Carlisle United 0-1 Wednesday

GARY Megson sealed his first win as Wednesday boss as the Owls defeated Carlisle United 1-0 at Brunton Park in npower League One.

Skipper Tommy Miller netted the winning goal in the first-half to end Wednesday’s poor run of form.

It was a superb defensive performance by Wednesday, who kept their second clean sheet on the spin.

Megson was impressed by his side’s performance in the 0-0 draw at promotion-chasing Bournemouth in midweek and stuck with the same starting eleven for the trip to Cumbria.

The hosts also named an unchanged side, meaning former Owls defender Frank Simek lined up for United as captain, while Owls striker Gary Madine lined up against his former club for the first time since his move from Brunton Park in the January transfer window.

Wednesday made a positive start to the match and forced a corner inside the first 30 seconds after Liam Palmer made a powerful drive into the Carlisle half straight from kick-off.

Chances were limited in the opening ten minutes but it suited Wednesday, who kept their hosts quiet and had more of the ball in the opening exchanges, with Tommy Miller seeing a shot on goal deflected away from a throw-in.

Ben Marshall looked the man most likely to carve something out for the Cumbrians and his quick feet enabled him to swing in a dangerous cross, which no Carlisle attackers managed to get near and Owls stopper Nicky Weaver comfortably held on.

Owls striker Gary Madine was always going to be a key player on the return to his former club and his first chance came after 15 minutes when he connected with a Tommy Spurr cross but steered his effort high and wide.

The Owls had the better of the early play and they were rewarded on 20 minutes when skipper Miller fired them ahead with an unstoppable volley.

A deep cross was cleared from the far post by the Carlisle defender but the clearance fell straight to Miller, who powered his effort beyond United stopper Collin to the delight of the travelling Wednesday fans.

Unlike other recent matches on their travels, Wednesday were playing with confidence and Palmer almost got away from a neat flick-on by Madine only for the home defence to clear the danger.

Gary Teale then saw a shot saved by Collin when Miller was perhaps better placed to fire an effort on goal as the half-hour mark approached.

Carlisle had their best chance on goal in the 36th minute, with Marshall again looking the most dangerous attacker for the hosts as he lashed in a shot which Weaver pushed away.

The hosts came even closer just before half-time when Craig Curran zipped a shot just inches wide of Weaver’s goal from a Carlisle counter-attack.

United were enjoying their best spell of the match so far in the closing stages of the first half, putting Wednesday under a good amount of pressure.

But the whistle blew on a really good first half for the Owls as Carlisle failed to break down a stubborn Wednesday defence.

Half-Time: Carlisle 0-1 Wednesday

Wednesday made one change art the start of the second half with Darren Potter coming on for Liam Palmer in the centre of the Owls midfield.

And they almost doubled their lead just a few minutes after the restart from a set play but defender Reda Johnson got the ball stuck under his feet in front of goal and missed his chance.

Gary Abbott’s men were struggling against the discipline of Wednesday and the home support began to get frustrated with their lack of chances in front of goal.

The Owls made a change midway through the second half with Clinton Morrison coming on to replace Madine, who got a warm round of applause from both home and away fans, in attack.

The chances were very few and far between in the second half but although Carlisle had more of the possession, they couldn’t mount any kind of pressure on the Owls goal.

Weaver didn’t have too much work to do but he superbly palmed away an in-swinging free-kick with just two minutes to go.

Full-Time: Carlisle 0-1 Wednesday