All you need to know ahead of the visit of Plymouth Argyle
United are off to a fantastic start with a point from the long trip to face promotion favourites Portsmouth backed up by an excellent EFL Cup performance on Tuesday night.
The Cumbrians find out who they face tonight, but next up is the important business of a Sky Bet League Two home game against Plymouth Argyle this weekend.
“We are very pleased with our start to the season but our focus is always on the next game,” manager Keith Curle said. “The Port Vale game was a first taste for everyone on where we’re trying to go and I think people are enjoying it. Plymouth are one of the teams who were comfortably in the top half of the table last season and it’ll be interesting to see how we compare and compete against them, particularly when we have aspirations to be up there ourselves.
“With the way we are doing things I’m sure word will spread that something is happening down at Brunton Park and all I can say is come along and see it for yourselves. We’re going to make this an enjoyable place to be by putting out committed players who want to perform for their fans. I really do think this is going to be an exciting place to watch your football.”
Remember, you can save £3 on match day prices by purchasing your ticket before 5pm on Monday. Pop down in person, call the ticket office on 0844 371 1921 or buy online and print at home, or order for collection, by clicking HERE. Calls to this line are charged at 7p per minute from a land line. Mobile charges may vary.
Our Cumberland Building Society ticket pod [Fisher Street Branch] is also open for the sale of home match day tickets on Wednesdays [10am to 3pm], Thursdays [10am to 5pm] and Fridays [10am to 5pm] in the week leading up to the game.
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Blues Heroes to grace Brunton Park again
A team made up of former-Blues heroes will play AFC Carlisle from the Westmorland League in an open door game on the Brunton Park training pitch on Saturday ahead of the day’s big kick off when the first team face Plymouth Argyle in Sky Bet League Two.
Fans favourites Graham Anthony, Ian Arnold, Dave Brightwell, John Halpin, Tony Hopper, Chris Lumsdon, Gareth McAlindon, Mike McCartney, George Oghani, Paul Proudlock, Steve Soley, Dean Walling, Derek Walsh, Andy Watson and Stuart Whitehead will all be taking part as they come together to raise money for 22-year-old Nathan Pullan, an AFC Carlisle player, who has recently been diagnosed with cancer.
Supporters are invited to come down to watch the game [kick off at 12pm] before joining the players for a drink and an informal Q&A session in the Sunset Suite, from 1pm, ahead of the United v Plymouth fixture at 3pm.
12pm - Carlisle United XI v AFC Carlisle - Brunton Park Training Pitch (Sunset Suite open from 11.30am - visiting fans are welcome)
Please note - our Supporters Car Park will be open early for this event - parking costs just £2.50 for the day.
Please note - our Supporters Car Park will be open early for this event - parking costs just £2.50 for the day.
1 to 1.30pm - Drinks and Q&A in the Sunset Suite with the former players
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Match Day Ticket Sales
Our ticket office staff are now back in the main building on the west side of the stadium and are ready to deal with all of your ticket sales and queries throughout the week. Head to the main ticket office windows, adjacent to the main entrance, during working hours.
Please note – the Pioneer Stand ticket office and Paddock ticket office are both open on match days. Tickets for these areas of the stadium can be purchased from these satellite ticket offices as normal in the lead up to the game.
The ticket office is open from 10am to 5pm on weekdays and from 10am to 5.15pm on weekend match days.
For full ticket office opening times and ticket prices, click HERE.
Hot food and beverages on the East side of the stadium will be sold from the concourse catering points as normal. Fans who want hot food on the west side of the ground, and in the Warwick Road End, should use the mobile catering vans positioned externally at the north and south ends of the Paddock as refurbishment works continue on the catering areas inside the ground.
Please note - ticket collections (home and away fans) are from the Main Ticket Office window on the west side of the stadium.
Please note - ticket collections (home and away fans) are from the Main Ticket Office window on the west side of the stadium.
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The Blues Store in the East Stand Club Bar
We are delighted to announce that our Blues Store will be operating from the Club Bar adjacent to the Family Zone in the Pioneer Foods Stand this weekend.
A full range of stock will be available with the emphasis on smaller items, suitable for the younger visitors to our extremely popular Family Zone games and play area.
The mini-Blues Store will open at 1.30am and will close at 3pm (reopening during the half time break).
