FOREST GREEN head coach Mark Cooper accused his side of not respecting the game and Carlisle enough as his below-par team were forced into an FA Cup replay.

It all started brightly enough for the League Two high-flyers – Aaron Collins nosing Rovers ahead in the first-half before Nathan Thomas levelled things up before the break for the Cumbrians.

Thomas added a second on 76 minutes but a Gethin Jones own goal two minutes later helped Rovers find parity.

Cooper bemoaned: “If you’re not quite at it and drop your levels and don’t respect the game enough, you leave the result open.

“ I felt we were sloppy and felt we disrespected the opposition and we got what we deserved, and we weren’t fully at it.

" We were tired from the other night, heavy pitch and we got we deserved today and that’s a replay at Carlisle.

“We gifted them two goals and they gifted us two goals.

“Jo Jo (Wollacott) should have saved the first and the second one, Dom Bernard isn’t marking in the box.”

Stroud News and Journal:

New Carlisle head coach Chris Beech

Chris Beech, appointed head coach at Carlisle on Tuesday, was delighted to see his side get back into the tie.

He said: “I’ve got to be mindful that we were playing against Forest Green, who are one of the most possession-based teams in the league, they’ve been doing it for a good 2 years now and getting better at it, with better players doing it.

“I was pleased that the lads stuck at it especially in the first 25 minutes, because your resolve to keep pressing, keep digging in, in that fight you can start giving up and they didn’t. They stuck at the task and then started wearing Forest Green down, opportunities started arising for us and the two goals we scored were really, really good.

“ I think the players represented the 200 fans+ that came to watch today. Carlisle people coming to watch us play is fantastic, coming all this way, coming to see the team representing the values of the Carlisle people, that’s really good. That resolve to come back and get in front…but not win the game.”

Earlier, Rovers raced into a 11th minute lead. Goalkeeper Adam Collin’s powder-puff purchase on a Liam Shephard cross saw the ball come back off the bar to drop on a plate for Collins to nod in from point-blank range.

And Rovers were a smidge from making it 2-0 with 10 minutes of the first-half to go. Jack Aitchison was handed the opportunity to release Shephard who saw his fizzing strike gloved up into the air and onto the bar by Collin with the covering Aaron Hayden hacking clear.

Carlisle were back in the tie on 40 minutes. Rovers were caught dithering and Tomas cut in to arrow a ball postage-stamp into the top corner of Joe Wollacott’s net.

Rovers’ riposte was immediate – Collin parried Shephard’s cross into the path of Collins, who inexplicably kicked thin air with the goal at his mercy.

Deep into stoppage-time Thomas booted off the line from a towering Stevens’ header from a Joe Mills corner.

Rovers dominated the football, but Carlisle started the second-half with the bit between their teeth – Thomas arching over from the edge of the box.

Cooper turned to his bench on 65 minutes – hooking Aitchison for speedster Junior Mondal.

With Adams already on a yellow, Cooper opted to usher on Kevin Dawson with 22 minutes to go.

Rovers were stung on 76 minutes. Canice Carroll drove forward from midfield to release substitute Hallam Hope and his sumptuous ball into the box was turned in by Thomas for his second of the game.

Two minutes later and Rovers found parity – Jones turning into his own net.

Rovers almost pinched it with five minutes to go, Stevens planted a header into Collin from a Joe Mills cross.