INTERVIEW: There's a feeling I owe Carlisle something

“It’s good to have it done because I can start to concentrate on my football again, and not on the other things I’ve had in my head over the past few weeks,” he said. “I want to get back to playing the way I was before Christmas.

“It hasn’t been too frustrating while I’ve been waiting for it to be completed. It’s just been a case of waiting for an agreement which suited us both. I was able to sit down with John Nixon last Friday night, on the Luton trip, and we got it all sorted out.”

“I think it did affect me when it all first came out that other clubs were interested,” he admitted. “I was getting questions thrown at me about the interest from other clubs, so it was in the back of my mind. It can be hard to put it all to one side when you go out and play on a Saturday. You think about whether it will happen after the game, or if it will go on until after the next one.

“I always tell my agent not to tell me about which clubs have shown interest. I didn’t want to think about who was here to watch. I was aware of the interest but I just wanted to get on with my job.” 

“There’s a feeling for me now that I owe Carlisle United something,” he told us. “They’re the ones who gave me my chance and they’re the reason why I’m here. I don’t think I’d be playing football if it wasn’t for this club. I’d probably have gone towards rugby, but this club gave me so much support I decided to stick with them.

“The previous manager did believe in me but I was in and out of the side under him. The gaffer now has given me a chance and I’m starting every game. I’m trying to show him through my performances that I should be starting every game.” 

“I feel I’ve progressed massively as a player,” he said. “I’ve gone from playing for the youth team last season, in front of ten or twenty people, to being in front of thousands where it really does matter. 

“I always felt it was important to perform well for the youth team anyway, but it’s really important to get your game right every week at this level. I think I’m doing that consistently so far this season.”

“I think I know my role more now than I did at the start of the season,” he commented. “I do see myself as a midfielder and I feel more comfortable with how I’m being used. I enjoy the centre of midfield because I can dictate the game a bit more from that position.

“I am ambitious and I’d like to get to the highest point I can in the game. I think Carlisle United is the best place to help me to achieve that. I’m still inexperienced and it would be good to get another season and a few more games under my belt. 

“Like I say, my form did start to drop because it was in the back of my head that there was all of this interest. Once I got it all sorted I knew Carlisle was the best opportunity for me.” 

On the number of appearances he’s had under the new manager, he said: “I was talking to my dad about that. I’d told him at the start of the season that if I could get on the bench, and maybe get a few starts, I’d be happy. It’s really nice that it’s happened like this for me so quickly. 

“It did take a while to get used to being a professional. At the start of the season I couldn’t really get a grasp of it, because I was going home instead of staying behind to do the boots and the jobs. Everything is going well and I do know I’m a professional with a real job to do now.”

And on his role in the team, he said: “I was used as an impact player at the start of the season, but now I’m used more as a solid midfielder. That brings responsibility which I always take under my belt. Hopefully I can prove on a Saturday why I’m in the squad. 

“The reaction to me signing has given me a huge confidence boost. But the fans have been unbelievable with me all the way through. Even when I was sent off, I thought about the incident all weekend. 

“My emotions got the better of me and it wasn’t going too well for me during the game. I showed a bit of stupidity and that’s why I went on social media to apologies. It wasn’t acceptable at all, because I cost the team. The fans were really positive about me doing that but it still doesn’t excuse me doing it in the first place.

“I also think the fans weren’t too sure if I was going to stay or not at one point. Now it’s done I think they’ll be back on my side and I can help to get us out of the battle we’re in.

“We know the situation we’re in and we know we need to get out of it as quickly as we can. I’m massively confident that we can avoid the drop. It’s about getting consistency, and if we can string a few wins together on the bounce it’ll get us away from the relegation zone.”