United media officer Andy Hall (AH) spoke to BBC Radio Cumbria's James Phillips (JP) this evening ahead of Carlisle's Capital One Cup tie at home to Tottenham, Hall first talking about the strength of the visitors:
JP
There are almost as many media people here as fans this evening, so I would imagine it has been quite an interesting build-up to this game for you personally?
AH
Yeah, I mean because it is Tottenham and because they are genuinely one of the big clubs in the country, I know when we pulled teams like Portsmouth not so many years ago and billed it beforehand as a big Premier League team coming down here when they were in the Premier League. This is one is in a different bracket, it is right up there with Everton when we went down to their place a few years ago.
Because they are here, because there is that banana skin for the media they want to see us do well tonight. Even the Tottenham media, the ones who aren't working directly for the club are all saying that it would be nice to see something happen just so that they have got something extra to write about. That is why it is jammed in there, we have got overspill media, we have got media in the East Stand, we have got them everywhere, and rightly so because it is a big interest game.
JP
Aside from the media though, a wonderful showing I have heard from the people of Cumbria here, I know people who are big Barrow fans, big Workington fans, big Kendal fans who are all coming here tonight, hopefully as well they will get to see a bit of what Carlisle United is about and maybe they will come along when their teams aren't playing too?
AH
Yeah, it is a stage for the lads isn't it, if they can't perform on a stage like this then they probably wouldn't want to be in the game. Because, this is where you really want to do go out there and enjoy yourself first and foremost, but you don't want to make the numbers up. It might be Tottenham Hotspur, there might be internationals every second player on the teamsheet but the fact of the matter is Carlisle United want to get out there and win. They want to do themselves justice and they want to show a very big Cumbrian crowd what they are all about, hopefully that is how it will go.
JP
In terms of the teams as they were coming out, we just saw a few Tottenham tracksuits and some very young lads, I guess it is just like when Carlisle take youngsters to get a part of the matchday experience. There was just that moment where I thought 'oh, no, it is not all going to be Tottenham kids is it', and it isn't.
I mean what a team it is, just looking at some of the bigger names in the starting eleven, Carlo Cudicini, Clint Dempsey, Jan Vertonghen, Tom Huddlestone, Michael Dawson, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Steven Caulker who was a real star for Swansea last year and now finds himself fighting for a place at Tottenham in defence. I mean some huge names there, and then the bench, Aaron Lennon, Jermain Defoe, Kyle Walker, Sandro, Heurelho Gomes, I mean it is ridiculous, but this is what when we all got excited when Carlisle got drawn against Tottenham, this is what it was all about?
AH
It is fantastic, and credit to Tottenham because you have got to say that they are looking on four or five fronts at the moment aren't they, FA Cup, the Europa League and all the rest of the malarkey, they are taking this seriously. This is a real chance for your top Premier League teams to win a competition because not so much the Champions League teams, they don't always take it as seriously as they should. So, I am sure that Andre Villas-Boas will have one eye on the fact that Tottenham could be the winners of this trophy, and to do that you have got to take games like this seriously, and if they don't take us seriously we will hurt them.
JP
And the truth of this is, I mean it is a sign of respect and it is a nice nod to Carlisle from Tottenham because they could probably have sent some very promising youngsters who might well have been able to beat Carlisle United. They might not, it might have been an upset and then Carlisle might say have gone out in the next round to a full strength, I don't know, Burnley team, or something like that. This is a nod from Tottenham to Carlisle saying this is your day and we are going to give you the big stars but you had better be up for a big match?
AH
Yeah, and I think it is another case of the fact that Tottenham want to go through as well, they want to progress. He has put a couple of the bigger names on the bench because there is that little matter of the Europa League to take care of, that just keeps coming thick and fast.
JP
And Manchester United at the weekend?
AH
Oh, them as well, I forgot all about them, so yeah, they have got to deal with it properly, but they have also got to deal with it with the big games in my mind as well.
JP
How has it been with the Cumbrian public then for the club on that sort of front for the club? How has it been dealing with the more advanced numbers coming through the gates and what does it feel like and how great would it be to continue these numbers coming through at Brunton Park?
AH
Yeah, we would love to see it all the time, I think our biggest test with the new system was when we played Leeds and we got 16,000 or whatever it is. That proved that we could do it, and it has been busy, we haven't got a massive amount of staff in the backroom there but everybody digs in and works really hard. The girls in the ticket office have really pushed away to make sure it has been really smooth as far as we are concerned. You always review things, you always get complaints and some of those complaints are valid and we will look at what we have done with how money tickets the season ticket holders got initially, things like that. But, by and large it has gone really well and the proof in the pudding is the fact that so money people are here tonight.
JP
Let's hope at the end of all this work though for everyone involved, for the fans who have had to find the money to be here, the people who perhaps can't always afford it, for all of you who have worked behind the scenes, let's hope it is a game that justifies that, we have an awful lot of fun, and we will dream about an upset but either way whatever happens let's just hope it is a night we can all enjoy?
AH
I think once that whistle blows it is the enjoyment factor, if you can't enjoy something like this whatever the result then again, what is the game all about?