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" I'm proud of them, it's been a fantastic run. We gave ourselves a mountain to climb after ten minutes last night. When I was stood there in the dugout and looked at my watch and it was nearly 11 minutes I was fearing the worst, but one thing that they have got is some bottle about them. They dug deep and they kept us in the game until half-time, then we had a game-plan at half-time and it worked.
" We didn't want to get rolled over, we don't deserve that and we came out and kept them on the back-foot for most of the game. So the run if it had to end, then I wanted it to end that way, I wanted to play a top quality side and I wanted to do ourselves justice and we did more than that.
" We've dealt with problems all season but what I've said about this group, we did some flipchart work and we looked at every game that we played in the Youth Cup. There has been a problem that has arisen every single game and we have dealt with it. I'm confident enough to know that they can deal with any problems that they get.
" They got a massive one last night - what do we do? - we're 2-0 down after ten minutes, do we lie down and get absolutely hammered or do we stand up and fight back. They certainly did that in the second-half and if we had just managed to take one of the couple of chances that we had it would have been a really interesting last 20 minutes.
" There were a few tears in the dressing-room afterwards but they have got nothing to be ashamed of. They have been fantastic, the manager (John Ward), Greg (Abbott) and the board of directors all popped their head around the door and said how proud they were of them. We couldn't have asked any more of them.
" I'll probably be more disappointed than them for a few weeks but that's no reflection on them not caring, they do care. They have just got bounce-back-ability, they have got to come back tomorrow and play a league game. They were fine today, we've done one-on-ones with them all, we've gone through what we want to do for the rest of the season.
" They are all raring to go, I've given them the option, if they are feeling a little bit tired or some of them are carrying knocks that they don't have to play tomorrow because we will look after them. To a man every single one of them wants to pull on a Carlisle shirt and go again tomorrow.
" He (Martin O'Neill) flew over from Spain just for the game and he flew straight back to Spain after the game. Many people won't have seen him because he sneaked in through the back door, went in the Aston Villa dressing-room and sat in the dug-out. He didn't go in the boardroom at half-time, he sat in the dug-out right throughout the game.
" He asked the gaffer's permission and then the gaffer asked me if it was all right if he came in our dressing-room and just had a few words with our lads, of course he was more than welcome. He was very complimentary, he said that we'd pushed them all the way, he praised us on our ability to keep going when we found ourselves in such an horrific position after ten minutes.
" He said that lesser teams would have folded, he knows that senior sides would have caved in, he praised us for the way that we dealt with the game, the way we tried to play the game. He wished us all the best for the future and said that there were a few lads in the dressing-room who he was sure could go on to bigger and better things. "
" We appreciate that, the players at the time didn't really appreciate it because they had their heads down but when they look back, even tonight. For somebody of his stature to come walking in, he didn't have to do that. He's gone up in my estimations anyway, I thought he was a top manager before but he has made me into a bit of a Villa fan now.
" The experience that they have gained to be playing against bigger clubs than themselves, we've done their one-to-ones and I've asked each and every one of them if they would like to play against that standard of player every Saturday. That's no disrespect to the Centre of Excellence sides that we are playing because that is our level and each one of them said that they would love to play against Aston Villa and Manchester United week-in and week-out.
" It would be extremely hard but they would improve. I think they've realised now what I am trying to get through to them. When I came I came from a Premier League club in Blackburn Rovers, the tempo that I want the game to be played at and the passing has got to be stronger, faster and more direct. When I say direct I don't mean direct as in long-ball I mean direct passing.
" What I am trying to get into them I'm seeing a massive improvement in them and it's proved that in the performances this season. They saw first hand last night what I'm after and they now realise, because if they seen first hand the type of football that I want to play and bring to the players of Carlisle because it will make them better.
" So the experience of playing against Manchester United, Aston Villa and Sheffield Wednesday, they now can see it. I've got DVDs of the games where I can show them back how I want them to play, it's OK telling them but I need them to see it first hand. They have seen it first hand this season so the experience that they are going to gain from this hopefully will make them better players in the next 12 months. "
" Results and performances go hand-in-hand really, we keep saying that it is development and it is development. The bigger picture is how many players can we turn into professionals at Carlisle United. People keep asking me the same question several times, if you could finish bottom of the league and go out of the FA Youth Cup in the first round but have four players playing for the first-team then which one would you have?
