Fleetwood Town

Steve Carlin says crucial errors in the defeat to Carlisle cost Fleetwood a place in the Youth Alliance cup final

Steve Carlin says crucial errors in the defeat to Carlisle cost Fleetwood a place in the Youth Alliance cup final.

The academy manager sent out a strong side for the trip to Cumbria, but saw them slip out of the competition after conceding soft goals in the second-half. And Carlin, who was proud of his players following their run to the semi-finals, believes that the young Cod Army can now learn from their mistakes in the match. He said: “These youth-team games are all about development. So for Oliver (Martin), after making some goalkeeping mistakes, it’s all about how he comes back and utilises his mistakes to become a better player. “If outfield players make errors of judgement then there’s always someone who can back them up, but if the goalkeeper makes one then it’s something which is going to cost him. Carlisle led the match four times in an end-to-end battle, but were constantly pegged back by Town’s determination to score. “The boys reacted very well to keep coming back and score great equalisers, and they possibly should have been another couple ahead,” Carlin said. “When we scored early in the second half I thought the game was finished. Carlisle’s head’s dropped, but then all of a sudden a calamity came at the back for us, and they got themselves an equaliser. “Throughout the whole game I’m sure Carlisle would be pleased for me to say that they had ten minutes of good possession. Other than that I think our boys played the game very well, and if it wasn’t for the errors then they would be coasting through to the final.” Click here for the most recent fixtures, results and the current Football League Youth Alliance table