Paul Simpson has offered withering criticism of Carlisle United’s midweek reserve performance.

The Blues went down 5-1 in a friendly at Middlesbrough with a performance that did little to impress the manager.

Dan Butterworth got his first Carlisle goal in the behind-closed-doors game but it was an otherwise bad showing from United, according to Simpson.

“It was a massive disappointment,” the manager said.

“I wasn’t there because I took the group that was left here, but I watched the game back and I think it was a complete wasted opportunity for the lads.

“I thought Alfie McCalmont showed some enthusiasm but apart from that there’s nobody that can come knocking on my door and say they deserve to play on the back of that performance.

“It was a complete wasted opportunity in terms of how they worked and played football.”

Simpson said players were today told about their shortcomings in the game in no uncertain terms.

He said assistant manager Gavin Skelton, who took charge of the team at Boro, was charged with laying it on the line.

“Gav today went through some clips with them, showed some examples of where it’s not acceptable,” said Simpson.

“I’ve got this thing in my mind that the players who are going to affect the game on Saturday are the ones I want to focus on today.

“But I did insist that Gav had to go through it with them because they have to understand that that’s not acceptable.

“We talk about having standards here, and there are too many players in that particular game didn’t go about their standards properly.”

United’s team that played in the friendly at the Championship club’s Rockliffe training ground was largely comprised of first-team squad members with McCalmont, Ryan Edmondson, Corey Whelan, Jack Ellis, Jack Robinson, Jayden Harris, Taylor Charters and Gabe Breeze all starting, along with youth team players Romeo Park and Will Maddison.

Some of those players could again find themselves involved when United take on Carlisle City in the Fred Conway Cumberland Cup first round next Tuesday.