" I say that of course I would have the second one. If you have got four players though capable of playing for the first-team then you are not going to go out in the first round and you are not going to finish bottom of the league so it does go hand-in-hand. We're trying to get players through to professional football, professional football is a winning industry.
" Managers keep saying that they are only four games away from the sack so we've got to teach young players how to win football matches, it's a simple as that. We'd all love to win matches by playing Brazilian-style but sometimes it isn't the case, we couldn't go out and take Aston Villa on last night in the way that we wanted to. Because if we had then they would have over-run us so we've got to be a bit more cautious and work a game-plan out to give us the best chance of winning the game.
" We'll play Port Vale tomorrow and I just want the lads to express themselves and go and play. If we win then fine and if we lose fine but the FA Youth Cup is not about that, it's about winning football matches and that's what professional football is all about.
" What we've done with a cup run, and also our league position, and also our league results is got people talking about Carlisle United. Not just at first-team level where we are having an exceptional season as well, the reserves, with the exception of the other night, have had a good run before that and they are third in the league, and the youth team are up at the top of the table. So the whole club is doing fine at the moment. "
" When I pick a team I do it on Friday when I am doing my team shape, set-pieces and organisation. I think Paul (Thirlwell), they know the side, because they must know the side because they work on it on a Friday morning. He's just doing what he has to do and he keeps things quiet. To be honest, and I'm being honest here, I don't know what the first-team side is tomorrow because I was in doing my one-on-ones with the youth team so I never saw the work this morning. I would think that most teams know the side on Friday.
" The gaffer has already had a meeting with Darren (Edmondson - Workington manager) and sending them youth team lads on loan is something that we are seriously looking at. Because my background as a player is non-league, I think it would do certain people no harm at all to go and have a month at that level. It will certainly harden them up and show them what football is like at that level.
" I think it's a good idea, I think that there are two or three lads in the current youth side, now that the FA Youth Cup run is over. I had a meeting with the manager about certain players and what we are going to do to improve them and that is a good idea, I'd be up for that.
" None of them are close to first-team level with us at the moment. I know Gary Madine catches people's eyes, he has just turned 17, it was only 12 months ago that he was playing local football in Newcastle and he has come on leaps and bounds. We've got to just be a little bit patient with him, I can see him being around the first-team before the end of the season, on the bench, I can see that. Gary is the closest one but he has still got a little bit more to do yet.
" I work with sixteen lads at the moment, I think that is my ideal number of what I want to work with because what it does is mean that every one of them gets changed on a Saturday. You're not leaving people out, they are getting changed and we get them on as often as we can. Since the FA Youth Cup run started obviously I picked my strongest side and that in my opinion, that side has taken us right through to the sixth round. I like working with sixteen, I don't really want any more, if I get injuries and suspensions then I'll dip into the under-16 schoolboys and give them experience. "
" I've been telling lads they won't make it as a professional for 10-14 years now and it is still the worst part of my job to say goodbye and we don't think that you are going to make it at this football club. We're not the knowledge of all football, we want them to go out and prove us wrong. It's a horrible part of the job but unfortunately it has got to be done.
" You see awful behaviour every Sunday on the matches on SKY and SKY don't hold back, the BBC are a little bit more refrained from panning in on the big superstars coming out, and kids will follow that. I don't like it personally, not at youth level and I clamp down on it. I had an incident last season where one of my players swore at the referee and the referee ignored it. I told the referee at half-time to send him off because you will help me and he just looked at me like I was strange.
" He told me that I couldn't put a substitute on, and I told him that he would be helping me because he thinks I'm picking on him. He sent him off in the second-half and he hasn't done it since, we lost the game as well by the way but the player in question hasn't done it again and we're fine with that. It's part of football I'm afraid, I hope that the League who are banning it, it's a brave decision and I hope they are successful but I have my doubts.
" We've got Port Vale tomorrow who have had a magnificent result in midweek, they've gone to the same round of the FA Youth Cup as us, they knocked Tottenham out in midweek. They'll be coming up here tomorrow cock-a-hoop, we've got to get back to normal so it will be interesting to have a look at what Port Vale do. If we win our game in hand and we manage to beat Blackpool in our second game we'll be a point behind them.
" We've got a big quarter-final Youth Alliance Cup game next Saturday at the Sheepmount, kicking off at 10.30am so we are back in cup action next week. So we've all to play for, we don't want to finish the season on a low, we want to come out of it with something because we feel that we deserve it. "