Carlisle United will finish 19th in League Two this coming season – according to respected football pundit and blogger Gabriel Sutton.
Writing on the Bet Victor blog, Sutton gives a detailed analysis of each club for the season which opens on Saturday.
He predicts Tranmere will finish the season as champions with Mansfield Town and newly promoted Stockport County joining them in automatic promotion.
The play-off places will be occupied by Salford City, Newport County, Leyton Orient and Grimsby Town.
Sutton also predicts that Carlisle’s county rivals will finish above them in the table in 16th.
Analysing Carlisle’s season Sutton writes: “Just like the Russian Revolution wasn’t all down to Lenin and the French Revolution wasn’t all thanks to Napoleon, Paul Simpson can’t change Carlisle on his own.
“The returning club legend, who inspired the Cumbrians to successive promotions in his first stint as manager, steered them away from the dogfight as soon as he took charge: having been in the drop zone when he took over, they finished 15 points clear.
“Only five sides collected more points than United’s 25 from 14 after ‘Simmo’ took charge, so locals are hoping that form can be extrapolated over a full campaign, meaning a first top seven finish since 2016-17.
“If only it were as simple as that. It’s easier to rally for survival under the right manager than it is to find that same consistency from scratch, and structural issues have not fully subsided despite recent positive steps.
“In terms of on-field matters, one positive step was the loan signing of attacking midfielder Sonny Hilton – praised heavily at TPS Turussa in the Ykkönen (Finnish 2nd tier) for his touch, pace and vision – who will complement speedster Omari Patrick, United’s danger man.
“On-loan Fin Back, meanwhile, looks a fine find from Forest, adding to a reliable core of defensive leader Morgan Feeney, athletic utility man Jon Mellish, attacking left wing-back Jack Armer and graceful controller Callum Guy.
“These key men look irreplaceable within current personnel: keep the strong septet fit and Carlisle could continue their Simmo-stirred surge, if goalkeeping giant Tomas Holy recaptures his Gillingham form.
“A takeover doesn’t look in the pipeline, however and when it happens, it’ll take a long time to undo years of mismanagement: Simpson is carrying the Cumbrians by the collar right now, but it’s not sustainable long-term.”
