Manager Paul Simpson admits Carlisle have “fallen well short” after his side’s relegation from League One was officially confirmed by Saturday’s 2-0 defeat at Northampton.
A long way adrift at the bottom, Carlisle’s immediate return to League Two has looked inevitable for some time and their fate was duly sealed by goals from Kieron Bowie and Ali Koiki at a blustery Sixfields.
“It’s obviously a huge disappointment but the relegation isn’t on today, it’s on the whole season,” said Simpson.
“We had all of the excitement of the promotion last season but unfortunately we haven’t been able to follow it up and we have fallen well short.
“What we have to do now is regroup, have a look into what’s gone wrong and make sure we come back stronger and better next season and that’s the challenge going into the summer.”
Reflecting on the game itself, Simpson added: “It’s such a poor first goal to concede. We spoke about it and we worked on it about getting in early because they’ve got good delivery from set-pieces but we switch off and we allow them the first contact and they bundle it in.
“It wasn’t a great game and the conditions didn’t make it easy with the wind but it’s the story of our season because we started the game well and we got into good areas but we didn’t score when we were on top and then we conceded a poor goal.
“Now we need to make sure we get a strong group together so we can bounce back straightaway next season.”
Northampton are now up to 59 points, their second-highest points haul in the third tier this century.
“It’s a really good achievement and it’s testament to the players and their attitude,” said Cobblers boss Jon Brady.
“The wind and the conditions made it quite a turgid game today and it was hard for both teams.
“We actually wanted to win the toss and turn it around so we’d have the wind behind us but obviously we lost it and we had to go against the wind.
“The first half was really difficult and we couldn’t get out but we were gritty and determined and it was great to get the result.
“You feel for Carlisle, before the game you have to be focused and there’s no room for any sympathy but I had a chat with Paul Simpson afterwards and they are a good club with good people.
“We have similar budgets so it shows how well we’ve done and it’s taken a lot of hard work from everyone.”