Simmo: Carlisle United's Leyton Orient clash needs no extra motivation

The Blues head to east London this weekend in their bid to return to form.

Fourth-placed United are looking to return to the automatic promotion places against a table-topping Orient who are five points clear at the League Two summit.

While Carlisle are winless and goalless in three, Richie Wellens’ side have drawn their last four.

Simpson, though, said the Os continue to be the standard-bearers in the division.

“They’re a side that has set an incredible standard over the season,” United’s boss said.

“Because they’ve drawn four games people can start to say negative stuff about them, but to be sat where they are now, it’s a brilliant position to be in.

Wellens: Carlisle United visit could 'stimulate' Leyton Orient

“I’ve been there before and I know what it’s like when you get to the end of the season and you now you need a couple more wins to do it.

“You start to get a little bit nervy and maybe that’s what’s happening to them now.

“I watched the Hartlepool game and it’s fair to say they should have been out of sight, but they also could have lost it.

“This is a great game for us, It’s one that you don’t need to get any sort of motivational tools out – you’d like to think that everybody will want to be involved anyway.

United fans vent their anger at referee Thomas Parsons during the 3-2 defeat to Leyton Orient in October (Image: Ben Holmes)

“I know the players do, I’m really looking forward to it.”

Carlisle will be out for a better outcome than their controversial 3-2 reverse against Orient in October.

They will do so against a home side whose manager was embroiled in post-match claims of coin throwing and abuse from Blues fans.

For Simpson it is another reunion with a former team-mate, and he added: “I’m looking forward to meeting Richie again because he’s a guy who I played with at Blackpool, and I’ve come across him since a few times.

“It's a really good game to look forward to.

“We have to go and put a performance on against the team everybody has been chasing all season.

“Their record of 27 out of the first 30 points of the season is incredible to do. We’ve chased them all season, so we go there looking forward to it.

“I definitely don’t see it as a free hit because we’re expected to lose – it’s just another tough game that we want to win. As the team that’s fourth in the table we have to do enough to be the team that comes out on top.”

Where will the League Two promotion race be won and lost?

United’s game is one of three in League Two this weekend that involve the top six teams playing one another.

Stockport County take on Salford City tonight, while Northampton Town face Stevenage tomorrow.

“What you can guarantee is that they can’t all win, that’s the one thing we can say,” added Simpson.

“But we have to do our job properly. We haven’t done that over the last few games. We took a defeat at Gillingham, and that wasn’t what we planned to do.

“We have to do our jobs and, as we know, if we do that we’ll still find ourselves sitting in a good position.

“If we don’t, we run the risk of other teams catching us and, again, that’s something we’ve got to deal with.”