United boss Greg Abbott (GA) spoke to BBC Radio Cumbria's James Phillips (JP) following Carlisle's 1-1 League One draw away to Preston, Abbott understandably disappointed with North End grabbing a stoppage time equaliser:
JP
I just want to start with a tweet from Michael Eldon: “very proud of the lads tonight, especially the fans can walk away with their heads held high”, despite the disappointment from a few what a game and what a performance from your team?
GA
That is the only disappointment really, the players, probably everybody, myself, the board, everybody has been coming in for some stinging criticism of late. That hurts me more than the board, it hurts the dressing room, I think they have answered a few people, certainly the 941 that were here today and they are the ones that I listen to, they are the people that I listen to, and the 2,700 that were there the other day.
They are the ones I listen to because they are the ones who are helping us through just this little bit of a barren period, but barren is 13th or 14th in the table, it is not so barren when we are in the next round of the cup. But, it is frustrating and it is really hurting because I think some of it is a little bit over the top, but I thought they were magnificent the players tonight. We have six players not playing tonight that probably would have started the game in terms of experience and quality, but they weren’t.
But, the ones that did come in and did play, fantastic, the dressing room is what I thrive on, it is what makes me tick, it is what is the place where we need to get right to keep the club moving forward in all the sorts of adversity that we go against. We keep coming out and fighting and I am extremely pleased with that group, and I hope, well I know the 941 were, and I hope a few people back home just stand back and sort of think, hang on, they are not that bad, they are alright.
We have got to get through this little period, we will, I am telling you now, we will and we will come out of the other end and let’s hope we can then start pushing up towards the right end of the division. Because, it is a terrific group of players that they should be proud of, not trying to pull to pieces all the time.
JP
I will get on to the devastation of conceding the late goal later, I want to talk about the game itself, how important was this sort of performance for you, as you say to answer a few of those critics, just to say that Carlisle are happening?
GA
Yeah, vital, that is exactly what we have just said in the dressing room that it was the guts, it was the guts more than the quality. There was some quality out there but it was the guts. In the 89th minute you will not see anywhere in the world, and I am on about the world, and I might be exaggerating, you know what I am like, Chris Chantler making a block of unbelievable bravery. He is 5’0 right and he just dives in front of anything, and that sort of player, we should be bowing to him.
His all round game has been terrific but the guts that the little man shows in vital situations, and right through the period we have had up and down he has been outstanding. 5’0, he has not trained for two weeks, his heel and his foot are in bits right and I rang him this morning, we didn’t know he was going to play today, I rang him this morning and said “what’s the crack?”, he said “what do you think is the crack? I am playing, you didn’t even need to ring me”, and you think well, people like that you can rely on and if they are looking after you you will be OK, I will be OK and the fans will be OK.
JP
I have got to talk about that late goal, what a sickener, I mean I know that you would have taken a point ahead of the game, of course anyone would at a place like this, but it must have been devastating to concede like that?
GA
Well, it is but for once it is an unbelievable cross and it is an unbelievable header, and Adam (Collin) has got his fingertips to it, it has hit the post and gone in, there is not a great deal you can do about that. The cross is twisted on a little, not even a half turn, whipped it in, an unbelievable ball and sometimes you just have to say that couldn’t have been avoided. It wasn’t a mistake, it wasn’t a bad back pass, it wasn’t a missed tackle, it wasn’t that nobody has tracked the runner.
It was just a fantastic bit of skill from (Lee) Holmes, I don’t even know who got on the end of it but he (Graham Cummins) has got in there right at the death. It has disappointed the dressing room but I am not going to let it dwell because we had to take a lot of positives from that tonight in terms of what we have put into the game and what we have got out of the game. What we have got out of the game is a great deal more than one point, let me tell you that now, it is a lot more than one point.
JP
The fact that the fans, there was never any hint of them being dazed by the fact that it had gone in so late on, they were signing and infact Chris (Lumsdon) was almost in tears, he actually had to put his microphone down because he felt so bad for the players at the end of the game?
