United media officer and kit manager Andy Hall (AH) spoke to BBC Radio Cumbria's James Phillips (JP) this afternoon ahead of Carlisle's League One match at home to Oldham, Hall first talking about it being Family Fun Day at Brunton Park :
JP
Nice day today, hopefully a few on the gate because it is the Family Football Festival?
AH
Yeah, it is the Football League Initiative, I am sure you have seen a load of kids outside dressed up as Morticia Addams and everything else, and I see you have come along and done for it yourself, nice one. That is what we want, we want the kids to buy into things like this, the initiative is running until Christmas but I think attendances are dropping, we have got to hold our hands up to that, we have got to try to get them back. So, as much as we can do between now and the end of the season to get the young fans back, that will bring the Mums and Dads back as well. We need fans, without the fans we don't have a club, it is as simple as that.
JP
It runs through the period of December doesn't it, the Football League Initiative, but are we expecting to see more things for families and the kids across the month towards December?
AH
I think what the Football League are going to do is lay the challenge down to the clubs now to say right, we have kicked it off, it has been a week of action, what are you going to do from here on in. We are already ahead of the game a little bit with the prices and the way that we have structured under-11s and under-7s in particular who get in for free. So, price-wise we are there, we just need to start to drip feed in a few more things, because I think we spoke the other day and said that kids will come but for 90 minutes are they going to hold their attention, maybe there is something else we need to do there as well.
JP
Something that a fan has already brought up with me today is the subject of James Tavernier and his loan from Newcastle, when exactly is his last game currently for Carlisle United?
AH
He kicks the last ball of his 93 day package against Exeter next weekend, so after that one because of the loan period that we are into he would have to disappear thereafter, no idea what will happen thereafter, that is for Greg Abbott to answer that one.
JP
Of course, and with Frank Simek there with his injury situation, he is not expected to be back by then so certainly I guess we are going to have to expect some sort of a reshuffle to some extent?
AH
Yeah, it will have to be the reshuffle or the redabble in the market, I am not entirely sure what the manager wants to do about that. One thing I will know is that the irons will be in the fire already whatever it is he is trying to do or thinking of doing, he will already be well down the process of having that in place.
JP
In terms of this game today, you have got Oldham here at Brunton Park, the last time the two sides met it was one of those crucial games of the season wasn't it, United had started off badly with the Notts County game, they went down there, the first half was a rather torrid affair as well, and all of a sudden they came to life and a lot of people saw that as a bit of a turning point already at that early stage?
AH
It kickstarted things off didn't it, because that first half you were thinking, wow, what is this season going to be, there had been so much optimism, we had played so well in pre-season. Notts County blew that away, first half against Oldham you were looking and thinking, oh dear. But, then second half it all came together, things started to go the way we wanted to football-wise and then to win on penalties, there is no better way to win a game whether you like them or not. So, that did give us a bit of a boost, on we went and we currently sit eighth in the table.
JP
And just looking back at my notes on it, it was a stunning free-kick wasn't it from Jon-Paul McGovern, the Carlisle fans are spoilt for the old free-kicks aren't they, what with Matt Robson's dippers here and there?
AH
Yeah, Matty Robson is on the bench, what about Lubo (Lubomir Michalik) from 60 yards or whatever it is, he can smack them in, he has done that before. Jon-Paul McGovern, Peter Murphy, there are a few of them who like to have a go, James Berrett is always sniffing around as well during training. So, if there is a set-piece, it depends where it is as to who will do it but there is always somebody you would expect to hit the target.
JP
And we know that you are always around the team when they are going through their training, their warm-up in your role as kit man and media officer, what was the mood like and was there ever any chance that Greg Abbott might tinker with that winning team from Tuesday night?
AH
I would have been amazed if he had changed the side after the way that we played, I think for me it is the best performance, not just of the season, but for a good while, particularly here at Brunton Park. We have been asking the lads to play their football here, it tends to happen away from home, for whatever reason it wasn't happening at Brunton Park. To play like we did against Brentford I thought was a good performance, but to then to bring it here again against Sheffield Wednesday, there was a 30-35 minute period in that second half where we were unplayable, that is when we got our goals. That is what fans want to see, that is what will bring people back.
JP
And is the hope then with this Family Football Festival here today, the start of the Football League Initiative, and with a better crowd against Sheffield Wednesday with one of the big boys here, that you might be able to capitalise and get them back here today and for future games?
AH
We need to, we have just released the accounts and we have shown that we are operating in the black. There is only one way that will keep happening and that is with the fans coming through the turnstiles. We are an ambitious club but we are keeping the ambition within a framework, if you break the framework then you start to look at, I was going to name a few clubs there but I won't, then you start to look at situations that fracture in front of your eyes.
We don't want to do that, if we want to move forward and we do then we need people to come with us, yes there are going to be bad days, yes there are going to be days when you are stood there wondering why you have bothered, but there will also be days like Sheffield Wednesday and Brentford, come with us and the town can have a club that we can all be proud of.