gone Lincoln, Bury, MK Dons, Tranmere, Notts County and Yeovil. Stepping in are Scunthorpe, Plymouth, Walsall, Bradford, Leyton Orient and, for the first time, Salford.

The result is a net increase of 103 miles for United’s faithful compared with 2018/19’s league commitments. In total they will put in 10,182 miles between August and May. This is aside from any cup or – touch wood – play-off engagements.

Whether those hardy travellers can journey in hope or expectation will depend on the business Carlisle do between now and August 3, when their latest campaign gets under way.

It will also come down to how well a much-changed (again) Blues line-up can venture through what looks like being a challenging League Two, full of established names and, in Salford, a new arrival who will come in for plenty of attention.

Expect Sky Sports to have Moor Lane in their SatNav already. How the club of the “Class of 92” embark on their maiden EFL adventure will be a story too tempting for national media – who normally give League Two only a cursory glance – to resist. One of their high-profile chiefs, Paul Scholes, was today fined £8,000 by the FA for betting infringements.

Carlisle will welcome the Salford spenders on one level, at least, for it will be their third shortest trip in 2019/20: 116.4 miles from Brunton Park, a round trip of 232.8. Only Morecambe, at 69.9 miles (139.8), and Bradford, at 106.7 (213.4) will require less time on the motorways and A roads. Oldham and Macclesfield are also within reasonable reach, Crewe and Port Vale next.

At the other end of the travelling scale, there will be deep breaths and full tanks as the Blues contemplate a first trek to Plymouth in three seasons. A whopping 389.3 miles to get there, and when considering that 778.6-mile round trip this would be as good a campaign as any to deal with a wretched United record at Home Park – one league point in 13 visits.

That is, inevitably, Carlisle’s longest journey, ahead of Crawley at 348.3 miles (696.6), Exeter at 346.8 (693.6) and Colchester at 314.3 (628.6).

Those, along with the medium and shorter-distanced trips, will set varying challenges and throw a range of characters and stories into Carlisle’s path.

Of the other newcomers, Leyton Orient will return London to United’s agenda. The Brisbane Road club are heading upwards again as the wretched Francesco Becchetti ownership recedes further into the past. There will though, be a certain solemnity about Orient in 2019/20, and a deeply-felt absence following the death of the manager who inspired their rise, Justin Edinburgh. Ross Embleton, Edinburgh's assistant, was today confirned as interim head coach.

Of those descending into the division from League One, this is always the time to wonder who will continue sinking and who is strong enough to rebound. If the bookies are to be believed, Plymouth – second favourites after Salford – are best placed to come back well. They have a new manager, since Bury’s Ryan Lowe replaced the longish-serving Derek Adams, and their stadium will soon be showing the effects of a rebuild of their Mayflower Stand.

There will be no Graham Carey – the creative force who has damaged United and others in the past – but Argyle have the stature to be contenders.

Bradford, meanwhile, will be league opponents to Carlisle for the first time in six campaigns, their League One trajector having been reversed under the questionable stewardship of ex-chairman Edin Rahic. Their manager, Gary Bowyer, is at least one of football’s more measured operators and will surely be key to their prospects of another about-turn. Valley Parade is the biggest ground United in which will play their league football this term.

Walsall and Scunthorpe also enter the fourth tier for the first time in a while. They, too, have invested their hopes in managerial change (Darrell Clarke and Paul Hurst respectively). The Saddlers’ Andy Cook, who got 18 goals last season, will be the latest ex-United striker attempting to gun down his former club – unless someone else nabs him this summer.

Salford will be the only new ground for Blues fans in 2019/20; the other venues will be familiar, whether that be Morecambe’s Globe Arena, which always draws a big travelling United support, or Forest Green’s remote New Lawn – their home for the foreseeable, after their wooden “eco-stadium” plans were knocked back by parish councillors.

There has been change in other respects at a number of League Two’s others. Port Vale have new ownership while Oldham have another new boss (the Frenchman, Laurent Banide). Trouble will no doubt stalk the odd club again. and right now it is Macclesfield facing the most immediate reckoning; the Silkmen are due in court next week, a winding-up petition issued by HM Revenue & Customs over £73,000 tax, whilst players have recently been paid late.

Those flexing their muscles, in contrast, include Northampton, with nine summer signings to date under Keith Curle. Crawley, who brought in Ashley Nadesan, also seem to have more leeway than before, while Swindon, linked with a glut of players (some with Carlisle connections) are also giving the impression of opening their shoulders.

Mansfield, who have invested big in players in past summers, have not been as active so far. Academy boss John Dempster was promoted to the manager’s chair after their play-off defeat to Newport saw the post-season sacking of David Flitcroft, and a backroom clear out that had Greg Abbott, the ex-Blues boss and Stags’ short-lived head of football operations, among the casualties.

Right now Carlisle are similarly-priced to be casualties themselves, and endure a relegation season, as they are to go up. In 45 days’ time, we will begin the process of finding out where their latest road will take them.