[I]n the first evening match of the third round of the Cumberland FA Senior Cup, holders Workington Reds knocked out Carlisle United thanks to a headed goal from Phil McLuckie.
The Reds fielded a strong looking side, captained by James Earl, against a young Carlisle line up which only featured a couple of first team squad members, but the Reds rested key striker Scott Allison and the in-form David Symington and had Sam Joel on the bench. And it was No 2 McLuckie, who only returned to Borough Park club three weeks ago after coming out of retirement, who struck in the 66th minute at Penrith AFC’s Frenchfield Park ground.
Carlisle, on the day managed by Academy coach Darren Edmondson, last won the Cup in 2015 and the youngsters missed some good chances, with captain Luke Taylor denied by a Tom Fowler save in the first half, Sam Adewusi shooting just wide, and a Kieron Olsen attempt saved by the excellent Fowler, but the Reds deserved the win and could have added more goals as the game drew to a close, with Jamie Pattinson ‘s shot flying over the, and the Reds were twice denied by the post.
With new manager Kyle May at the helm, Penrith made the trip to Cockermouth’s Grassmoor ground to with the aim of some injecting some winning spirit into what has been a dreadful season so far for the Bonny Blues. May, who notched up more than 500 matches as a Workington defender and picked up the Cup for the Reds last season, has been joined by Andy Coyles as First Team Coach and brought a strong squad to face the Smurfit Kappa Premiership home side, and put himself in the starting eleven at No 5.
Cockermouth were under intense pressure for the first ten minutes but began to gain confidence and held well, and as the first half went on, began to look far more dangerous in the visitors half. But at the other end Lee Meddings had to pull off two superb saves as Penrith looked equally dangerous, with Robbie Hebson surging forwards and Connor Shields a constant threat for Penrith. 0-0 at half time, the win was secured by three second half goals from a Shields penalty, Jamie Hodgson and Shaun Gardner for a 0-3 win, although Hebson was given his marching orders for foul on Cockermouth’s Lewis White on 76 minutes. The win means May, who has won the cup as a player, now has the chance for county glory in his first year as a manager.
Cleator Moor Celtic demolished James Cropper Westmorland League Division Three outfit Penrith Saints 18-0 in the last round, and this time faced an away tie at Braithwaite FC at the playing fields at the Braithwaite Village Institute. Braithwaite, who usually ply their football in Westmorland League Division Two, put up a spirited performance and this was a much closer affair than Cleator Moor’s last game, and it was 1-3 on 80 minutes with Sean Slack pulling a goal back for the home side who battled well, but the visitors walked away with a 1-6 win with three late goals, and those Celtic’s goals were from Darren Little (2), Callum Birdsall (2), Adam Meagan, and Adam Telfer.
Smurfit Kappa Cumberland County League’s Premiership Aspatria had a battle on their hands with a visit from Jame Tose’s Carlisle City, although they had the advantage of the home tie at St Mungos Park, and Aspatria always have a big loyal crowd for cup matches. And they used this to their advantage! It was impressive enough to have held City to 1-1 at half time, but the home side then inflicted an embarrassing 6-1 defeat on the visitors with the goals from a Malcolm Graham hat trick, a Darryl Creighton brace and a Will Hodgson strike. A big win for Aspatria and a big upset.
Wetheriggs United, the last surviving Westmoland Division One side, had an interesting tie against another Smurfit Kappa Premiership team, Netherhall, with Wetheriggs having the home advantage. Our resident pundit, Oswald Grimethorpe, who correctly predicted fifteen correct results out of sixteen in the last round, predicted an away win and an away win it was for Netherhall, with the visitors winning 3-1 with goals from a Sean Smith penalty, Jamie Glover and Andrew Lowes, with Martyn Coleman scoring the only goal for Wetheriggs, and probably his last for now, as news broke that Coleman was on his way back to Kyle May’s Penrith AFC, another stop of on the Shildon-Penrith roundabout.
Smurfit Kappa Division One’s Pirelli were up against Alston Moor, who had a tough 2-1 victory over another Division One side, Bransty Rangers, in the last round. This time Pirelli had the home advantage over the Frank Hudson Crook & District League Division One side, and the former Westmorland champions had this by the same score, with a good 2-1 win for Pirelli.
In the final two ties, Windscale AFC meet Northbank next Wednesday, and Eden Thistle are at home to another Smurfit Kappa Premiership side, Workington Athletic, next Saturday. The draw for the Quarter Finals of the Cumberland Cup will take place Friday 10th November, live on BBC Radio Cumbria.