GA
Yeah, because he knows what we are going through, he has been in the situation as a player. He has moved along this side, he has seen the emotions that we carry afterwards and he is a good guy to be fair, he is just a good guy who knows the game, and he will know how I am feeling right now. He will know where the emotions come and why we say silly stuff and why you get carried away five minutes after the game has finished. We are disappointed but if we can carry that forward, that determination, then we are going to be, the dressing room knows it will be fine.
JP
You have got a tricky match at Brentford on Saturday, but after playing like this that won’t bother you?
GA
They are all tricky games, it was a tricky game against Bournemouth, that tricky we conceded four goals, so it won’t be anywhere near as tricky as that. We have just got to dust ourselves down and get ourselves right and prepare properly like we always do and make life just as difficult for Brentford.
The key I think tonight was our defending and our shape and the way we won the ball and broke quickly and tried to get the second, and just a tad more luck and a bit more care at the other end and we might have just got it. It wasn’t to be, but like I said, we have got a lot of respect out of that tonight and it is the key to where we are going.
JP
It was a lack of luck though wasn’t it tonight, you restricted them to just two headers really, (Akpo) Sodje on about the hour and that one won it, I mean to stop a team like Preston who have got goalscorers all over the pitch from creating hardly anything for the game, there are so many positives to come out of it?
GA
Yeah, well you are saying it, I have got to be careful because we have only got one point out of it. But, for me as a manager I am extremely pleased with that group, we know there is a good group of players in the club and with the ones we haven’t got on the pitch as well, and when we get them all fit and we get them all playing and we get a little bit of momentum we will be a decent side.
It has just been a bit of a topsy-turvy season in terms of the things going against us, but we are going to get through it. They are not excuses, they are reasons, they are reasons, that is the difference, I don’t make excuses, they are reasons. But, we will get through it and we will come through the other side, and hopefully get a good run of results and keep the season alive and kicking.
JP
Just talking more generally, of course you have brought in a new player from Manchester United, what can you tell us about him, I know that you will be a little bit emotional at the moment/
GA
No, I am not going to start crying like Lummy, not that emotional, if you had told me I was getting married tomorrow then I might be emotional, but I am not.
JP
Sean McGinty?
GA
Listen, I went to watch the game last night and we have been talking to Warren (Joyce) at Manchester United about one or two players, they have been fantastic, they know we are in a bit of a dilemma. He has a big 6’3 boy, can play left side of defence, and he can play left-back and he gives you that height and presence we need. He is quick, extremely quick, he is going to be a really good player. He has lost his way a little bit, he has found it tough moving from Charlton, found it tough, but he is well on his way back now and he covers me at centre-half, he covers me at left-back.
He gives us the chance to pop Murph (Peter Murphy) into midfield if we need to if Pottsy (Brad Potts) doesn’t come off, but I thought Pottsy was absolutely terrific tonight. So, he is another one that gives me a bit of cover, I can’t go into games with Danny Livesey’s hand without any centre-half cover. So, he wants to play, he is ready to play, he was terrific last night in the game so I think he will give us that quality and that depth, and he certainly gives us some height, he is a big, big boy.
JP
What is the situation with Livesey? Three weeks we are hearing?
GA
Three, yeah three, I mean Danny will tell you two, he didn’t even want to stop playing, so the quicker the better. But, it is another blow, we just think we are just getting a group together but three weeks and that is why we had to do Sean.
JP
And just a final one, I think David Moyes is a brilliant manager, Manchester City’s has proved he is one of the best around, Roberto Mancini there, Roberto Martinez has done a great job as well, all of those are in with Greg Abbott for the North-West manager of the year, that must make you very proud?
GA
Yeah, they have got a far easier job than I have to be fair, you want to be managing that lot now and again. No, I mean it is nice we get a bit of recognition, we did great last year really, we just fell at the final hurdle, it is for last year so let’s hope we can improve and I will be in the melee for it next time, it means we have had another successful season. But, you talk about Martinez and Mancini and Moyes, and Abbott, I think that is my after dinner speech isn’t it. No, very good, that just shows you the club is in decent, decent order really.
JP
Well done on that, well done on tonight, I can’t wait for Saturday, that is how good it was tonight.
GA
Well, I can.