Stubborn Forest Green head north on Tuesday night for what should be another tough encounter.
A solid start to the season - with no less than five 1-0 victories recorded - has seen Rovers float around the upper reaches of the division through the first month-and-a-bit of the campaign.
An attractive style of football has been matched by a hard work ethic and they come to Brunton Park with back-to-back league wins under their belts.
Goals have been spread about, but Joe Mills has been the stand-out performer with three strikes and two assists to his name.
Good additions through the summer have made the squad stronger, but Tuesday's visitors were dealt a huge blow at the start of the season when Welsh international George Williams broke his leg, ruling him out for a long period.
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From the manager
Speaking ahead of the game, Steven Pressley said: "Forest Green are a team that in my opinion have improved year on year under Mark Cooper's management.
"They currently sit third in the table and are a team that have a definite style of play.
"That is reflected in the fact they have the highest passing stats in League Two this season thus far.
"They have also improved from a defensive perspective and currently have conceded the second lowest amount of goals.
"These statistics give an indication that tonight’s game will prove a real test, but it’s certainly one we look forward to."
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Head2Head
| Carlisle wins | Draws | Forest Green wins | |
| League | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| Total | 3 | 1 | 2 |
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Highlights from previous meetings
United came away from the New Lawn with a 1-1 draw in March this year, having largeky dominated the game. Nathan Thomas bagged the goal, bu there were a number of opportunities missed.
Watch the highlights from that game here:
It was Rovers who took the honours when they came north in November, earlier in the season, with goals from Ben Morris and Carl Winchester giving them a two-goal cushion. A late penalty from Jamie Devitt gave the Blues some hope, but the away side held out to take all three points.
Watch the highlights from that game here:
The December 2017 away trip to the New Lawn brought an early Christmas present for the Blue Army as Richie Bennett headed home what turned out to be the winner just before the half hour.
Watch the highlights from that game here:
It was the same scoreline here at Brunton Park in January 2018 with the only goal of the game coming in almost the same minute. This time it was Jamie Devitt who found the back of the net when he arrived late to smash a volley into the bottom corner as the ball fell nicely at his feet.
Watch the highlights from that game here:
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The man in the middle
Our referee for this game is Mr Michael Salisbury. Michael has taken charge of eight games so far this season showing 17 yellow cards and two reds.
The last time he was in charge of a United game was for our 2-1 defeat at Macclesield in October last season. Ashley Nadesan scored the consolation goal and George Glendon was the only name visiting name taken.
We saw him on three occasions the season before that, starting with a 2-0 home defeat to Stevenage last September. Second half errors from keeper Shamal George opened the door for Boro to win the game, and Danny Grainger, Luke Joyce and Richie Bennett had their names taken on the day.
He was back at Brunton Park in December when we lost 2-1 to Port Vale. Richie Bennett bagged our late consolation, but goals from Tyrone Barnett and Tom Pope had already done the damage. The referee's notebook stayed in his pocket that afternoon.
The last time we saw him was for our January 2-0 FA Cup defeat at Hillsborough when goals from Marco Matias and Athde Nuhiu secured progression for the Owls. It was another game without cards, but there was plenty of snow as the white stuff fell at an alarming rate causing problems both during the game and for the journey home.
Referee - Michael Salisbury
Assistant Referee 1 - Chris Isherwood
Assistant Referee 2 - Simon Clayton
Fourth Official - Daniel Woodward
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Is that a fact?
Forest Green reached the final of the FA Trophy in 1999, making them the first side to reach the final of both the FA Trophy and the FA Vase.
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Match tickets
Full match ticket details are HERE.
You can purchase your tickets online HERE.
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