MATCH PREVIEW: Carlisle United vs Newport County

County will be aiming for our fifth-straight game unbeaten when we make the long trip to Cumbria to take on Carlisle on Saturday.

Graham Coughlan's hard-to-beat Exiles are currently without defeat in four, after a succession of draws against Wimbledon, Leyton Orient, Crawley and Rochdale.

County's 'never-say-die' attitude has seen three of those points won from losing positions after going behind against Wimbledon, Crawley and Rochdale before second-half equalisers earned a share of the spoils.

Carlisle meanwhile haven't played since New Year's Day - a 2-1 loss at Doncaster to kick off 2023, with their last three points coming on December 29 after winning 3-0 away to Crewe.

The Cumbrians are currently 4th in League Two, but find themselves seven points adrift of the top three as Leyton Orient, Stevenage and Northampton have secured a comfortable margin in the three automatic promotion places. 

They do have the league's third-top scorer in their arsenal though, with Kristian Dennis contributing 13 goals and two assists to Carlisle's promotion push in the 23 games he's featured in in League Two. 

Owen Moxon will also need to be monitored closely by County as he sits third in the assist chart for the league with seven, and he's also chipped in with four goals. 

United have made three loan signings since the opening of the January transfer window with Jack Robinson (Middlesbrough), Alfie McCalmont (Leeds) and John Kymani-Gordon (Crystal Palace) all able to go straight into the matchday squad.

Newport have no fresh injury concerns going into the weekend, with defender James Clarke back for a spot on the bench last week in the 1-1 draw against Rochdale. 

The Exiles were 2-1 winners in our last visit to Brunton Park thanks to goals from Mickey Demetriou and Finn Azaz while the reverse fixture earlier this season finished in a 1-1 draw with Nathan Moriah-Welsh scoring for County. 

Despite heavy rain being forecast, there is currently no pitch inspection planned at Brunton Park. If there is any change to that situation, we will alert fans as soon as is possible. 

Tickets for tomorrow's game are available here.