Whickham Grind Out Crucial 2-1 Victory Over Carlisle City FC

Whickham manager Dan Crooks admitted the performance “wasn’t pretty” but praised his side’s resilience after a hard-fought 2-1 win over Carlisle City.

In a fiercely contested encounter, Whickham had to dig deep to secure all three points against a determined Carlisle outfit who travelled with clear intent.

“It wasn’t pretty, but it was effective at the end of the day,” Crooks said. “There’s been a lot of times this season where we’ve played really well and not got the points, but tonight we really ground the game out.

“They were physical, they worked hard. We knew what we were going to get from them. They’ve been unlucky in the past and they’re well drilled. They didn’t travel all this way for no reason. They made it hard for us, but ultimately it’s three points and that’s all that matters.”

With several new arrivals bolstering the squad in recent weeks, Crooks admitted team selection has become increasingly difficult — but in a positive way.

“The 11 is just the start of it,” he explained. “Picking the squad has been even harder. We left two or three lads out again tonight. Those are difficult conversations, and it’ll be the same on Saturday.

“We’ve built the squad over the last few months and now we’ve finally got almost everyone back fit. James Blakey and David Beedle are injured, but other than that everyone’s available. It’s really competitive and that’s bringing everyone on.”

Crooks also highlighted the impact of his substitutes, a factor increasingly influencing his decision-making.

“We’ve shown on Saturday and today that the subs are making a big impact. That influences how we pick the team. The attitude from the lads has been brilliant — we can’t ask for any more.”

After establishing a two-goal cushion, Whickham were tested when Carlisle pulled one back with 20 minutes remaining. However, Crooks was pleased with how his side managed the closing stages.

“It was really good,” he said. “In the past, when you’re down the bottom like we are, conceding at 2-0 can make people nervous. But maybe having some newer lads has helped — they haven’t gone through that.

“The subs made an impact again. Lucas Reid came on, got his foot on the ball and calmed it down. It was a hard game — their press was intense and the lads mentioned that at half-time. Everyone put a great shift in, and the lads who came on added their own stamp to the game.”

The victory makes it three wins in a row for Whickham, including a cup triumph over Crook, and Crooks believes momentum is building ahead of Saturday’s crucial clash with Marks United.

“It’s about what we can do on Saturday,” he said. “Can we go there and turn them over at their place? We’ve got to play them twice in a few weeks, so we need to be bang at it.

“We’ll do our digging, see what we can learn, set the team up accordingly and go there full of confidence — which we will be — and hopefully try to get another three points.”