'Difference in the two sides' - Paul Simpson reacts following Carlisle United defeat against Lincoln

Carlisle United manager Paul Simpson believes Monday's defeat against promotion chasing Lincoln City showcases the "difference in the two sides."

The Blues fell to a 3-1 home defeat, with goals from the visitors through Ben House, Joe Taylor and Teddy Bishop. Sam Lavelle was on the scoresheet for Paul Simpson's side.

United are now 13 points from safety with 15 points to play for.

Speaking to Carlisle United's website, Simpson said: "We weren’t able to follow up what we’d done on Friday, particularly first half.

“We were so far off it in the first half in terms of the work-ethic and in terms of the technical stuff like passing the ball to each other and communicating with each other.

“The amount of times we left the ball for each other and in the end left it for a Lincoln player was too many.

"We gave the ball away cheaply when we just needed to keep possession and that’s where their first goal came from. We had an opportunity to keep it, but we misplaced a pass and they slid a ball through.

“The second goal is a calamity. It’s a lack of communication where we strike a ball against one of our own players and they go through.

"It knocked the stuffing out of us. We got ourselves a goal back, but their third goal is a quality finish which shows the quality they’ve got."

And Simpson called for improvements in what he describes as the "basics" in football. He said: "Communication is one of the basics of football. Nobody can stop you from running and nobody can stop you from talking.

"They can affect you in other bits, but they’re the basics. That has to come from within, it isn’t a coaching point, it has to come from within. When you’re missing that, there’s a big problem.

“I think you saw the difference in the two sides, they’re a team who are playing with a massive amount of confidence and some real momentum, and we’re a team who aren’t.

"That was really evident in the game today, we’ve ended up being beaten and over the course of the 90 minutes we deserved it.”

The Blues boss is demanding that his players show more "fight" moving forward.

He said: "Going forward, we have to show more fight than we did today, especially in the first half.

"We have to have a group of players who can show they want to be professional footballers and do the basics which means doing things properly and working hard out on the grass.

"We aren’t always going to have good games and we aren’t always going to do everything right, but you really have to show a desire and I don’t think we showed that desire first half."

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