Loan defender in

 

Gillesphey, 20, initially joined the Cumbrians on a short-term loan deal last September but this quickly turned into a season long stay following some extremely impressive performances. 

 

A versatile player, he went on to score twice in his 27 appearances for the Blues and secured a new deal at his parent club off the back of a very good season in Cumbria.

 

Manager Keith Curle said: “Macaulay is a young man who I think is going to have a very bright future. It's excellent that we can be part of his development. We're forging links with a fantastic football club in Newcastle United and Peter Beardsley. It shows they're happy with the development of their players when they come to us. 

 

“We had Macaulay and Alex Gilliead here last season and the report we got back from Peter Beardsley was that when they went back to Newcastle at the end of the season they were different players. They had different personalities and there was a level of maturity about them individually and in their play. That comes when you're playing league football for points and trying to gain a reputation within the game.”

 

With the new rules in place on loan deals the manager admitted that this was an easy decision to make having worked with the player in the recent past.

 

“We did have the new loan rules in mind but it wasn’t too much for us to consider with the fact we know Macaulay already,” he told us. “You can't take a gamble on a player for 28 days now and a loan move means there's a level of commitment.

 

“That means you need to make sure you've done your background checks and you need to be certain that the player will add to your squad. You don't want to be paying wages for someone to come in and sit on the bench. We won’t have that problem with Macaulay because we know his strengths and we know where he will fit into the mix.”

 

This deal remains subject to the completion and registration of all paperwork.

 

Macaulay Gillesphey is available to sponsor - for player sponsorship details contact our commercial department on 01228 554 155 or by email