Matchwinner Lewis Alessandra has hailed the team spirit that helped Carlisle United return from a long lay-off in winning style.

The forward hit the only goal as the promotion-chasing Blues beat Exeter 1-0 at Brunton Park on Saturday.

It was their first game for four weeks after a string of postponements and a Covid-19 shutdown.

Alessandra claimed his seventh of the season when volleying home Omari Patrick’s cross and said he was delighted to help United to the points on their long-awaited return.

“When a ball like that comes in you just have to make sure you get good contact. I was in yards of space and I was thinking that if Omari could find me I just had to put it on target,” Alessandra said.

“Omari did really well, but he’s been in good form of late anyway, prior to the lockdown, and it was just a case of trying to anticipate where it was going to be. Nine times out of 10 he’ll go at and go past his man and I thought he made a good decision with his cross.

“It was a big three points. I think it was a more physical game than normal and I didn’t think there was much quality in it at all, especially from ourselves. I can’t remember us stringing four or five passes together, and usually we do that really well.

“We tend to look to get it forward, and once it’s forward we start to play a bit. It didn’t go that way for us, it was very scrappy, but that’s how it goes sometimes.

“The inactivity is going to affect us but hope fully with every minute that passes we’ll be getting back to our old selves.

“We’ve talked about the team spirit and there are times when you face adversity, with the games being cancelled and things like that, but if everyone is pulling in the right direction it builds that spirit.”

United moved up to second in League Two with a host of games in hand on rivals.

They are facing a busy spell of matches, which continues with fellow high-fliers Forest Green’s visit tomorrow.

Experienced Alessandra says United will give it their all after a frustrating spell on the sidelines.

“It has been frustrating. I feel like I’ve spent a lot of time sat outside Harrogate’s stadium [where United have seen two games cancelled] but it is what it is. It’s nobody’s fault, we’ve had games called off for all sorts of reasons which nobody could have predicted and we’ve just got to get on with it.

“We got to Birmingham on Tuesday [before the Newport game] then had to turn around, but it’s just the way it is. We came in on Wednesday and played a game instead [in training] so we were ready for [the Exeter game].

“I don’t think we lived up to how we’ve played in home games so far this season but, with everything that’s happened, if you’d have said we weren’t going to play as well as we know we can but still win the game, we all would have snatched your hand off for that.

“In terms of the games coming up, it is what it is. You play Saturday–Tuesday games from time to time anyway so it will just be more frequent because of what’s happened.

“We’re professional footballers, so we’ll just recover right and make sure we’re as ready as we can be for all the games.”

Alessandra admits he is enjoying being a key part of United’s forward line, where he is surrounded by a number of younger players.

The 31-year-old said: “I’m definitely one of the older heads but I still feel the same way I did when I was 23 or 24. It’s my birthday in a few weeks and that’s frustrating because you don’t want them to come round as much...

“I am really enjoying it, even though I didn’t enjoy [Saturday] as much as some of the games we’ve played where we’ve been really dominant and had 20-plus attempts on target.

“I don’t know the stats from this one but I don’t imagine they’ll be anywhere near that. But any player will tell you that if you score the winner and get three points it’s the best feeling you can have.

“I’m pleased with the amount of goals I’ve scored so far but you can always score more and work the target more. We didn’t hit the target as much as we usually do, but I think the time we’ve had off maybe showed.

“Exeter are a good side and it isn’t a coincidence that they’re always there or there abouts at the end of the season. It was a tough game and it wasn’t pretty at all. I felt like all I did was run back and forward between the two centre-halves and have a bit of a fight with them but I got the goal and we got the three points.

“After the turbulence of the past few weeks it was important to hit the ground running, especially in a home game where we’ve been so good.

“When you win games it just breeds that confidence and spirit within the dressing room. We’ve got a group of lads who are all pulling in the same direction. The gaffer has got us playing in a certain way and all of us are buying into it and working our butts off because it’s just what we do.”

Alessandra feels United’s recent attacking recruitment, which has seen the likes of Offrande Zanzala, Cedwyn Scott and Ethan Walker join, has added “strength in depth” ahead of a demanding run of games.

And he said the Blues will be ready to give it everything against a Forest Green side who edged United 1-0 at the New Lawn in December.

“They beat us down there and they’re a decent side, but we’re a decent side as well,” Alessandra said.

“That was a scrappy, cold, windy game, in fact some of the worst conditions I’ve played in, but the way they reacted [afterwards] shows that they think we’re a tough side to play against.

“We’ve got nothing to fear, we’ve just got to do everything the way we always do. We’ll make sure we recover properly and we’ll be ready to go again against another team that’s at the right end of the table.”