United drawn to face Derby County away
Carlisle United have been drawn to face Derby County at the iPro Stadium in the second round of this season's EFL Cup competition.The Cumbrians progressed to the second round on Tuesday evening following a 2-1 victory over Port Vale at Brunton Park and have been rewarded with the trip to face former-manager Nigel Pearson's much fancied side at the end of this month.
The Rams beat Grimsby Town by 1-0 in round one courtesy of a goal from former-Blue Richard Keogh.
Manager Keith Curle said: "This is a real opportunity for us to test ourselves against a team who have been flirting with promotion to the top division for a number of years.
Ties are due to be played week commencing 22 August. Full match details tbc.
Manager Keith Curle said: "This is a real opportunity for us to test ourselves against a team who have been flirting with promotion to the top division for a number of years.
"They have quality all over the pitch and a quick look at the team which played against Grimsby shows that Nigel is determined to build a winning mentality and to do things properly."
"The other pleasing thing is that our fans will get to visit another fantastic stadium which, in my opinion, is home to a very big club," he continued. "Derby have a magnificent history in the game and you do feel it's only a matter of time before they are up there again.
"On a personal level I think they're a very professional outfit and they were actually the first club to help me out when I took over at Carlisle United. My first game in charge was for the Mansfield away game and they allowed us to use their training facility.
"As a manager starting at a new club I found that to be a great gesture and I'll always be very thankful for that.
"Another interesting aspect for the fans are the links they have with people like Nigel and Richard Keogh, and I'm sure they will enjoy seeing them again."
"It's one to look forward to because our players will enjoy the challenge of going up against a top Championship team," he concluded. "Having said all of that, we have some important league business to attend to first and that has to be our focus.
"Our philosophy is that we have to take each game as it comes on its own merits. We want to build a successful team here and the only way to do that is to make sure everything is done in the right way, at the right time, and as professionally as possible."
Ties are due to be played week commencing 22 August. Full match details tbc.
