After overseeing United's 1-0 win over Cumbrian neighbours Workington last night, assistant manager Graham Kavanagh spoke to us about the team's performance and how things had gone so far since returning from the summer break.
He said: "To be honest, I don't think we played at anywhere near the level we want to be at tonight.
"In saying that, it is the third week of pre-season training now and the lads had a tough double session of training today in which they did a lot of running. A few of them looked a little bit jaded and tired but in fairness to them they kept on going.
"We're still looking at different formations, styles and systems and to be honest, the players are getting used to each other and looking to gel. It's very much a work in progress but this is the ideal time of year to be trying these kind of things out.
"We tried out the diamond formation again tonight. It's a system we used for the Norwich away game last season and it worked well that day so we felt it was worth another look. We've got two full-backs who loved to get forward and in Paul Thirlwell we've a player who is consistently very good playing in front of the back four. He knows how to protect the two centre backs and when to drop in and cover when one of them full-backs pushes forward. It was definitely worth a try and is something we might consider using in future games.
"I've really enjoyed my first pre-season as assistant manager so far. It's a new role to me and I'm still learning a lot. I saw first hand as player-coach last season just how much the work load was for the gaffer and he felt he needed myself to take some of the training duties off him so he could reduce that workload and allow him to make more calls and be in and around the office more often.
"The whole new coaching system has worked really well since the end of last season. The hours are a lot longer than what I was used to as a player but I'm really enjoying getting my teeth into the new role and I'm learning a lot every day. I'm incredibly grateful to Greg for giving me this opportunity as assistant manager and I hope I can repay him by doing the best I can in the role.
"As a player you do sometimes think 'I could easily step across and do x, y and z' but the reality is it's very tough and you see first hand as assistant manager how the manager is the one who takes all the flak when things go wrong and has to make the big decisions. There's also the fact that it's not just stuff on the training field and in matches but all the off the field things that you have to deal with. The fans who attend games probably aren't aware of just how much work does take place behind the scenes in the running of the football club and the management team are very much involved in that.
"I think it's fair to say the fans will probably see a lot less of me on the pitch this season. I'll still be registered as a player and I'll train with the aim of keeping myself fit and ready if needed but unlike previous seasons, I'll not be pushing as hard to win a place in the team.
"The lads who have come in on trial have done well. It's not easy for any player to come into a club and try and impress to earn a deal but they've all done exactly what we've asked of them. They know that we expected a good work ethic, honesty and attitude on the training ground. They've also brought plenty of quality in different areas but it will be up to the manager to make the final decision and I'm sure that'll be made soon as the players will need to know what our aims are and whether or not they can focus on other opportunities.
"Although we didn't play as well as a team tonight as we'd like, it's still another win and that should breed a bit of confidence. We're all looking forward to the Newcastle game now and that should provide another good test.
"Every one of the players in the squad will be desperate to play on Saturday as it's a great chance for them to test themselves against some quality players. It may be a bit of a cliche, but it's the genuine truth when I say that every place is up for grabs. We've had trialists come in and they've pushed the rest of the squad into performing better. Hopefully they can keep improving right up to the first game against Brentford next month."
