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JP
A victory that I am sure you are delighted with?
GA
We needed a victory today, the players have been a bit edgy, they are getting a little bit worried about the situation. We have got young players through the squad, we have not got a great big squad. Where we have come from and where we are trying to get to is not easy.
It is a tough league, we don't have the resources that other people have but we have got a genuine bunch of honest lads and today I was delighted for them. They rolled their sleeves up, they did all the ugly sides of the game which is what we said we needed to do to get ourselves into a position to win games.
If you remember the MK Dons game, we probably started it similar to that, a little bit edgy, a little bit nervous and then we found our form and found our stride, and we have played some decent football in the end. But the result to me was the vital thing today.
JP
What was behind it for you today? What made it different from Tuesday night?
GA
Just the way we competed, we had a different type of session yesterday, maybe we need to do that every week, but we didn't do it before MK Dons so you can't read too much into it. But we made sure everybody in every position knew what we expected, in terms of when we have got the ball and when we haven't got the ball.
We had the pitch, we played against ten poles, not Polish players, poles, and we said that when he gets it this is what we want or when he gets it this is what we want. We went through everything but I told them at the end of it to play with determination, play with honesty, do the natural things.
Don't worry too much about things but there is a general shape to do what we want to do with and without the ball. They got their rewards today did the players, they have worked exceptionally hard again. We have had a real tough slog of games and we just need to have a bit of a breather next week, a free week couldn't come at a better time for us to be honest with you.
Because we have got a smallish squad and we have got a lot of youth in there and players that are learning the game. But that is the best place for them to learn, but sometimes you want them to learn quicker than they have done, but terrific, I am delighted with them today.
JP
I am sure you are. Clearly Gillingham don't travel well but they showed in the early stages that they weren't going to be a pushover unless you let them and you didn't. You put the pressure on them and you got what you deserved in the end.
GA
Nobody is a pushover, you have seen that this year in terms of Exeter coming here, Wycombe coming here, Brentford coming here, nobody rolls over for you and nobody gives you anything. When you are off the back of three defeats it becomes a little bit harder to win games, but today we have got the breaks when we needed them.
We have worked hard enough to deserve them, it wasn't a Real Madrid performance, although in patches at times after the first goal we played some really nice stuff. We would like to do that from start to finish, but we could have probably had another goal or two in the game that would have made it look a more significant victory. But 2-0, a clean sheet and two goals is terrific for us.
JP
What about your goalscorer once again, goalscorer extraordinaire?
GA
Ian (Harte) is a good footballer isn't he, he has got a really good brain. Obviously throughout his career he has got his trademark free-kicks and penalties, but we didn't expect him to score as many from corners. We expected more from the free-kick type of thing but he has come up and his first one was sublime, the penalty is a fantastic penalty in the top corner which nobody saves.
I am delighted, he is a big player for us and he gives us everything he has got. The players look up to him, they respect him and he has given us everything he has got and he is an international who has played in the World Cup, so that is testimony to him, well played.
JP
Perhaps the defence was a little cagey to start with, maybe indicative of the team after a run of defeats. But how pleasing is it for them and for you to have stayed solid and got that clean sheet?
GA
I think that is us, I think we sometimes get a bit anxious with everything we do, our finishing, our passing, our defending. Confidence and goals and points and results buy you that and all of a sudden players look better players. Today at the end of the game we looked comfortable, in the second-half I don't think they really caused us too many problems, not from where I was sat anyway, a good view from up here by the way.
So they certainly earned the right to play the way they did in the second-half, the type of football they played in patches. I thought we kept our goal relatively clear, Adam (Collin) hasn't had to do a great deal in the game so that is good news.
JP
Tell us about why you did get to watch the game up here.
GA
To be honest it is a horrible challenge on Hartey and the referee (Paul Tierney) doesn't see it, the fourth official (Martin Coy) doesn't see it, conveniently. But do you know something, I actually was happy to do it to get the crowd's reaction and everybody got together and united for it.
The fans did it, the players did it, we all got together, I got a better view, I got a chance to calm down for an afternoon and take myself out it from up here. I spoke to Kav (Graham Kavanagh) on the phone, he was engaged most of the time, I don't know who he was talking to. But I didn't actually exactly not mean to do it to be honest.
JP
A tactical masterstroke then?
GA
It wasn't a tactical masterstroke, we just needed to be together and then we got a bit of unity and brought us all together. The players were inspired after that, not down to me by the way with that situation. But the situation, I thought we are not going to let anybody come here and knock us about. But it was a terrible challenge I have to say, it was a terrible challenge.
