Alport nearly pay for penalty miss

The Reds were two up at the break, but could have been left to rue a host of missed chances – including a penalty – when City halved the deficit. It made for a nervy ending for The Reds.

The visitors’ preparation for the game could hardly have been worse. A three-hour journey turned into a four-hour one due to an incident on the motorway, and the coach didn’t pull into the Black Park Road Stadium until 40 minutes before kick-off.

When the game did get under way, City were behind in less than two minutes. A superb move down the right ended with Nick Marley fizzing the ball in at the near post and Luke Walley was on hand to give Whitchurch the perfect start.

When Ben Mills – a 24th minute substitute for the injured Si Everall – was felled in the box, it gave Mike Blundell a glorious chance to make it 2-0 on the half hour. But Blundell’s spot kick clipped the top of the bar and went over with keeper Michael Ballantyne diving the other way. It was the striker’s first penalty miss in three years, but he responded well to lash the ball home two minutes later from a Stevie McNichol corner.

That inspired a 15-minute spell which could easily have seen Mills bag a quickfire hat-trick and put the game to bed for Alport. He was unlucky to see a shot smack the base of a post but was guilty of a poor miss in first half stoppage time, allowing Ballantyne to save his effort from a Blundell cross when it looked easier to score.

After the resumption, Robert McCartney got Carlisle back in it with a shot from outside the box which went into the net via an upright.

But Ballantyne had the last word, turning over a great Mills effort.