Town boss John Gregory spoke to his club’s official website ahead of his side’s League One game against Carlisle at the Checkatrade.comStadium on Tuesday evening, Gregory first outlining yet another must-win match for United:
“It is an incredible game for Carlisle, I certainly prefer being in our position than theirs. They have obviously got to have two victories and just hope that two results go their way with everybody else. It is an awful position for them to be in but as we well know, over the course of the season you get 46 chances to try to do the best that you can and they find themselves in a very precarious situation.
“Obviously, we have to be professional about it, we want to try to finish as high as we possibly can, we have got six more points at stake and we want to try to get all six points. We have played 19 games though since February 22nd and it is our ninth game in April, which is totally ridiculous as you can imagine. So, there is burn out with quite a few of the players who have been out and played every match for me since I have been here.
“I made the point at the weekend, it is games like this that we have not been particularly good at this season. Richie Barker had a similar problem to myself before me and I have had it since, making sure that the players are totally motivated for some of the lesser teams in the division, some of the teams that have been below us in the table we have come unstuck against both home and away.
“So, I need to make sure I do my job properly and make sure we are on the front foot and make sure we pick up three points in this first game and take us into a good mood for the visit of Bristol City at the weekend. We played Leyton Orient here on Good Friday after beating Tranmere on the Tuesday night, having won at MK Dons the game before and our boys could have easily switched off against Leyton Orient.”
“I hardly said a word or anything in the two or three days before that game because it was Leyton Orient and I knew I didn’t have to say anything. Our boys mentally and physically were ready to face them because they knew it was a big game. Sometimes maybe I haven’t spent enough time psychologically with them getting their heads right for when we have played against teams that really we should beat.
“Crewe for example here at home, I don’t think mentally I prepared them as well as I should have done in that game. I can’t always play the game for them once they get out there on the pitch, but at the same time maybe I should have spent a bit more time motivating them, psychologically getting inside their heads and making sure there were no slip-ups.
“That is what Brentford and Wolves have done this season, not only have they played well against the top sides, but they have played very well against the letter sides and made sure that they beat them. That is the sign of a good team, regardless of who you play you have to be always the same and play exactly the same, you cannot take your foot off against anybody in this division, or in any division for that matter.
“So, that has been a big learning curve I think for me working in League One this season that mentally players need to be right in games that they know they should win. It is like the old adage of giantkillers, that is why giantkillers are successful, because they play against some of the big teams and the big teams take it too lightly. They probably don’t go into the game in the same manner of which they should do, and that has really been a weakness in our side this season and it is something that I need to make sure I eradicate next season.”
In team news for the Red Devils they will be missing two players through injury and suspension. Striker Billy Clarke being out with a broken hand, while full-back Paul Connolly sees out the fourth game of a five-match ban he picked up for violent conduct involving a spectator in a 1-0 defeat at Brentford three weeks ago. In better news for Town boss John Gregory though he is able to call again on midfielder Andy Drury and winger Jeffrey Monakana with the pair having recovered from a hamstring injury and sickness respectively.
The referee for tomorrow evening's match is Rob Lewis from Shrewsbury and he will be assisted down the lines by Ryan Atkin from London and Barry Holderness from Billericay in Essex. Meanwhile, the fourth official is Carl Fitch from Ipswich.