Woking fell to a 2-0 defeat at home to Carlisle United in their opening match of the season in the National League on Saturday afternoon.

Woking’s opening fixture saw the visit of Carlisle to a balmy Laithwaite Community Stadium, with the away side starting the season as one of the title favourites under the wily Mark Hughes.

Both sides made signings within 24 hours of the fixture, with Harvey Macadam from Morecambe for the visitors joining and starting, as well as Olly Sanderson, Woking’s striker borrowed from Fulham who forced Inih Effiong onto the bench.

Luke Armstrong bagged 13 goals in his last National League campaign, and he started up front with Regan Linney on the wing for his first Carlisle United appearance.

In front of a superb away turnout, the visitors started quickly and only good defending from Woking debutant Caleb Richards prevented Linney from teeing up a man inside the box after his turn of pace down the wing.

A superb save from Craig Ross denied Linney after he attempted to lob the Woking keeper from just outside the box, before somehow they managed to clear a goalmouth scramble away from the following corner.

It would be the hosts who would take the lead, or so they thought for a split second as Chin Okoli headed past Gabe Breeze but was quite clearly offside when doing so, before Ross denied Armstrong this time with a more simple save.

The game would die down for a bit until half-time but not before Ross made arguably his best save of the half, as Carlisle’s sixth of eight first-half corners presented a chance for Aaron Hayden to head home, but again there was Ross to stretch down to his right and tip the ball past the post.

After a quiet start to the second half, the visitors finally took the lead on 57 minutes when a neat through ball from Jack Ellis played in Armstrong, who found the bottom corner with a powerful angled finish.

The visitors were wondering how on earth it wasn’t two when Linney’s deflected shot was tipped onto the bar by Ross, before he got something on the second effort from just a few yards which also hit the bar.

As both sides rolled the changes, the game died down before a piece of brilliance from a substitute in blue sealed the three points. Ethan Robson’s left-footed free kick from the edge of the box curled over the wall and past the despairing dive of Ross to send more than 1,000 travelling supporters wild.

Woking would come close to pulling a goal back when Harry Beautyman headed across the face of goal, but Carlisle had passed their first National League test with flying colours.

Next up for the Cards in the National League is a trip to Scunthorpe United on Saturday, August 16 (3pm kick-off). Woking will then entertain Wealdstone at the Laithwaite Community Stadium on Tuesday, August 19 (7.45pm kick-off).

Woking: Ross, Drewe, Okoli, Tunji Akinola, Richards, Timmy Akinola (Turner 75), Andrews, Ward, Beautyman, O’Brien (Osude 75), Sanderson (Effiong 75).

Substitutes not used: Norcott, Odusina, Hinds, Ashford.

Attendance: 3,962.

By William Bewsey