Experienced midfielder Graham Kavanagh joined Carlisle United for a one month loan spell in October 2008, before eventually joining the club permanently in a player-coach role in January 2009.

Dublin-born Kavanagh has made over 600 first-team appearances for seven different clubs since first arriving in England in 1991.

Starting out at hometown side Home Farm, Kavanagh's talents were spotted by scouts from Middlesbrough who were quick to sign him up and bring him over the Irish Sea.

He found opportunities limited in the North East and was allowed to join Division Two side Stoke City on-loan and after impressing during his initial stay, was signed by the Potters for a fee of £250,000.

During his time with Stoke he made over 200 league appearances and was part of the side that beat Bristol City in the Football League Trophy final at Wembley, scoring the opening goal in the 2-1 win.

His five year-spell in the Midlands came to an end in 2001 when Cardiff City paid £1m for his services. His first season saw him score 15 goals from midfield, including one in a memorable FA Cup giant killing win over then Premier League side Leeds United.

In his second season he captained the Welsh side to the Division Two play-off final where they defeated QPR 1-0 at the Millennium Stadium. He went on to be a regular in the Championship but the club's financial troubles meant he had to be sold, with Wigan Athletic signing him for an undisclosed fee in March 2005, helping the Lancashire club to seal promotion to the Premier League for the first time in it's history.

That first season in the top flight saw Wigan establish themselves quite comfortably and Kavanagh played his part in helping the club to the League Cup final for the first ever time, losing 4-0 to Manchester United at the Millennium Stadium.

His services were in demand again at the start of the following season and he was snapped up by Sunderland for £500,000, managed by his former international team-mate Roy Keane. His impressive performances helped The Black Cats stabalise after having started the season poorly before an injury picked up in December 2006 ruled him out for the rest of the successful promotion campaign.

After returning recovering from his injury, he joined Championship side Sheffield Wednesday on a month's loan to regain his fitness. He came close to a permanent move to Leicester City later in the year but instead opted in January 2008 to join Wednesday on-loan again until the end of the season.

With first team opportunities at the Stadium of Light still limited, he signed for United on an initial one-month loan deal, impressing on his debut in a 3-1 defeat at MK Dons and then scoring on his home debut in an exciting 3-3 draw with Peterborough United a week later.

After extending his original loan spell for a further two months, he signed for United on a permanent basis in January 2009, taking on a player-coach role in the process. He helped the club avoid relegation to League Two and picked up the "Goal of the Season" award for his stunning 30 yard strike in the 2-0 win over Millwall on the final day of the season.

His displays during the following season helped the club to a solid mid-table finish in League One and the Johnstone's Paint Trophy final against Southampton at Wembley, scoring a stunning volley in the 2-1 win at Leeds United in the first leg of the Northern Area final.

During the summer of 2010 it was confirmed that he would take on the role of player/assistant manager, but his on the field involvement was restricted to just one substitute appearance near the beginning of the campaign, with a knee injury ruling him out for much of the rest of the season.

Kav will continue to be registered as a player for the coming season again, and although his ability to shoot from distance and quality set-pieces make remain as strong as ever, he is only likely to be used sparingly as he continues to grow in his coaching role.

Kavanagh has been capped 16 times for the Republic of Ireland after making his debut against Sweden in 1999, scoring the opening goal in a 2-0 win at Lansdowne Road. 

Under contract until the summer 2013.