After a decade away from Cumbria playing in various different countries including England, Scotland, USA and Canada, Tony Caig made his return to United as a goalkeeping coach last summer.

In the final part of our exclusive interview with Caigy, he talks about coming back to Brunton Park, his time at Workington, United's current batch of goalkeepers and his hopes for next season.

He said: "When I came back from America after leaving Houston Dynamo I actually had two or three months off from football. Because of the way my seasons had overlapped in the UK and America, I hadn't had any break from training or playing for about three years so I needed some time off to recharge my batteries.

"I had a break and then went and trained with Newcastle for a couple of months to keep myself fit. I then went to Chesterfield as cover for a few weeks which was good for getting me back into the routine of being at a club properly.

"Then last summer I was a free agent again and Carlisle were looking for a goalkeeping coach. At the same time, Workington were looking for a new keeper after Adam [Collin] moved up the coast to Brunton Park. It was an ideal situation in the end as it meant I could step up my coaching working at Football League level while continuing to play regular football at a decent standard with Workington.

"That's how it all panned out and it worked so well in the end that as things went on the manager made it clear that he wanted me to be more involved on a full-time basis, including registering me as a player to provide cover in the event of an injury to Adam.

"We had a great run last season at Workington. The fixtures actually went quite badly against us. Due to the horrendous weather in West Cumbria at the end of last year we had quite a few postponements which just kept building up and in the way that the re-arranged fixtures fell meant that in one run of ten fixtures, seven of them were away from home.

"A lot of those games were also midweek matches and with the squad being part-time a lot of the lads worked during the week and had to take time off which made things even harder. But we dug deep and went on an incredible run of something like ten games without defeat and most of those were wins. Those results propelled us from nowhere right into the play-offs. If we'd started the season a bit stronger it could have been even better but in the end it was still a really good season.

"I've actually known Adam Collin since when I was at Newcastle and he was a youngster at the club back then. He has improved a lot since then but he always had plenty of talent. The biggest decision he's made in his career so far was to go to Workington and actually play football. I think he got that spot on as playing regular football develops you so much more as a player than training sessions alone will.

"Coming to Carlisle was a big move for him but playing football regularly at Workington has helped him a lot and meant he was ready to make the step into the first team here when it came. He has improved even further over the course of this season and part of that is due to having regular training but it's mostly down to getting himself into the first team and staying there. He's had dips in form but has recovered from them and shown himself to be strong mentally. I'm pretty sure he's got a very good future ahead of him in the game.

"Young Mark Gillespie did very well for the youth team last season and was another who got better and better as the year went on. His improvement from around November to the end of the season was massive. He deserved his sub appearance on the final day against Norwich City after all the hard work he'd put in and can be proud that he's the youngest ever goalkeeper to play in the first team. I have had to remind him though that I still hold the record for youngest goalkeeper to start a game for the first-team!

"He's a player who has a lot of potential but he has to keep improving like he did last season. I think it might actually help him a bit that I've been through the same cycle that he is going through at the club, starting as a YTS player and getting a pro-contract. Not a huge amount has changed from when I left in 1999 so I know the place pretty well. The most important thing is I want him to realise he's able to ask me about anything and I'll give him honest advice. I think the relationship between goalkeepers and the goalkeeper coach is a lot different to outfield players and other coaches, maybe it's the old goalkeepers union thing but generally it's a lot stronger.

"For next season, I want to continue my job in developing and improving Adam and Mark and also the two YTS keepers Jonny Ball and Joe Clements. I also want to keep myself ticking over playing wise and keep myself fit. I still feel I can contribute playing wise when asked but I won't be pushing to try and win a first team place. For the club, I hope we can build on the positives of last season and aim for a higher league finish and some good cup runs again.

"The most important thing is to get a feel good factor around the place and get everyone pulling in the same direction. That will only come with us producing some good performances. The fans can then feed off that and with a snowball effect that should get things really going."

Part Two of the video interview with Tony will be available to United Player subscribers later today, with Part One and Two already available to watch. A freeview clip can be viewed at the top of the page in which Tony talks about why he thinks Cumbria, particularly the Western part of the county, produces so many good goalkeepers. 

For more details on how to sign up for United Player and receive match commentary on every first team game as well as exclusive video clips and extended highlights on every home first team fixture, click here.

You can use the links below to access Parts 1 and 2 (Freeview and United Player subscribers only).

Tony Caig Freeview Part 1

Tony Caig United Player Clip Part 1

Tony Caig Freeview Part 2

Tony Caig United Player Clip Part 2