JP
OK, good to get your view on that, let's talk about next weekend then, that is an interesting one for you because it is a week off. But it is another of those long trips and it is a game where I am sure you will hope to go down there and at least play as well you have today, even if you don't get as good a result as this.
GA
I just want us to perform like we have done today with that determination and that honesty and then we think we will get results more often than not. We are not bothered about the fact that it is a long trip, we are used to all that and no excuses there. But if we can show the same type of doggedness and determination and tenacity, we won a lot of tackles today, we won a lot of headers and a lot of tackles which we haven't been doing in the last three games.
I think that is the key, tackles, second balls, headers, and that is what we are all about at this level. If you can do that then you will end up playing some nice football, because all the players are capable of doing it, but you can only do it when you earn the right to do it, and I thought we did that today.
JP
The way that you moved the squad around today, you changed your players, Tom Taiwo and Evan Horwood came back in, both had super games. Was that evidence of what we were talking about with Tom Taiwo? What you have been saying about the fact that he is struggling a bit with the physical side of the game when he went down with cramp and it looked like he couldn't move in the end?
GA
Listen, it is combinations, we actually looked at the midfield and thought about whether it was too young or too inexperienced. 24 on one side, 23 on the other side, 21 and 20, and that is probably the youngest midfield in the whole of League One.
But what we said was energy and enthusiasm, we sometimes think they need an experienced head around them but they had that behind them and in front of them. So we sandwiched them in the middle and they have all put in a fantastic shift and you can see Tom is on his last legs.
Physically he is a slighter player but he has certainly got his tackles in, he has given the ball away at times. But when we scored the goals his passing improves, his play improves and at the end of it I thought that him and Adam (Clayton) bossed the midfield for large periods. Which is fantastic that we have got two kids in there doing that.
JP
You talk about that age thing there with him and the lack of age perhaps in that midfield. Has that been part of what has been behind your decisions over Tom being out of the side in recent weeks? Because when he comes in as well and performs as well as that today you can see why the fans wanted him in.
GA
I love him, I absolutely love him by the way. You have got completely a mixed message I think, I absolutely adore Tom but what we have got to try to do is manage him, he was tired. You ask Tom, ask Tom to his face if he was tired and he needed a bit of a break?
Yes, we didn't want him to have such a big break but we got to Wembley and we got to 11th in the table with him having a little bit of a rest. Now he has got a bit of energy back and freshness but it is also getting the right blend in. We don't want to leave them out there to suffer because there are not enough experienced players, you have to get a blend of players, a type of player round it.
But sometimes the kids will go and do it and today we have let them loose and they have done it. But he did need a rest, he probably would disagree with me that he didn't need as long as I have given him. But that is football, you have to make decisions and with the three poor results we made wholesale changes, well not wholesale but over a couple of games we have made quite a few changes.
But I thought Evan (Horwood) has come in and done a super job, again started the game ordinarily, got better as it went on and again confidence is a big thing for all players. But when the majority of the team is playing well, and they did do today, and competing like they do, everybody seems to come along with that. Today the thing was right and well played to everybody.
JP
What is the latest you can tell us on Joe Anyinsah?
GA
Nothing really, I can't tell you anything because I haven't spoken to Dolly (Neil Dalton) yet. I only found out yesterday he wasn't going to play and he wasn't going to be right. We don't know if he is going to need to have something done now or if we can battle on through.
I know he is not happy with himself, Joe is desperate to play because he has got himself in a good scoring vein. He knows how important it is to our team but he is not just right. So hopefully by the end of play on Monday we will know what is going to happen with that.
JP
Just a final question, I am not sure what you can add to what Andy Hall has told us, what can you tell us about the situation with Gary Madine tonight?
GA
He hasn't done himself any favours, that is what I can tell you.
JP
And that is all for now?
GA
That is all for now, I don't know the ins and outs of it. I wasn't prepared to speak to him today on a matchday but we are trying to build a good club with good people and make sure they represent the club in the right manner.
From what I can gather, whatever has happened, I don't know who is to blame or whatever but we still don't need to be talking about that sort of thing. It is not what I want and we will have to deal with that later on when I know a little bit more about it.
Meanwhile club media officer Andy Hall had earlier commented on the Gary Madine situation :
" Gary Madine has come back to Carlisle United for a bit of treatment on his injury, he wouldn't have played for Chesterfield anyway today. But we are aware of the rumours that are heading around Carlisle at the moment, and we can confirm that there was in incident somewhere in Carlisle last night.
" We don't know anything else ourselves, we will be speaking to the police about what it is that may or may not have happened last night in Carlisle. We really can't say anything more on the subject at all obviously, because we need to find out ourselves. "