Carlisle United fans are backing Paul Simpson’s side to defy the pundits and mount a play-off challenge in the new season.
While bookmakers and other neutral commentators have predicted a bottom half finish in 2022/23, the Blue Army appear more optimistic.
A survey of supporters by the News & Star produced an average predicted league position of eighth.
That would mean an agonising near miss in terms of the play-offs for the Cumbrians in the new season.
READ MORE: Carlisle United's pre-season analysed - minutes, appearances and goals
But it would still represent a major improvement on last term’s 20th-placed finish.
And it would run contrary to their outsider status with the bookies and many experts.
📣Okay. His prediction is wrong, that forecast is gibberish, they don't know what they're talking about, etc. So let's put it to the fans.
— Jon Colman (@joncolman) July 25, 2022
Where do you think #cufc will finish in 22/23?
Hit me with a league position. I'll then tot them all up and see just how confident we are.. pic.twitter.com/6eh1kIjkrQ
We asked fans on Twitter and in our Facebook group to tell us how optimistic they were heading into the new campaign under Simmo.
While some were particularly hopeful – 13 of the 176 fans who replied backed Carlisle for the title – more predictions were clustered around the play-off and upper mid-table positions.
Some 23 fans went for seventh and the final play-off place, while 21 went for tenth-placed finish.
The positions of ninth and 12th were the other most popular forecasts from the Blue Army.
Only three supporters reckoned the Cumbrians would finish below 15th.
Our entirely unscientific results differ from the bookies’ predictions, with United as long as 40/1 to win the league and 9/1 for a first promotion since 2006.
They are well adrift in the odds compared with favourites including Stockport County, Bradford City, Salford City and Mansfield Town.
United are 13/2 with SkyBet to make the play-offs, and 25/1 to be promoted that way.
A top-half finish for Simpson's side is 6/4, while United are 13/2 to go down, and 14/1 to finish bottom.
While bookies do not fancy United’s chances, nor do a number of pundits and publications who have issued their predictions for the new season.
A collation of predictions in When Saturday Comes Magazine have United finishing 17th.
The popular Not The Top 20 podcast predicted a 19th-placed finish, while EFL writer Gab Sutton also predicted 19th in his BetVictor blog.
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