A fourth appearance of the season for fit again Tobi Sho-Silva brought an excellent personal performance from the all-action striker as he ran himself into the ground for the cause, with him also playing a huge part in the opening goal of the game that set the tone for a second consecutive victory.
Speaking after the game, manager Paul Simpson said: “He really did run himself into the deck, but that’s what he does.
“I knew I wasn’t going to get 90 minutes out of him but we needed him to start the game for us. I thought he worked his socks off, he was a real handful.
“He was a menace for their defence and I was really pleased to see him work the keeper with his shot. All of our players get into those areas so many times, but they don’t work the keeper, so we’ve practiced that kind of thing in training.
“His run and shot forced a mistake and thankfully Jordan Gibson was on the spot to put it away.”
Always reluctant to use competitive fixtures to get players fit, it was another case of needs must for the Carlisle boss as injuries to Dennis and Stretton left him short up front.
“I told him he was starting but I didn’t tell him that what I was thinking was that I just needed 60 minutes out of him,” the gaffer told us. “In my mind I knew I wasn’t going to get any more than that out of him.
“He ran himself into the deck but in his last two or three minutes out there he physically couldn’t run or do any more. His legs were cramping up, but he’ll benefit from that.
“It just goes to show that he’s got himself into a good place after a horrible hamstring injury and he’s able to do a job for us.
“It was a case of needs must, as it has been with a few players over the last couple of weeks, and thankfully we have a group of lads who are all fighting for the same cause.
“I’m really pleased with what he did for the team. We knew it was going to be tough, especially when they changed their shape and played with a back three.
“We knew he was going have to have a physical battle. I didn’t want him to get involved in a fight with them, I just wanted him to go and compete, and he did.
“He’ll get so much confidence from that and, at the same time, it’s an hour of proper fitness work for him. You can’t simulate that sort of thing in training, as hard as you try.
“I’m quite sure he’ll sleep well, he’ll be tired, but he’ll come in on Monday morning and want to be involved again at Harrogate.”
“If you think back, he got injured the Monday before the first game of the season, so he’s been out a long time,” he concluded. “But he’s worked extremely hard, he does things properly, he’s a good professional the way he goes about it.
“His performance is a reward for all that work. This start has come for him because others are unavailable, that isn’t his fault, he’s just got to be ready, and he was certainly ready for us for this game.”
