Punch drunk on penalties. Reeling from remembering the score. Leather lashing, tension tingling, Derby squeezed through in the EFL Cup by a record breaking margin of 14-13 after extra time.

Nineteen full minutes of "on the edge of your seat" excitement. Four all - the tally after the mandatory five each.

Carlisle going first. Each time they rippled the net we had to score. We did.

When they missed, we had to score. We didn't. Until the 32nd Penalty.

Timi Max Elsnik coolly slotted home and the tie was ours.

It must have been heartbreaking for Carlisle who had battled hard and in all honesty for much of the game had looked the better team especially in the first half when they strung together over twenty passes without the Rams touching the ball on two occasions.

If they were heartbroken then their supporters hid it well, applauding their team after the final penalty, a credit to football fans anywhere.

For all the excitement of end game, the rest of the match paled and faded to grey.

A first forty five which saw Carlisle in the ascendancy that saw Derby standing off.

A 4-4-2 formation, Baird, Olsson the full backs, Keogh and Pearce in the centre. Centre midfield was Butterfield and Johnson with Max Lowe and Camara wide. Blackman and Bent the pairing upfront.

We created little, Blackman the better striker, Carson the busier keeper. Camara, left footed played on the right was quickly worked out and his continual cutting in was dealt with effectively by the Carlisle rearguard.

Long Ball football, bypassing the midfield when we lost possession we struggled to get it back.

We wanted half time, we wanted the team talk, we wanted improvement.

We got it.

An up-tempo restart, unrecognisable from the first half, we hummed, we buzzed, we struck.

Blackman lashed a fine shot that hit the crossbar and rebounded straight into the path of Bent. In seemingly slow motion our man carefully steered the ball through legs and into the net. We led. We looked comfortable we just needed to see the game out.

Substitutions, Hughes, Ince and Elsnik for his debut, Camara, Bent and Olsson giving way.

We push forward, Ince and Blackman blast over, Hughes lifts a sitter from six yards, we grimace.

Lowe grimaces too. It's cramp. We've used all our subs, Johnson switches to left back, Lowe a passenger in midfield.

Injury time signalled, we go well over, the ball goes over the line and Carlisle are level.

Extra time. Elsnik the star, he shines, one touch, control, swift passing, a danger man, my first name on the team sheet for Friday. If I had my way. Which of course I don't. But still.

Tired legs, time passes. Penalties.

We make history 14-13 after it was 1-1 at the end of extra time.

Whew!

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Photo: Action Images

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