Reaction From United Defender Mike Edwards

Last updated : 19 August 2012 By Thetashkentterror

Mike EdwardsUnited centre-half Mike Edwards spoke to BBC Radio Cumbria's James Phillips following Carlisle's 1-1 League One opening day draw away to Stevenage, Edwards saying that the Blues expected it to be a very hot day:

 

"We are used to the heat, I think every season the first day is always red hot, so we were expecting it, we knew it was going to be like that. But, we have done well, the lads worked hard, obviously a little bit gutted to concede at the end there but everybody has worked hard defensively to get that clean sheet and that advantage, which we did going 1-0 up, but there were a lot of positives to take from that which we can look at and all the mistakes can be addressed and now we are looking forward to Tuesday.

"For me I enjoy defending, Danny Livesey is the same as me, he likes to get stuck in and have a good battle. Marcus Haber is a good player to be fair which we knew before the game, but we worked hard just to make sure he always had some competition up there fighting against him to try to keep him at bay really. Dan and I knew we had that to do and we have done that and it is one of the good things that we can take out of the game.

"I don't think I have defended so many corners in one go to be honest, there was quite a few but that is expected to be fair. That is what the team here is about, they work hard, they put you under pressure and they try to keep you in your area, so it is quite tough to slog it out sometimes. But, we have dealt with it well, we have coped with it well and everybody has done well. Adam Collin has come for the ball as well to punch it which makes a massive difference to us as a defender, so there is a lot to take out of it.

"A big plus for us is the crowd that has come down as well to support us, it was noisy all the way through the game and they kept us going right until the end really. So, we have got something for them, but disappointed we have not got the three points for them. It is a great following because I know it is such a long way to get down here, they kept behind us all the way through the 90 minutes which was fantastic. So, they deserve some credit at the end there.

"Tranmere is going to be a tough game again, it is going to be a sort of similar team, they like to get amongst you and they like to play as well to be fair. So, we know what is going to be coming, we will have a rest up now and prepare for the game on Tuesday. If we can hopefully get a decent crowd there then we can try to get three points from the game.

"Tranmere always like to play, they do try to like to play but they like to close you down and keep it at a good tempo. I have had good tussles with them in the last couple of seasons really, so it is going to be a similar game to this I think, but our pitch is a little bit bigger so if we can get our way of playing down a little bit better we hopefully can go on and try to get the win."