Carlisle United 1 Gillingham 0: Jon Mellish hit the winner and Paul Huntington impressed on his home debut as the Blues returned to winning ways at Brunton Park.
Defender Mellish got the only goal early in the second half as he forced the ball home after an attack involving Jack Armer.
And that was enough for a second win of the league season for Paul Simpson's side, as the experienced Huntington marshalled the back line superbly on his first start for his home-city club.
Mellish's first strike of the campaign was sufficient on a game of few clear-cut chances, as goal-shy visitors Gillingham failed to score for a fifth game in a row in all competitions.
READ MORE: Carlisle United v Gillingham - as it happened
Sub Lewis Walker missed the Gills' best chance in a second half which saw Morgan Feeney back from injury as a substitute.
United, who also had Owen Moxon back in the starting XI, moved up to 11th in the fledgling League Two table as they also kept a second clean sheet of the campaign in front of a 5,261 crowd.
Simpson handed Huntington his first start at Brunton Park, while midfielder Moxon returned to the XI after a thigh injury.
They took the places of Jack Ellis and Jayden Harris respectively, Ellis dropping out of the squad completely.
Feeney also returned to the squad after injury in another boost to Simpson, the defender named among the subs.
Gillingham boss Neil Harris, meanwhile, made one change from his last league XI, bringing in David Tutonda in place of Ryan Law.
Carlisle were first to carve out a serious chance when Fin Back crossed from the right and Omari Patrick headed wide.
That, though, was one of few real openings in a tight early period, which saw Gillingham's best efforts, from Hakeeb Adelakun and Jordan Green, blocked.
Mikael Mandron then failed with another visiting attempt while United's defenders stepped in to prevent Harris's side finding a way into the box.
For United, openings were thin on the ground, Kristian Dennis shooting over the bar from 30 yards before the striker was denied by a Tutonda tackle.
Left-back Tutonda picked up the game's first booking when he pulled down Back, before a move involving Back and Patrick almost gave Dennis an opening.
GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL MELLISH pic.twitter.com/F0pEG6oUG4
— Carlisle United FC (@officialcufc) August 27, 2022
A good lay-off from Dennis saw Gibson shoot from 25 yards, but a defensive block denied the midfielder as Carlisle struggled to create anything clearer in a half which never got going as a spectacle, Holy saving from Tutonda in the closing seconds of an uninspiring 45 minutes.
Carlisle tried to start the second half on the front foot and came close in the 50th minute when Armer's cross was nodded into the six-yard box by Dennis for Huntington, but the Cumbrian's downward header was parried by Glenn Morris.
Gills boss Harris then took off Tutonda, after he had avoided a second yellow despite a foul on Back.
But shortly afterwards Carlisle finally made the breakthrough, Armer making inroads on the left and Mellish bombing on to force the ball past Morris at the near post.
It capped a better spell by the Cumbrians and the home fans were lifted by the goal.
At the other end, the impressive Huntington continued to win everything in the air, and also denied Green when the Gills forward spun into the box.
Harris made two further changes and one of the latest arrivals, Scott Kashket, was millimetres away from connecting with a cross as Holy just beat the sub to the ball.
Corey Whelan then did well to prevent Kashket going clean through before another visiting sub, Walker, then met a Will Wright cross in the United box, but his header was easily saved by Holy.
Huntington then got a well-deserved ovation from the home support as he was substituted on 73 minutes, fit-again Feeney replacing him in defence for the closing stages.
Further changes saw Harris and Sonny Hilton into the action for Patrick and Moxon while another Gillingham sub, Alex MacDonald, volleyed high over the bar moments after replacing Adelakun.
Kashket's pace on the break increased Gillingham's threat, and when he got the better of Whelan down the left, Armer's interception ricochet, causing brief panic before Carlisle cleared their lines.
Green wasted an opening for the visitors after a quickly-taken free-kick, with United largely in containment mode for the closing minutes as matchwinner Mellish, solid at the back, picked up the man of the match honours.
Frontman Dennis failed to score in a game for the first time this season, denying him a club record, but Carlisle will not complain much about that having got another win on the board.
United: Holy, Whelan, Huntington (Feeney 73), Mellish, Back, Armer (Idehen 90), Guy, Moxon (Hilton 77), Gibson, Patrick (Harris 77), Dennis. Not used: Kelly, Devitt, Stretton.
Goal: Mellish 55.
Booked: Gibson.
Gillingham: Morris, Alexander (Kashket 64), Tutonda (Law 51), Baggott, Wright, Ehmer, O’Keefe, Reeves, Adelakun (MacDonald 77), Green, Mandron (Walker 64). Not used: Turner, Lee, Carter.
Booked: Tutonda, O’Keefe.
Ref: Marc Edwards.
Crowd: 5,261 (237 Gillingham fans).
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