Manager on his trial players
Manager Greg Abbott spoke to us about trialists, young players and new arrivals following a weekend of enjoyable friendly football.
“It’s good for the lads who are in with us for a few weeks to get out there and show us what they can do,” he said.
“What we have to try and do is work out if they are better than what you already have or if they are going to add to the group.
“We have said that we would like them all to stay with us for a couple of weeks and the idea there is that it takes the pressure off a little bit. They can look at us and we can look at them and we can see if anything comes of it.”
“They’ve all done well so far,” he continued. “I felt that Paul Weldon was up against it a bit in the first half at Kendal because he had played at Penrith on Friday night as well. That was tough for him but, credit to him, he grew into it and he worked extremely hard.”
“The keeper [Robbie Thomson] did well but he actually played for Oldham on Friday before coming back to us,” he continued. “He has a number of clubs looking at him and, to fair to him and his situation, we’ve told him to keep his options open.
“We certainly don’t want to be in a position where we are stopping him from going to other places. He should come back to us on Monday, depending on what he hears from Oldham, but the thing we have in our favour is that he knows we need a second keeper. He has good agility and handling and he looks like a decent keeper so we’ll see where it goes.”
“Danny [Emerton] got his 90 minutes on Friday night and he’s another who enjoyed himself. He didn’t look out of place at all. Jordan Deacey played a couple of different roles through the two games and the attitude and performances of all of these lads are giving us some tough calls to make.”
Looking a little bit closer to home, he added: “A massive plus on Saturday was the performance of a 16-year old right back, Connor Thomson. He was outstanding and he’s one who will train with the first team squad so we can see how he does.
“He’s a big lad with a fantastic build and he’s shown us that he understands the game. I’m really pleased with him and, like I say, that’s a massive bonus for us. We won’t get carried away with it but he’s one we can hopefully develop and push a little bit harder.”
“It was nice to see Lewis [Guy] at Kendal and it was good for him that he was able to show us what he was about,” he said.
“He had a hand in a couple of goals and he got one for himself, so he’ll be feeling good about things again.
“He likes the club already, he’s seen how we work and he’s had a smile on his face. We’re looking forward to getting him in again next week and, if he settles, it’s one we will probably try to make happen.
“I’m sure he’ll have a timescale on this in his own mind because he has a career to look after. We’ve spoken to him and set ourselves around 14 days as a guide. I should have seen enough about him to know what we want to do with him by then.
“I think a lot of people saw me talking to Danny [Grainger] on Friday and he might be in to train with us next week. At this stage we have to make it clear that it’s a goodwill gesture on our behalf.
“He’s a local lad and a Carlisle fan and he has a few things happening around him. I’ve told him that I’m happy for him to come and train with us until that all sorts itself out.
“If he does find himself in a position where he might look at us as an option then we could take it from there but, at this moment in time, I think we’re probably not quite in that position with him.”
