Carlisle United's Paul Simpson reacts to Cheltenham Town defeat

The Blues manager felt the display fell “well below” the standards he expects – and admitted they deserved to be booed off by their fans.

United’s 1-0 defeat left them second bottom of League One, with only goal difference now keeping them off the foot of the table.

The Brunton Park defeat to the division’s bottom side further highlighted their shortcomings – and the need for major improvements in the January transfer window.

And, most accusingly, Simpson felt Cheltenham showed more will to win than his own side.

• Jon Colman's big match verdict on Blues' defeat to Cheltenham

“They showed more desire than us,” said Simpson.

“I always try to avoid, as a manager, saying, ‘They wanted it more’, because I don’t believe players go out with a desire to not win the game.

“But on the evidence of it, it looked like they were having a bit more desire, they were more competitive than we were, they challenged, they won second balls, and we haven’t done it.

Paul Simpson (Image: Barbara Abbott)

“[If] they wanted it more than us, I’m embarrassed to say that. We deserved to get booed off. It was way below the standard I want at this football club.”

“Some of our decision making is incredible,” he added, “some of the technical ability [we showed]…we’ve put in some really good deliveries on set plays, and there’s a really strong wind, and we’re putting balls so far past the far post, we’re overhitting passes…I don’t know where to start.

“There were so many things wrong that we got what we deserved out of it.”

Carlisle went behind when keeper Tomas Holy, diving to prevent a corner, somehow failed to hold onto the ball and pushed it into George Lloyd’s path, allowing the Cheltenham sub to set up Liam Sercombe at close range.

The Cumbrians then failed miserably to threaten Cheltenham’s goal as they failed to score for an 11th of 22 League One games this season.

On the goal, and Holy’s part in it, Simpson said: “We’re getting it every game. You can’t keep doing it. It’s just incredible.

“I dread to think what all our goals look like this season. There’s some absolute horror movies, from lots of players.

“I can’t legislate for that. This should have been a game that was 0-0 and you come away and go, ‘That was one ugly game of football, but we’ve taken a point out of it’. Because the performance didn’t deserve a win.

Tomas Holy (Image: Barbara Abbott)

“But then you get that. I was actually quite pleased that we stuck with the game to half time and we were still only 1-0 down, because you could easily have gone under with that sort of mistake being made.”

Asked how he would handle Holy now, in light of Saturday’s slip and errors in previous games, the manager said: “I tend to leave it to the goalkeeper coach to deal with.

“I say my piece, and I said something at half time to him.

• Carlisle United v Cheltenham Town - as it happened

“I keep talking about this confidence thing – that has to come from within. Last season he [Holy] got 21 clean sheets or whatever it was. We’ve had one clean sheet from Jokull [Andresson] so far this season.

“I don’t think we’re getting massively cut open by loads of teams. Some of the goals are good goals we’ve had against us, some of the opposition forward players have caused us problems.

“But I look at some of the goals we’re conceding and they are definitely preventable.”

Simpson, asked by BBC Radio Cumbria if he would consider fielding untried teenager Gabe Breeze in place of the out-of-form Holy, said: “You have to make a decision as to whether it’s actually fair on Gabe to bring him into that situation.

“That’s a decision we have to make. At the moment I can’t really answer that.”

Victory would have taken United out of the relegation zone, but instead they remain three points adrift ahead of Boxing Day’s trip to fellow strugglers Fleetwood Town.

Taylor Charters returned as a second half sub (Image: Ben Holmes)

“That was our opportunity – to get out of the bottom four. It won’t be the last one but that was our opportunity that we had,” said Simpson.

“Although, saying that, perform like we did today and it might be our last opportunity.

“Top and bottom of it, we have to improve. We’re in a situation where we can change it around [in January] and hopefully that will improve it.

“Saying that, this group of players are better than that performance has shown.”

Asked if the display had made him consider trying for even more January signings than he was previously targeting, Simpson added: “I don’t think it makes me think we need even more, but I just think [we need] to get some freshness into it, some fresh faces, hopefully some players who will bring everybody else on.

“We’re really lacking in forward areas. We’re just not getting enough opportunities in the six-yard box, in the 18-yard box, and we’ve got to improve on it.

“That’s not just about strikers, that’s the whole team. We’ve got to create the opportunities. We have to have players who are really willing to go and get on the end of it.”