Bromley 1-1 Carlisle United: Adu-Adjei earns late point

The loan striker spun smartly to fire low past home keeper Grant Smith in the second minute of added time.

That earned the Blues a share of the spoils at Hayes Lane after Michael Cheek had fired Bromley in front from the penalty spot early in the second half.

The home side ended the game with ten men after sub Lewis Leigh was sent off for an elbow on Blues captain Sam Lavelle in the 83rd minute.

The result, which sees Carlisle with four points from two away games, sees them remain 23rd in League Two and a point away from third-bottom.

United forced a series of first-half chances and felt they should have had a penalty before the break.

They then paid the price for a late Williams challenge on Danny Imray, allowing Cheek to blast Bromley in front.

Carlisle, though, kept going to the end and Adu-Adjei's second goal for the club earned a last-gasp point - with sub Taylor Charters close to winning it in the seventh added minute.

Adu-Adjei turns to find the bottom corner (Image: Richard Parkes)

Blues boss Mike Williamson made four changes to the side that won at Salford City in the Blues' previous league outing.

Kadeem Harris came in for his first league start with fit-again Williams returning to the side along with Ben Barclay and Cameron Harper.

They took the places of Terell Thomas (international duty), Harrison Neal (suspension), Luke Armstrong and Aaron Hayden, the latter out of the squad along with Harrison Biggins.

Back among the subs, meanwhile, was Dylan McGeouch after two months on the sidelines.

Bromley boss Woodman made one change from their previous league XI, with Imray coming in for the suspended Carl Jenkinson.

The game was preceded by Remembrance commemorations, with the Armed Forces represented at Hayes Lane and a minute's silence observed.

The action then got under way, with United initially having to defend a number of crosses and aerial balls into their box, Jon Mellish back in defence and Harper in midfield, Williams at left wing-back and Harris and Dominic Sadi playing off frontman Adu-Adjei.

Bromley rebuilt one attack as Cameron Congreve saw a shot deflected wide.

And moments later they collected a cleared corner and found Louis Dennis free to the left, inside the box, but Mellish came across to make a crucial block.

Jon Mellish is booked for his protests after being denied a penalty (Image: Richard Parkes)

Carlisle then grew into things and built some good passages of play, Sadi close to putting Adu-Adjei in through the middle.

Kamarl Grant headed a Bromley corner wide and Idris Odutayo tested Gabe Breeze from the left after cutting into the box.

Then United came back at the hosts again with Harris turning and running at the home defence. One such run earned the Blues a corner, and after it was cleared, Callum Guy sent a beautiful pass out to Harper, whose cross eventually led to off-target shots by Barclay and Tyler Burey.

That followed a better chance for Adu-Adjei, played in to the right of the box by Guy, but he couldn't direct his shot past home keeper Grant Smith.

Bromley posed plenty of aerial threat, and a corner from Jude Arthurs found the towering figure of Omar Showunmi, but Breeze was equal to his header with a sharp tip over.

Carlisle survived more set-pieces and then a left-sided attack from the hosts, Williams clearing Congreve's low cross which was bound for Michael Cheek.

United then applied sustained pressure late in the half, with Harris setting up Sadi, whose drilled shot was well saved by Smith.

Carlisle then had penalty appeals turned down when Mellish went flying as he tried to attack a mis-hit Sam Lavelle shot, the Blues man booked for his protests with only a corner awarded.

And then another corner found its way to both Sadi and Barclay, who had powerful shots blocked, home captain Byron Webster, the former Blues defender, repelling the latter's shot.

Carlisle hoped to keep up their enterprising play after the break but had some early second-half defending to do as Harper cleared an Odutayo cross.

Michael Cheek fires Bromley in front from the spot (Image: Richard Parkes)

Then, after Bromley survived a series of Harris crosses, they broke to score.

Imray was fed in space on the right and, after he left Mellish behind, he drew a sliding challenge from Williams which upended the winger, ref James Durkin pointing to the spot.

Home top scorer Cheek stepped up and sent Breeze the wrong way with a powerful low penalty.

Harris looked to respond for United as he saw a shot deflected wide, and a Blues counter-attack then saw Harper feed the overlapping Williams but he put the chance across goal and wide.

Moments later Adu-Adjei fired over the bar from the edge of the box, and Guy did the same as Carlisle kept looking for a way back.

A triple change from the Blues then saw Charters, Jack Ellis and Josh Vela introduced.

Charters, immediately booked for a foul on Imray, then almost created something with a searching cross which Ellis just failed to reach.

Bromley failed to double their lead after Grant followed a powerful run with a wayward delivery, while Adu-Adjei's control failed him as more United breaks faded.

The hosts were then reduced to ten men in the 83rd minute when Leigh's aerial challenge on Lavelle left the Blues captain furious and prompted a straight red card from referee Durkin.

Lewis Leigh was sent off for his challenge on Sam Lavelle (Image: Richard Parkes)

Armstrong was sent on by Williamson for the closing stages, and Charters saw a shot charged down by Bromley sub Olomola with three minutes of the 90 remaining.

Another United foray ended with keeper Smith smothering an Adu-Adjei pull-back.

But finally Carlisle got their equaliser as Bromley struggled to deal with a Barclay throw, and eventually Adu-Adjei spun and beat Smith with an excellent low finish.

United then tried to grab an added-time winner, Sadi denied by a Sowunmi block and, in one final attack, Charters breaking against an outnumbered defence but denied by a last-gasp block.

Bromley: Smith, Sowunmi, Webster, Thompson, Grant, Arthurs, Odutayo, Congreve (Leigh 70), Imray, Dennis (Olomola 77), Cheek. Not used: Long, Reynolds, Amantchi, Topalloj, Thomas.

Goal: Cheek 54pen.

Booked: Grant, Thompson. Sent off: Leigh

United: Breeze, Barclay, Lavelle, Mellish, Williams (Charters 67), Burey (Ellis 67), Harper (Armstrong 85), Guy, Sadi, Harris (Vela 67), Adu-Adjei. Not used: Lewis, Robinson, McGeouch.

Goal: Adu-Adjei 90.

Booked: Guy, Mellish, Charters, Sadi, Barclay.

Ref: James Durkin.

Crowd: 3,741 (482 United fans).