Carlisle United take on Barrow on Thursday night in a big all-Cumbrian clash. Ahead of the trip to Holker Street, can the Blues take inspiration from some of their best encounters with the Bluebirds?
1 CARLISLE UNITED 4-1 BARROW, March 30, 1929
Only the clubs’ second-ever meeting in the Football League, amid Carlisle’s debut season in Division Three North. The Bluebirds and Blues had drawn 1-1 amid gale-force November winds in Barrow but later in the campaign it was a different matter.
At Brunton Park, in front of 7,441, Carlisle swept to a 4-1 victory. Although Barrow were a Lancashire side then, it was still termed a “derby” in newspaper reports, and under bright Carlisle sunshine, United’s superiority was clear.
Jimmy McConnell, Carlisle’s record goalscorer, was at the peak of his powers and fired home his first from a tight angle before striking an opportunist second. Billy Ward and Jimmy Miller added more, with Hart’s Barrow reply a slim consolation.
The hosts would have had more without some questionable offside decisions. It was regarded as one of United's best all-round displays of a positive maiden season in the League.
2 CARLISLE UNITED 7-1 BARROW, February 8, 1930
A “one-sided derby”, as the Cumberland Evening News put it, unfolded at Brunton Park in February 1930. Barrow were en route to the bottom of Division Three North and though United were bottom-half dwellers themselves, they made short work of the Barrovians in their first win of the new decade.
A crowd of 5,262 was there for the action on a rather heavy pitch, on which Carlisle set the pace. McConnell scored after three minutes and soon afterwards Willie Watson got another. Miller pulled one back for Barrow but Carlisle cut loose with three more goals from McConnell, another from Watson and one from John Thompson.
United also had one disallowed, when McConnell charged keeper Davies, who dropped the ball and Carlisle’s main marksman duly shot home. Regardless, it proved Carlisle’s highest-scoring win of the season and the mismatch led our correspondent to ponder the lack of drama.
“That real atmosphere which should attend the clash between Carlisle United and the Furness men has not yet been created,” he wrote. “There are possibly two explanations. Barrow are still, as they always have been since they entered it, a struggling side in the Northern Section.
“Then the fact that the meetings of the clubs do not fall on any recognised holiday date also curbs enthusiasm.”
One imagines Carlisle soon got over those drawbacks.
3 CARLISLE UNITED 4-1 BARROW, December 25, 1946.
A Christmas Day treat for the Cumbrians in the clubs’ first post-war meeting. United and Barrow, in fact, faced each other on consecutive days in 1946’s festive season.
First came the December 25 showdown at Brunton Park. Carlisle were now under the management of Ivor Broadis, who at 23 was (and remains) the Football League’s youngest-ever boss.
Fittingly, the great Broadis would be at the heart of events against Barrow. Some 9,576 watched the action, and the player-manager was first to make his mark by driving a powerful shot out of the reach of Barrow keeper Roxburgh to put Carlisle 1-0 up.
Burnett levelled for the visitors but Carlisle were much more ruthless from there. Lloyd Iceton scored a brilliant second after cutting in from the wing, James Dougal plundered a third and James Moir netted number four after a corner.
It was a muddy success as Christmas celebrations continued. The following day, though, Barrow got their own back with a 3-1 Boxing Day win.
4 CARLISLE UNITED 4-1 BARROW, April 17, 1964
Barrow stood in the way of Carlisle and a likely promotion in the spring of 1964. It was not, ultimately, a contest of much tension.
United, that season, were enjoying the most prolific campaign in their history, and their first-half efforts against the Bluebirds underlined why.
They slammed three goals into the Barrow net in quick order. Johnny Evans hooked home on 13 minutes and Joe Livingstone headed another soon after.
Evans got number three on the half-hour after good work from Hugh McIlmoyle, and though Tommy Thompson pulled one back for Barrow, Livingstone went through for a United fourth.
A 9,538 crowd watched Carlisle’s win on their season’s penultimate weekend. Four days later, a win against Rochdale sealed their Division Four promotion, and they were only denied the title on goal average as Gillingham pipped them. Barrow, by contrast, ended up three points adrift at the bottom.
5 BARROW 1-2 CARLISLE UNITED, March 19, 2022
Only the second league meeting between the sides since Barrow’s return to the Football League this decade saw Carlisle in the early stages of their Paul Simpson-led revival.
The newly-galvanised Blues duly had too much for Mark Cooper’s Barrow. Jordan Gibson rifled United in front after 32 minutes and then, in the second half, Kristian Dennis pounced on a mix-up at the Barrow back to slot home his first Carlisle goal, before disappearing into a surging away end.
Ollie Banks blasted the hosts back into things but it proved a highly enjoyable day for United and their 612 travelling fans. Less so for Barrow and Cooper, who parted company the following day. Both clubs duly avoided relegation under experienced bosses: Simpson at United, and Cooper’s replacement Phil Brown at Holker Street.
6 CARLISLE UNITED 5-1 BARROW
One of the high points of 2022/23’s promotion push, and in particular a second half where it felt like everything and more was just going right for Carlisle.
The opening period was much closer than the eventual result implied. Barrow, under Pete Wild, gave United plenty of concerns, but Jon Mellish fired the hosts in front…
…and then the Blues put their foot down thereafter. Joe Garner bulleted a second after a peachy Owen Moxon pass, Mellish got another, Omari Patrick joined in the fun and then, after Ben Barclay’s own goal, JK Gordon was tripped by Paul Farman as Dennis notched Carlisle's fifth from the spot.
There were complaints of offside about Mellish’s opener, while Wild admitted his side had “disrespected” Barrow’s fans with their collapse, and had put Carlisle’s goals “on a plate” for them.
Simpson got stuck in by way of response, claiming Wild’s take was “ridiculous” and that United deserved more credit for their display, which had been very much enjoyed by most of the 9,351 crowd.
Now the Blues are seeking another midweek night to remember against the Bluebirds…at the other end of the table.
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