Carlisle United out to extend perfect home record

The Blues have won all five of their League Two games at their home ground so far this season.

Cheltenham will put that perfect record to the test in tomorrow’s fifth-v-sixth contest.

Beech knows United’s ground has been a place of strength so far in 2020/21 but said he is not reading anything broader into it.

On playing at Brunton Park, the Carlisle head coach said: “The pitch is big and it’s firm, if you’re a quick player you’ve got responsive feedback in your legs.

“Last Sunday’s pitch was quite good at Hayes but the grass was long and slower.

“We know what we’re getting when we play at home, and we know how to play on our pitch.

“People say ‘the right way’ but what is the right way? Winning’s the right way however you get there.

“We have our way of playing [at home] at the moment and I think that’s down to Dave Mitchell, the groundsman, who does a great job. We know what we’re getting prior to playing on it.

“We’ve been a bit unfortunate in away fixtures in certain parts of the game to not have more points for those performances, but it is what it is at the moment.

“Wherever the points come, home or away, I have no interest in it being a ‘fortress’…it’s the next opponents coming to Carlisle and we have to be at our best to beat anybody.”

Including the final game of last season against Newport before Covid-19 intervened, it is six league wins on the spin for Carlisle at Brunton Park.

A seventh victory would make it the best home winning league run since Keith Curle's side in 2016/7 - and an eighth, against Salford next month, would be the best sequence since John Ward’s side reeled off 14 straight Brunton Park league triumphs in League One in 2007/8.

John Ward's United side won 14 straight home league games in the 2007/8 season

United have also already won as many home league games this season - five - as they managed in 2019/20.

Beech expects a tough contest against Michael Duff’s side but played down the wider significance of potentially beating a close rival.

“I don’t look at the bigger picture – it’s just an opponent and the next one’s Cheltenham,” he said.

“The value of that win is three, a draw’s one and if you get beat it’s zero.

“We’ve done really well to be in this position and we should enjoy it, but understand it’s all new to us.

“We’ve got to embrace it and then try and do something that I suppose financially we’re not structured to do, and go against Cheltenham-type teams.

“I would imagine with their strikeforce and midfield maestro [Liam Sercombe] who left Bristol Rovers, they’re gonna be well-paid individuals to try and help Cheltenham achieve something.

“We have to do our best against these great opponents. Who knows what will happen, but I don’t see it as so poignant to say it’s a six-pointer, or it does this or that.

“You often win a game on a Tuesday night that nobody’s really bothered about, but it’s the same value of this game.”

Cheltenham went close to promotion last season and completed a double over the Cumbrians in 2019/20 – winning 2-0 at Whaddon Road with Gavin Reilly one of the Robins’ scorers, and then edging the return 1-0.

Beech added: “They’re well managed, and have had these experiences for a good couple of years, with a similar group of people and players.

“They had to deal with the disappointment of the play-offs last season, did really well to get there, and because of those experiences they’re probably more experienced to get promotion this season.

“All our experiences are brand new ones. We’re a new group. It was Marcus Dewhurst’s debut on Sunday, Jack Armer’s second start, Max Hunt’s played a handful of games…

“Cheltenham have League One players playing in League Two, they have a good six or seven players over 6ft, so they’re capable of scoring and defending from set plays. They have an unbelievable long throw that’s longer that JJ Kayode’s, they’re equipped to play possession-based football, tackle hard when needed as we saw last season, and have the capabilities of dealing with set plays for and against.

“They’re totally equipped to try and gain promotion.”

Cheltenham will be without keeper Josh Griffiths, who was preferred to United’s Dewhurst in the England Under-20 squad, Scott Flinders tipped to replace him.

Beech, meanwhile, is wary of their dangers at the other end of the pitch.

“Their strikers are excellent – Reuben Reid, Andy Williams, they’re been there and done that, got the t-shirt, played at higher levels.

“It’s a real big challenge for us but one to look forward to.”

Beech could recall Nick Anderton, Callum Guy, Paul Farman and Lewis Alessandra tomorrow, with Rod McDonald also able to return having been left out of the hayes & Yeading cup clash after reporting a sore throat.

McDonald's subsequent Covid-19 test came back negative, with Danny Devine - the defender's regular travelling partner, who was also left out as a precaution - also available again.

Gime Toure remains suspended while Dean Furman and Joshua Kayode are on international duty.