The mini-Blues Store will open at 1.30am and will close at 3pm (reopening during the half time break).
Replica kit sales continue to go well in our main Blues Store on Warwick Road and it would be great to see you in your favourite colour [blue, red or white] as you cheer on the lads in the big game against Plymouth.
Blues Store opening times:
Monday 10am-5pm
Tuesday 10am-5pm (open until 7.45pm on a match day)
Wednesday CLOSED
Thursday 10am-5pm
Friday 10am-5pm
Saturday 10am-3pm (open until 5.30pm on match day)
Sunday CLOSED
Telephone sales: 01228 554 138 (during store working hours only).
Click HERE to shop at our online Blues Store.
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Our Big Match Sponsors
YESSS Electrical are our Match Sponsors this weekend and we’re looking forward to welcoming them and their guests into our new Sponsor’s Lounge on Saturday afternoon.
It’s fantastic to see a successful locally based company support the club in this way. They were last with us for the visit of Everton and hopefully this will be another day for them to remember.
Club main shirt sponsor DSD Construction Ltd are our Associate Sponsors as our relationship with them continues to strengthen and grow. We think you’ll all agree that their distinctive logo looks fantastic on the front of the first team shirts and we’re sure they’ll have a good day with us at the weekend.
Our Match Ball Sponsor are great friends of the club – Kathryn and Bruce Vander Taylor. They sponsor Luke Joyce and Nicky Adams this season as part of their ongoing support of their beloved Blues. Thank you to you both from everyone at the club.
We have an extensive range of sponsorship opportunities available, from Match Day sponsorship to Player and Ball sponsorship packages. For more information please contact the Commercial Department on 01228 554 155 or email commercial@carlisleunited.co.uk.
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The Supporters’ Car Park
Our supporters’ car park is open this weekend with parking available at the stadium at just £2.50.
Please be aware that the ground is still soft underfoot, so take care when navigating and walking around the area.
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The Mascots
Our mascots this weekend are Elyssa Davis and Sonny Doran.
Their favourite players are Shaun Miller and Danny Grainger respectively and, when it comes to ice cream, Elyssa goes for chocolate with Sonny telling us that strawberry gets his vote – can’t argue with either of those really.
Have a good day guys!
To find out more about our Junior Blues membership and how to become a mascot, click HERE.
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The Man in the Middle
Our match referee is Mr Andy Haines. Andy has taken charge of two games so far this season and has shown just three yellow cards.
We last met Mr Haines in our 1-1 home draw with York City back in January. Jason Kennedy bagged our goal and Michael Raynes was the only United name taken on the day.
Our betting partner Sky Bet has some fantastic odds available on all match markets – click HERE for more details.
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The Match Programme
Issue 2 of The Blues is on sale from our usual programme selling points and outlets from 10am on Saturday morning.
This week we get to know Shaun Miller just a little bit better than we knew him before – everything from his favourite takeaway to how it felt for him to make his debut at Pompey.
Our front cover is a tribute to former-United and Plymouth favourite Russell Coughlin. We also have a summary of his career and there will be a minute’s silence/applause ahead of the game as we say goodbye to a very good friend.
Pick up your match day programme for just £2 from our regular selling points.
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Local Match Day Travel with Stagecoach
Carlisle Footyrider – get to the match for half the cost!
Stagecoach Cumbria and Carlisle United are working together to make it easier for you to get to Brunton Park on match days.
The Carlisle Footyrider ticket will get you to every first-team home game for half the price of a normal dayrider ticket.
Stagecoach service 76 and 685 takes you straight to Brunton Park. Simply catch service 76 from The Crescent (Stand U) near the train station or service 685 from Carlisle Bus Station.
What you'll need
To get a Carlisle Footyrider ticket you’ll need to show our driver one of the following:
+ A valid Carlisle United season ticket
+ A ticket for that day's match
Where you can travel
You can get to Brunton Park from anywhere across Cumbria and North Lancashire. Depending on where you’re travelling from, you can purchase a Footyrider ticket from within the:
+ Carlisle dayrider zone
+ Carlisle dayrider plus zone
+ Explorer zone
How much does it cost?
+ Carlisle dayrider - £1.50
+ Carlisle dayrider plus - £3.35
+ Explorer - £5.40
Click HERE to visit the Stagecoach website for full travel details.