United boss Greg Abbott (GA) spoke to BBC Radio Cumbria's James Phillips (JP) on Friday evening ahead of Carlisle's League One fixture away to MK Dons tomorrow, Abbott first talking about the difference between Buckinghamshire and Berkshire :
JP
A beautiful setting here where we are preparing ahead of MK Dons tomorrow, but not quite as nice as the setting that you all experienced last week I gather?
GA
Yeah, no river, River Thames, and no helicopters, but it is beautiful down here, the weather is fantastic but the hotel we were at last week was fantastic, but no, very pleasant.
JP
Everything about last weekend seemed to go right for you, the hope will be that you can continue that this time around?
GA
Yeah, that is gone now, it is done, but the preparation was good, we did make a comparison with last year for obvious reasons, but now we are back to the bread and butter programme if you like. But, we have been here a few times before when we have played Northampton and MK Dons so we are well accustomed to this place.
Generally they look after us here but the preparation has gone well, the training has gone well this week, the boys seem bang at it. we have had a nice chat about what we need to do now between the end of the season. Let's hope that we can perform because again, there will be a lot of our fans come up from London and down from Carlisle tomorrow. It is an expensive day out following us on the road, so we need to make sure we are spot on.
JP
You have talked about this final run-in now being an opportunity for a few of the players to push their stake for a place in that Carlisle United squad for the remainder of the season, anyone really stood out for you ahead of tomorrow's game?
GA
No, at the minute I don't want to just hand over initiatives to teams, people have got to earn places and I think at the minute if they are fit my senior players have to play. But, maybe in three or four games time we maybe need to see how the Ben Mckennas and the Rory Loys and the Paddy Maddens and the Nahki Wells' after a full game.
Maybe even Mark Gillespie would fare but I think at the minute, to be fair to the league and to us, and to our fans, we have to put our strongest team out as possible and, you know me, I am not that sentimental really, I like to win games. But, I think come the last two or three games then we might be able to pop one in or two in and see how they do, because obviously then we have got one eye looking forward to next year and we need to find out about these players. The last couple of games and the pre-season friendlies could tell me a hell of a lot.
JP
What is the latest now on Francois Zoko and in particular Ben Marshall's injury, we gather that one is not a very good one?
GA
Ben probably won't play again this season for us, Francois is different, Francois to be fair to the lad has trained today and he wants to play tomorrow. So, we are going to see if there is any reaction, he has gone probably 80% today in training, but we won't take any serious risk, but at the end of the day I don't want to give him an easy way out of not playing. He wants to play and I want him to play, so if he is fit then we will see how he is tomorrow and he will play.
JP
Certainly one spot then with Ben Marshall definitely out tomorrow, I know that you were at the Cumberland Cup victory over Gillford Park on Wednesday night, what exactly did you make of that?
GA
It told us what we know, that we have got a lot of hungry young players wanting to play football. There was encouragment there from a few of them so the Cumberland Cup has become a good competition, especially with no reserve games and we are doing our friendlies against the Celtics and the Rangers' of this world. But, it tells me that players are ready to come in if and when required, but there are two or three that are really anxious and desperate to play, which is great at this stage of the season.
JP
We will talk about MK Dons next, but just one final thing, you have already picked up on Ben Mckenna, I was really impressed with him against Gillford Park in that game. But, I suppose now he has got to put that sort of performance in against the sort of League One opposition that he would have to come up against to force his way in?
GA
Yeah, I mean I don't want to dampen any of our youth players but it was Gillford Park, in due respect to it it is a massive, massive difference between Gillford Park and MK Dons you know. We know Ben is one for the future, that is why we have given him a year's contract, but we are going to try to get him some pitch-time before now and the end of the season. I don't think he is actually ready to come into the team over a 90 minute period if there was a large amount at stake.
But, maybe right at the back end we can have a little glimpse at him because I think he has done well in his bits and pieces around us. He did well the other night but, like I said, Gillford Park, MK Dons, those such teams, there is a big gulf, so we can't get carried away. The one thing I think we have been guilty of in the past as a club and as a group is building these players up, now I don't want to do either, I don't want to build them up but I don't want to knock them. I want to just keep a balance and we bring them in at the times when we think is the right time, and I think our judgements have been pretty much spot on over the last couple of years.
JP
You mentioned that MK Dons is a big step up from Gillford Park, what sort of an approach do you expect from them tomorrow in this game at stadium:mk? What do you expect from them?
GA
They will probably be a bit nervous and a bit edgy because it is getting really tight at the top end. We need to just win as many games as we can, I think the play-offs probably are out of reach a little bit at the minute depending on results above us. But, we can go and play without any fear, MK Dons are looking over their shoulders all the time because they want that top six position to give themselves a chance.
So, I think they will be coming at us, they have done terrifically well at home but the pressure is all on them and we can go and play without fear. But, we want to go and compete and I don't want any repercussions of the Peterborough thing ever again, I don't mind getting beat, well I do mind getting beat but there is a right and wrong way to get beat and that was the wrong way for sure.
JP
A familiar face in Adam Clayton as well with MK Dons, do you know how to play him should you come up against him tomorrow?
GA
Yeah, for me Adam has wasted 12 months, and not wasted 12 months in terms of his........ But, he needs to play, he needs to play games, he hasn't played any football this season and Adam will just be keen to get as much pitch-time as he can and then go back to Leeds. But, he has not played enough football to be a massive threat, I know what he can do and I know what he would have been able to do. But, I think his career at the minute is at a bit of a crossroads where he needs to get in somebody's team and prove that he is good as we thought he was when he with us, because I think he is a terrific prospect.
JP
And you have got a civic reception coming up next week, with that Wembley final in the very recent past for the club how difficult has it been to keep everybody's mind on the task in hand ahead of this weekend?
GA
Not too difficult because that is what we are all about, we are all about football, I am not a fan of civic receptions I have to say. But, it is not about what I want or what the club want or what the team wants, it is about the fans being able to enjoy and celebrate what has been a terrific achievement for the club. So, for me we are doing it because I think the fans deserve to turn up and see the cup and see the players and show their appreciation to us, like we need to do to them for the amount of time and money they put in to get down to Wembley.
So, the only thing I am against is us trying to stretch our egos and think we are a bit better than we are, I think we have to do it because the fans deserve us to do it and I think they would want us to do it. That is the reason I have told John (Nixon) and the chairman (Andrew Jenkins) that we need to be at that reception on Thursday. But, I don't want anybody to think we are getting above our station, I need to play all that side of it down because we are a club with young players who I think we need to keep their feet on the ground. But, that all being said we will look forward to it and hopefully do it properly and everyone will enjoy it.