United chief executive David Allen spoke to BBC Radio Cumbria the day after the board gave manager Greg Abbott the vote of confidence for next season, Allen also talking about events both on and off the pitch recently :
" It is absolutely a vote of confidence for Greg, we sat down with Greg at 5pm yesterday, all seven of the board members who were there. He gave a really good talk, obviously we all know Greg well now and we were quite impressed with what he said, and all seven of us just want to get behind him.
" We tried to take everything into account, but one really important factor definitely is that Carlisle United has had four managers in the last three years. We have had Paul Simpson, Neil McDonald, John Ward and now Greg Abbott, and we just don't want another change. The stability of the club definitely is important.
" I don't know if the decision would have been different if we hadn't beaten Millwall, I don't think so, no I don't think so. That was a magical game and it lifted us all but we do think that Greg is the right man for the job. The deal that Greg is on, he has only got another one year of his contract, it isn't big money to get rid of him and it isn't on financial grounds, we do think that Greg is the right man.
" The decision has been made, we just want everybody to pull together and get behind Greg. We are all supporters of Carlisle United, we can all criticise, I can criticise things that has Greg has done but we are putting that in the past now. We are looking forward to the new season, it is going to be Greg's first season where he can prepare in pre-season and we just want everybody to get behind him. "
" The fans can see what has gone wrong, the results, injuries. It is no secret what has gone on, we are all very, very disappointed but we are not dwelling on that. Our glass is certainly not half empty, the glass that I am looking at is more than half full. When I am thinking about last season now, I have moved on, I am thinking about how Ben Williams has come on and how strong he was and how he took control in that Millwall game.
" I think about people like Richard Keogh, Cleveland Taylor, who have really come on. I am thinking about when we played Leeds and won them, when we played MK Dons and won them, when we played Millwall and won them. They were three teams in the play-off finals, when we went to Leicester and gave them a real surprise, those things I am thinking about. We are now looking forward, we have got the makings of a good squad and we think that we have got the right manager.
" I am not sure how much we can say to the supporters about what went wrong last season. People can analyse it and go over it but my life isn't about dwelling on the negatives. We are very, very positive about Carlisle United, we are very enthusiastic about the club. We think that we have got the makings of something good there now, and the makings of a really good sound squad that is there to be built on, and we are definitely looking forward with excitement.
" All that I can tell you about the budget is that we have had a very, very disappointing year looking back. The club's finances, we would have liked a lot more money coming in through the gate, it hasn't. We have gone into a recession, we have also had some very, very bad results and some very bad play down there, which has reduced the gates. "
" Also a lot of our sponsors and sponsoring companies have had difficulty and had to back out of sponsorship. So the finances are not there that where there in the past, and they are not going to be there going forward. We have recruited Martin Hudson and Carol Milne as Business Development Managers to boost the commercial side and boost the sponsorship income.
" We are going to do everything that we can to get fans down there and boost the gates, and we are going to do everything that we can at that club. The fact is though that we can't just be throwing a lot of money at it hoping that it is successful, when really we have just got to be managing it a little bit closely.
" We are talking about a couple of hundred thousand pounds off the playing budget. When you think that our playing budget is around about £2 million, it is still a very substantial figure. Greg is very, very confident that he can work within that. It is not that far away from where we were last season when we had the highest playing bill that the club has ever had.
" We have got to review Greg's situation in the season if there are the same performances as last season. We are not just going to hide away and bury our heads in the sand, that is not what it is about at all. We can learn from the lessons of John Ward, I don't want to be too critical about that, but maybe we could have let John go a little bit sooner. "
" So we will be monitoring it very, very closely, we have got to do our job there. I don't know if we could have done anything different really last season. It is those players on the pitch isn't it, so I am not convinced that we could have done anything differently.
" I think that what we are looking at is 18 players, the professional players, the top tier who will be competing for those first-team places. We will be looking at five or six in the second tier who can step in when needs be, and half a dozen youth players who we can bring on as best we can.
" There are actually eight players that have gone out altogether, Danny Carlton, Jeff Smith, Luke Joyce, Chris Lumsdon, Chris Howarth, Lewis Neal, Kevin Gall and Grant Smith. There are probably eight gone out and we had a very, very big squad last time, we don't need that big squad.
" I will bow to Greg's judgement on that, when you are talking about the squad it is Greg who knows and he can comment on that. If he is saying that we only need three players then if that is what he wants then that is what he wants. What he is definitely saying though is that he wants a more focused squad, we are not going to have players on top money sitting in the stands watching the game. "
" What he wants is a smaller more focused squad and he wants players who are going to fight for that shirt. We want people like say as an example, Ian Harte, who broke his hand in the very first game for Carlisle United last season and wanted to play in the next game with a broken hand, so we want players like that.
" With David Raven, he went through a difficult patch there but certainly in the last few games he certainly looked stronger, so we would like to give him a chance. Danny Graham, there were two parts to the season for Danny Graham weren't there. The part leading up to Christmas when he scored those 16 goals and then after Christmas when he just couldn't seem to get it in the net. He still is a very, very talented player and I think that we are right to give him a contract, definitely.
" I am not sure if there has been any interest in Danny this week, that is more Greg's side so I don't want to comment on that. I don't think that football is about sentiment really, those players will go where the money is and they will feel part of that team at the time, I don't think that there is that much loyalty really.
" The club is alright financially, we don't have a few million pounds in the bank or anything but we are certainly not in difficulty, that is the main thing. We do know that there are an awful lot of clubs in difficulty, we have seen in our league Stockport go into administration just before the end of the season there. We think that there are other clubs in our league going to go into administration this summer probably and we are just very, very fortunate and grateful that we are not in that position. "
" We would absolutely listen to any offers to buy the club, we would never, ever stand in anybody's way. At the end of the day I am a supporter and I want the best for the club. We have got some new Business Development Managers out there trying to draw in business and more sponsorship. If there are any big players want to come along and talk to us about the club, definitely.
" There is nobody in talks at the moment but we are not going to stand in anybody's way, we want what is best for the club. Other owners have come and gone in the past, and we are certainly not going to be there forever. You chaps never stop talking about it, every time I come on this radio you are talking about the club being for sale, every time I open up the newspaper there is something about the club being for sale.
" So I don't think that I need to shout about it when you lot are all doing it for us. Generally football clubs don't have for sale sign boards outside them, most football clubs will be for sale, they are just waiting for somebody to approach them.
" We are very, very sorry about some supporters wanting to stay away, those people who are disheartened about what is going on at the club. All I would say is, look, come down there, let's get involved, be part of it and just enjoy it. "