Stockport County: Carlisle United evidence puts heartbreaking moment in new light | OneFootball

It was tough to take at the time, but the seasons since suggest losing at Wembley in 2023 may have done the Hatters a favour

Stockport County were crushingly defeated by Carlisle United in the League Two play-off final at Wembley in 2023.

The well-fought battle went all the way to penalties in the capital, with the Cumbrians edging out the Hatters for a place in League One.

It was a gutting day for those Stockport fans, trudging back up to Wembley Park tube station while weighing up another season in the fourth tier.

But on the evidence of Carlisle’s two seasons since, the loss may actually have been a blessing in disguise.

Both Carlisle and Stockport were likely surprised to find themselves at Wembley

Although the Hatters were backed by some for automatic promotion at the first time of asking, a rough start to their Football League return quickly wiped any notion of promotion away.

However, a strong end to the campaign saw them book a play-off spot, narrowly defeating Salford City in a two-legged semi-final on penalties to book their ticket to London.

Similar was true of Carlisle, backed for a mid-table finish at the beginning of the campaign, they finished fifth, sweeping aside Bradford City to meet Stockport in the final.

Given they had both defeated sides that had been backed for promotion season upon season, there was a sense that whoever won had somewhat sneaked up.

That made for a cagey affair at Wembley – hence going all the way to penalties after finishing 1-1 in normal time, with the Cumbrians nicking an equaliser in the last few minutes.

As so often happens, that swung the momentum in Carlisle's favour, and they won the shootout, capitalising on Ryan Rydel’s saved spot-kick, with current County midfielder Owen Moxon scoring his from 12 yards for his former club, United, that day.

Extra season in League Two allowed for extra squad building

The additional season in the fourth tier allowed the Hatters to strike up their bond with Louie Barry – who would go on to be on loan with the club for 18 months, seeing them through the eventual promotion to the third tier – and recruit players such as Ibou Touray and Nick Powell, and bed young defensive prospect Ethan Pye into the team.

But not only that, the previous summer had seen all of Isaac Olaofe, Callum Camps, Kyle Wootton and Fraser Horsfall walk through the door.

That quartet hadn’t managed to lead County to promotion in the first instance, but another season in a familiar division allowed them to gel with the players around them – all four, plus Pye, in particular, would go on to be crucial both in the Hatters’ title win in 2023/24 and in establishing County in League One – no doubt aided by that extra season.

The team bond in the squad was palpable, right through the League Two trophy win and into the third tier, where they spent more time worrying about their promotion chances than survival.

Winners on the day Carlisle had a very different experience

The experience on 28 May 2023 will have been very different for those of a Carlisle persuasion: the elation of winning a final backed up by the excitement of the test ahead in League One.

But they quickly met a harsh reality.

Picking up just seven wins all season, they finished rock bottom of the third tier, 11 points behind Port Vale in 23rd, and forced to immediately return to League Two.

And it got worse from there: with three permanent managers in one season, the Cumbrians slipped into a relegation battle in the fourth tier, staring down the barrel of non-league football as the Hatters were gearing up for the potential of a Championship tour.

Although naturally delighted to have come out on top, it will give no delight to Stockport fans to see the plight of Carlisle.

Not only do they know only too well the feeling of slipping down through the divisions and into non-league, but, despite what was at stake, the two sets of fans got on remarkably well on that day at Wembley.

It felt like heartbreak when County lost that final in 2023, but it may well have paved the way for a steady rise to the summit of League One over the next few seasons – the unfortunate evidence of Carlisle proves just how important that may have been.