Keith Curle has again commented on how well his players are doing to stay focused despite the various "distractions" at Carlisle at the moment, particularly the uncertainty over contract situations.
I have spoken to some of the players myself and it's clearly not ideal that they are being kept waiting. They still don't know what the future holds for them.
From my experience as a player at Carlisle or other clubs, you normally have an inkling by now. The only time I've ever been in a situation where everyone is out of contract, and decisions are not made until very late, is when a manager has changed.
When I was at Barnsley, Paul Hart came in with six or seven games to go and said he couldn't commit to anything until he had had a good look at the squad, which was understandable.
Otherwise, when you have a manager who has been in place for a number of years, it's more common to get an idea sooner.
It's not fair on players to keep them hanging and everyone at Carlisle in that position now - out of contract at the end of the season - could well be looking at sorting out a deal elsewhere.
You simply have to look at it that way. You can't go into July-August with no job, and no wage coming in. If your contract runs out at the end of June, you might get July money, and then that's it.
So, at Carlisle, the likes of Nicky Adams, Luke Joyce and a host of others are surely going to have next season firmly on their minds at the moment.
I would include Clint Hill in that too. Although 39, he has shown that he could definitely play on next year, and would be worth another year at Brunton Park - or somewhere else, if that offer is not forthcoming.
It has been said by the board that Curle is planning for next season as he normally would at this time of year.
I don't think, though, that means he has been told that everything is good to go for 2018/19 regarding his own position.
In his situation, would you then plan as thoroughly for next season as you normally would, not knowing if you are going to be there?
Does he even have an idea of the budget for next season? It seems unlikely, or certainly not in any great detail.
You also have to consider how Carlisle could be looking at putting their squad together next season.
Is there going to be a change of approach, and a bigger focus on looking at players from Under-23 squads?
We don't know that yet, as it will surely depends partly on where they go manager-wise.
The perfect scenario would be to have a handful of local lads coming through and being around the first-team squad. But, beyond that, it is a very difficult market to operate in.
Crewe have taken a couple of young lads on loan from Newcastle recently. One of them is on the bench, barely kicking a ball, and if you look at a lot of these loan deals around the league, many academy lads get sent back after a month or two.
A number don't stick it out for the full duration and you have to be very careful when looking at players from that environment.
A few will still come in and hit the ground running but many simply don't, and are caught out by the demands of League Two football.
In some respects you are better off bringing in a Northern League player than a 21-year-old who has wasted three or four years "developing" in an academy.
You just have to look at someone like Ashley Nadesan at Carlisle. Yes, he is on loan from Fleetwood, but they picked him up from non-league, where he was scoring goals for fun in the Combined Counties league.
You can tell he has something different about him. He is tougher, braver, and knows he is going to get a kick now and again, because that's what he has experienced in the real world.
When academy lads get a kick they often can't deal with it. They aren't used to it. They come off feeling they've had a good game if they make a few square passes. Whether they have actually affected the game doesn't seem to matter as much.
In League Two especially, teams that do well often have a real core of experience.
I'm thinking of sides like Northampton a couple of years ago, walking the league with an average age of around 29-30.
When we won League Two in 2005/6, yes, we had a couple of younger lads, but the team was also built around older heads.
Paul Simpson did draft the inexperienced Simon Hackney into the side but there were lots of experienced lads around him to guide him through.
We were able to look after Simon in the odd games where he wouldn't be quite at it. We could talk him through things, tell him that, if it's not happening for you today, and it's not one of those afternoons when you're skipping past people, keep your shape and, as the game goes on, you'll see more of the ball.
The high-fliers in League Two this season are the same. Luton have players who have been around this level for a long time. Lincoln, who are going for back-to-back promotions, have a number of people in there who have been there and done it.
Even their younger lads have been around in their Conference side for a couple of seasons, so they have that useful experience under their belts.
However Carlisle build from the end of this season - and whoever is responsible for that job - that's something they will surely have to keep in mind.
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After Saturday's 1-1 draw a number of people seemed to be writing Carlisle's play-off chances off, saying it just looks too big a mountain to climb now.
At any other stage you would look at a run of four wins and three draws and think it's been a very good period.
At this point, though, it comes with that feeling of what could have been, because of the last two home games, which United have drawn despite taking the lead.
I felt Carlisle played some excellent football in the first half against Cambridge, but the goal they conceded minutes after taking the lead was very frustrating.
United threw everything at them from there, and the local commentators from Cambridge said it was like the Alamo. You have to say their keeper, David Forde, reminded everyone why he has a number of Ireland caps to his name.
He rolled the years back and pulled off some great saves.
Regarding the play-offs, I still think it can be done, and as much as people are focusing on the teams above, I fully believe that if Carlisle do their job, they will make it, because others will slip up.
Teams will take points off each other, pressure can do funny things at this time of the season, and nobody really expects Carlisle to make that top seven now, which could be to their advantage.
Six points over Easter is the first requirement and that would put Keith Curle's team massively back in the mix. Realistically I think they need five wins in their last seven games, and that has to be their target.
You look at games like Cheltenham away, Port Vale away and Newport at home as must-win, and probably Lincoln at home as well.
It will be tough, but it's not impossible.
Chris Lumsdon's column is sponsored by Safe & Sound Security Solutions (UK) Limited. Enquiries@safeandsoundsecurityltd.co.uk, Tel 01228 543800, www.safeandsoundsecurityltd.co.uk