United hosted Leyton Orient on Tuesday night in the rearranged fixture, with it being fourth time lucky for a game that had been plagued by postponements.

Defender Rod McDonald served a one-match suspension having been sent off at Stevenage on Saturday, and that meant Aaron Hayden was back at the heart of the defence.

Captain Nick Anderton returned at left back, with Jack Armer switched to the right, and midfielder Dean Furman and forward Lewis Alessandra were also given the nod.

Keeper Paul Farman completed five changes from the weekend as he was declared fully fit following a niggling thigh problem which had kept him out for two games.

A decent long throw from Alessandra kicked things off as he looked to find Bennett on the leap. He connected, but Happe was able to make the clearance adjacent to the penalty spot.

Zanzala was fouled as he tried to wriggle his way through two challenges with the hosts pushing on, and Guy took charge of the 26-yarder. He let fly with a whisked effort and Vigouroux looked on in relief as it struck the outside of his post and went behind.

Another dipping Alessandra throw found its way to Bennett on six minutes, with Carlisle on top in terms of possession, but the defender couldn't get the awkward bounce under control. Furman recovered the hurried clearance with a slide rule pass to Alessandra, and his cross took a deflection. Vigouroux spilled the ball but quickly scooped it up.

Farman was needed at the other end when Johnson got on the end of a flick from Wilkinson. The volley was a stinger, but the keeper parried it high. Armer scurried back to chest it down before spinning to sweep it out of the box.

The Cumbrians worked the ball through midfield as Alessandra shielded it well and Anderton stayed patient when he looked for an opportunity to cross. It hit two defensive bodies, but the blue shirts camped forward to regain possession. A foul tight by the touchline brought an inswinging tester of a free kick from Guy, but Cisse did enough before Bennett could make his header count.

More good football from the hosts saw Toure use Furman and Armer to help forge a path towards goal. The South African playmaker won a corner, and a near stick run from Anderton brought a header that had to be blocked. Two more set pieces followed, and Bennett was disappointed as he got on the end of an outswinger from Guy. He'd seen off his markers, but his 13-yard header flew well wide.

Carlisle came again when Alessandra measured a pass to Toure, who had his back to goal on the edge of the area. A deft touch invited Mellish to shoot on the turn, but it lacked conviction and Vigouroux grasped it gratefully.

Orient were dangerous from a free kick when Happe sent the ball onwards when Clay floated it his way. Armer intervened to ease the tension.

More good football came from the hone side when Furman and Alessandra made space for Anderton. His right-footed cross skimmed off Akinola but it was just a yard too far in front of Armer.

A tight period where neither side could find the upper hand was punctuated by a long-range effort from Guy after Toure had cut inside to make room. It was venomous, but it rose into the night sky and sailed off into the Waterworks End.

Toure ghosted over to the left flank as he looked to make an impact and his drop of a shoulder brought confusion as Bennett tried to make a clipped pass his. The clearance was hooked back in by Alessandra but Hayden was on the stretch and his glancing touch dropped onto the roof of the net.

United started the second period kicking into a strong wind and sporadic driving rain, but they were almost in front when a great move saw Mellish break into space to take the ball off Alessandra. He crossed first time, and Zanzala did well to shield it, 10-yards out. He shot through legs as he turned his marker, but it took a nick off a leg and bobbled just past the post.

Midfielder Jon Mellish put the resulting corner wide, but the home side came again when Anderton showed great poise before lofting the ball into the mix. Zanzala was going to finish it off when it squirmed out of a scramble of legs, but the whistle blew for an unseen infringement.

Paul Farman had to tip a corner from Kemp over the bar as it caught on the wind and threatened to drift in, as the O's struggled to make an impact, but it was Carlisle who thought they'd taken the lead when Armer showed good anticipation to steal the ball just 26-yards out. Alessandra was in space, but he was an inch away as he dropped his shoulder twice before bending it past the angle of post and bar from inside the box.

There was a scare at the other end when Wilkinson thrashed his boot through a loose ball. It twisted past Farman but wide of the mark.

Keeper Paul Farman signalled to the bench that all was not well on 67 minutes, but treatment from physio Ross Goodwin had him back on his feet.

Furman almost turned provider when the game restarted when he called for the pass from Toure. He got it, and his instinctive delivery for Zanzala was near perfect until Cisse got the feintest of stabs with his toe to take it away from the advancing man. 

It was suddenly end-to-end and Hayden had to get in the way of Johnson when he found himself with an unexpected chance. The defender blocked, then started an attack as he cut the ball wide. Toure pulled into space, but his cut back was dealt with.

Skipper Nick Anderton curled a 25-yarder into the Warwick as he took over from Guy with a surge forward, and another United break saw Furman clip a roll out from Farman to Zanzala. He made it to the edge of the box, and he then looked for Mellish. Orient were back in numbers and they closed ranks to shut things down after a heavy touch from the midfielder slowed things down.

A lob from Johnson from a tight angle dropped behind the nets as the clock ticked down, but it was the away side who nicked the win with two minutes left to go when Vigouroux kicked long. It bounced, and Farman came sprinting off his line to try to get there first. Conor Wilkinson opened his legs and found the perfect touch to send the ball over the stranded stopper and into the empty net.

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Goals

Leyton Orient - Wilkinson (88)

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Teams

Carlisle United - Farman, Armer, Hayden, Bennett, Anderton (c), Furman, Guy, Mellish, Toure, Zanzala, Alessandra. Subs - Norman (gk), Tanner, Riley, Patrick, Charters, Scott, Walker.

Leyton Orient - Vigouroux, Widdowson, Cisse, Happe, McAnuff (Dennis 73), Clay (c), Wilkinson, Kemp, Akinola, Turley, Johnson. Subs - Sargeant (gk), Ling, Coulson, Dayton, Sweeney, Abrahams.

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Match officials

Referee - James Bell
Assistant Referee 1 - Paul Graham
Assistant Referee 2 - Ivan Stankovic
Fourth Official - Matthew Dicicco

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Attendance - BCD