Danny Livesey on staying with the club
Danny Livesey edges into his ninth season with the club next year and now proudly holds the mantle of longest serving player following the summer departure of fellow centre half Peter Murphy.
And that’s something the popular defender does not take lightly at all.
“You do build up emotional ties with a club when you’ve been there a while,” he said. “I’ve met some really nice people inside and outside of the stadium and I’ve made some really close friends.”
“It doesn’t seem like it was two minutes ago since I got here,” he joked. “It’s absolutely flown by.
“If I’m being honest, it’s as if it’s all blended into one big season and it is nice to see the number of appearances I’ve made for the club. It could actually have been even higher if it wasn’t for a couple of injuries and, touch wood, hopefully I’ll keep avoiding them and start to catch up with Murph [Peter Murphy].”
“It’s unbelievable to think that the season after next will be my testimonial season - if I’m still here,” he added. “It’s slowly creeping up but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.
“It’s strange when you consider that I came here as a kid and now everyone is looking at me as one of the experienced members of the group. There is extra responsibility with that but I’m comfortable with it and I’m looking forward to helping the team to push on.”
The big defender’s December 2004 arrival on-loan from Bolton subsequently paved the way for a Blues career which has now taken him through the prestigious 300-appearance barrier.
“I had no idea that I’d still be with the club and have been through so much this far down the line,” he admitted. “I remember there were a few raised eyebrows back then because I was dropping to the Conference from a Premier League club.
“That didn’t bother me because I wasn’t fit and I’d lost my match sharpness, and I just needed to be playing again. Carlisle United gave me that chance and I think it turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
“We were back in the Football League by the end of that season and things have kicked on for me and the club since then. It’s been a good period to be here.”
“I don’t keep an eye on the appearance numbers too much because I have more of a short-term attitude,” he explained.
“Once I’m in the side I concentrate on playing well in every game so that I’m selected again. Working week-to-week is the best way for me because it keeps me focused on what it is I have to do. I’ve seen first hand that if you don’t stay on your game you lose your place and the start of last season was a big eye-opener for me on that score.”
Having already mentioned Peter Murphy there can be little doubt that there will be a change to the dynamics in the dressing room following the recent turnaround in the playing squad.
“It is strange to think that Peter has moved on,” he admitted. “He’s a great lad and he will be a big loss because of the type of character he is. He has a professional approach to everything he does and he is the type of player you can talk about anything to, and he would help you to follow it up. I’m sure that wherever he goes he’ll prove to be just as popular as he was here.”
“I know I’m expected to be more of a leader than perhaps I already have been as we go forward,” he said. “A lot of that will need to be done inside the dressing room as well as on the pitch.
“We do have a number of young lads in the squad and they’ll have their highs and lows, and they will need a bit of help every now and then. The gaffer was brilliant with me because he came to have a chat and we talked about what we want to do as a group next season. It’s all about improvement and that goes for me on a personal level as well.
“There’s a real desire to see the club go higher and I’d love to be part of that.”
Click HERE for part two of this interview.
