Four Trialists In At Brunton Park

Last updated : 05 July 2010 By Thetashkentterror
Bernard Francois Dassise Zoko
It's that time of year for all the sides in the Football League and United are no different with their crop of trialists coming into Cumbria this week ahead of the pre-season friendly at Kendal Town on Friday evening. There are a couple of familiar faces back at the club, but one has a long name and a more complicated history too, that man being Ivory Coast-born striker Bernard Francois Dassise Zoko.

Zoko began his career as a youth player at C.O. Savigny-sur-Orge in France before signing for then Ligue 2 side AS Nancy in 2000 where he made 78 appearances and scored eight goals. The 26-year old then staying in Ligue 2 when he moved to Stade Lavallois in the summer of 2004, Zoko netting nine times in his 64 games during two years with les Tangos.

It was over the border to Belgium next for the Ivorian before the start of the 2006-07 season, when he joined Jupiler League First Division side RAEC Mons for a 24-month spell in which he scored 11 goals in 54 matches. Turkey was then the next stop on the European tour for Zoko when he moved to Hacettepe Spor, who had just changed their name back to that after being bought by Genclerbirligi in 2003 and having their name amended to Genclerbirligi OFTAS.

Hacettepe Spor finished bottom of the Turkish Super League during the 26-year old's only full season in Ankara, in 2008-09, goals for him still proving hard to come by the following campaign in the division below with Zoko eventually leaving the club in the January of this year to move back to Belgium and join KV Oostende after netting just once in 28 games in Turkey.

A slightly better spell for him coming in the Belgian Second Division to the end of the season where he scored three goals in 12 games. Meanwhile at international level, the statistics available say he has netted 11 times in 19 games for the Ivory Coast in the under-19 age category.



The other three trialists are much easier to cover and we start with Jake Simpson, son of former Blues manager Paul, who left Brunton Park with Dad in the summer of 2006, but to join Blackburn Rovers. Jake, as an under-16s player with Carlisle having made a handful of appearances for United's youth team in the 2005-06 campaign.

Simpson, now 19-years old, coming through the Ewood Park Academy set-up before not being offered a professional contract at the end of the 2008-09 season. Right-sided midfielder Jake then signing a one-year deal under his father at League Two Shrewsbury Town where he made 14 starts and six substitute appearances on his way to winning their young player of the season award, before he was released at the end of the campaign.

Another familiar face is 19-year old left or right-winger Billy Gibson who was released by Watford at the end of last season after coming through their youth system and making his one and only appearance for the Hornets as a substitute in a 1-0 Carling Cup win over Bristol Rovers in August 2008.

Gibson's only other football outside of Vicarage Road coming in a two-month loan spell at Wealdstone over the New Year period of 2010 where he played nine games and scored two goals for the Ryman Premier League side. And then at Carlisle as a trialist on the 5th of May when he played 78 minutes of a 3-0 home second-string win over Oldham.

Finally comes Patrick Cregg, a Dublin-born central midfielder. The 24-year old began his career when he joined Arsenal's youth scheme at the age of 16 in 2002, where he made just three substitute appearances for the Highbury club, all of them coming in the League Cup, before he moved north of the border to join Falkirk on a free transfer in January 2006.

Cregg stayed with the Bairns for three and a half years in the Scottish Premier League, and started 113 matches, made 15 substitute appearances and scored eight goals before being released by Falkirk at the end of the 2008-09 season. Cregg though staying in the SPL with Hibernian where he signed a one-year deal under his former Falkirk manager John Hughes.

Games were hard to come by at Easter Road for Cregg though where he made just 11 starts and six substitute appearances, while scoring one goal, before being released at the end of last season. The Irishman has also featured for his national side, albeit mainly at under-19 level with a handful of caps also earned for the Republic's under-21 side.