It was the night when all should have gone right. The crowd was close to the 9,000 mark and a £2 entry fee was responsible for an unusually large gate. The Latics were in the play-off zone and Carlisle were being brought to the slaughter to build interest in the Latics for the increased attendance. How did it go wrong? The game was decided by a late goal from Carlisle substitute Chris Curran and the result saw the Latics slip to seventh spot and also witnessed a lot of prospective new fans go home disappointed, probably never to return until the next 'free/cheap' game is encountered.
Manager Paul Dickov most have been disappointed more than most as his young and enthusiastic team put in a poor performance. He commented, “That was the poorest we have played for a long time, but you have to give Carlisle credit. They set out their stall, had a game plan and it worked for them. We struggled to break them down and, as good as we have been recently defensively and going forward, we weren't a threat enough when we had the ball. I cannot fault our players who have been magnificent since I came in. They had a go, but the quality we have seen of late wasn't there.”
The manager, who earlier set a 'don't lose at home' mission statement, added, “May be we tried a little too hard with a big crowd being here. We hope they will come back as we are trying to do the right things, though it didn't happen for us against Carlisle. The most important thing is how we react and, to be fair every time we have had a setback, we have done so. We will pick ourselves up and don't want gloom about the place. We still have a great chance of achieving something this season so let's be positive.”
Near the end of the match, the Latics assistant manager Gerry Taggart was sent to the stand after his involvement in an incident where there was mayhem after some ungentlemany conduct from both teams. In the end it just wasn't the Latics night!