United boss Greg Abbott (GA) spoke to BBC Radio Cumbria's James Phillips (JP) following Carlisle's 1-1 draw and subsequent 3-1 penalty shootout defeat at home to Preston North End in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy, Abbott saying that the Blues more than matched the visitors in the second-half:
JP
What are your feelings at the end of all that?
GA
I feel a bit disappointed for the players, I thought their efforts, especially second-half against a side that play in a certain way, you have to match the way they do things and I thought we more than matched them. I thought our tempo of play second-half especially was very, very good, we got numerous crosses into the box with numerous chances, fantastic chances to be fair to win the game, and I don’t remember too many times where Mark Gillespie, who has made his debut, has been called in to save us.
A freak goal for the first one, I think it has hit the lad (Chris Beardsley), the shot is going wide and it has hit him on the back of the leg and it goes in. Then we have two great chances in the first-half, Jake (Jervis’s) and Paddy (Madden’s). Then in the second-half I can’t remember, I lost count of how many times we should be putting the ball in the back of the net, didn’t, got a good goal for J-P (Jon-Paul McGovern) and then maybe go on to win the game.
Then obviously we got Nobs’s (Liam Noble’s) sending-off, but I am not being funny for some of things that Preston get up to and we get a man sent off. Very, very disappointed in the officials, officials can’t see the big picture of what is happening out there.
JP
Yeah, it is one of those where I think it ticks enough boxes the referee would argue in the letter of the law to give a red card?
GA
Well, they need to tick all the boxes in everything that happens on the football pitch if that is the case. We need to see referees identify what is going on out there on the pitch and deal with it and then you don’t get that sort of thing.
JP
What sort of things are you talking about?
GA
Well, we are talking about people going down when they are not injured, we are talking about time-wasting, we are talking about wasting time, we are talking about ruining the game of football, which is already having dwindling attendances. What we need to see is we need to see teams come out and play the game the right way, we are not talking about……… Everything is about winning, everything is about results, but we have to play the game the right way.
JP
Yeah, there seemed to be a lot of antics out there. In terms of the way your team responded, it was as you quite rightly said an awful goal, Mark Gillespie gets his chance out there, an opportunity to show what he can do and within three minutes he is picking the ball out of the back of his net?
GA
Yeah, I don’t think there is anything Mark can do, like I said, the shot we think was going wide and it just hit somebody on the back of the heel and ends up in the corner of the net, but those things happen. After that he was comfortable in a lot of the stuff he did, he didn’t really get tested to be honest, I don’t think he had a shot to save after that. But, he has coped with the physical side of things when set-pieces have come in, which is what Preston do and they do it very well. Overall he has not had a great deal to do, but the other goalkeeper (Steve Simonsen) has earned his money quite considerably.
JP
Yeah, he certainly has, plenty of chances for your side. Happy with the amount that you managed to create despite the best efforts of the opposition?
GA
I don’t think we can have any question about that, I am unhappy with the amount we didn’t actually convert. Talking about creation, there was certainly second-half especially we had enough really, really good efforts, Jake Jervis really should be scoring, Matty Robson with his header, maybe seen it late but should be scoring. Paddy should be getting on the end of stuff and we end up winning the game comfortably. But, it is all about putting the ball in the back of the net, we didn’t and we get what happens, we get the downside of the penalty shootout and we are out of the competition.
JP
One or two players maybe just need a goal now just for their confidence, maybe snatching a bit?
GA
Well, maybe, maybe, it happens doesn’t it, it happens in front of goal, it is where the top players earn their corns, it is why they do earn their corn. You look at (Craig) Mackail-Smith, scored two goals of much more considerable difficulty than we have had today and that is why he is playing where he is and everybody wants to sign him and he scores so many goals. We are disappointed, but if we play like we have done today and perform and play at the tempo that we have done today then we will be more often on the winning side than losing side.
JP
You said that you wanted to prove that you were taking this competition seriously and it wasn’t just one of those back-burner competitions, your selection suggested that was it, just a couple of tinkers and obviously a start for Mark?
GA
Yeah, I mean it is a game for men out there, they are tough opposition, to be fair to them they are very tough. We wanted Mark to have a go, see what he can do, don’t think he has let anybody down, the rest of it we are sort of looking after Danny Cadamarteri a little bit because he is the most experienced striker we have got while Lee (Miller) is out, so we are going to probably need him.
The rest, see what they can all do and I don’t think many people would argue with any performances out there today, I think everybody has put in a decent shift of high energy and high determination, so we are OK with that.
JP
You brought on Brad Potts, were you tempted late on to try to win it or did that sending-off stop you?
GA
It was very difficult, the pace, you look at the pace they have got with Jeffrey (Monakana), (Akpo) Sodje and (David) Amoo that they have got. It is very difficult to put another one on and leave you bare, you are probably going to gift a goal away. We were thinking when the man gets sent off penalties would do us, we are 50-50 then aren’t you. It is a spin of the coin who wins a shootout, unfortunately we have won our share but lost tonight.
JP
As ever there are those fans who would have liked to have seen the kids on, they always do, but I guess that sending-off took that opportunity away?
GA
It is not a kid’s night tonight, let me tell you, it is a really, really tough side Preston, physical and like I said, they have got all the tricks in the book there. It is not a kid’s night, we know what we think of the kids and the proof of that was the signings of the contracts and that. But, you have got to trust the judgement maybe that tonight was probably one for more experience throughout, and I am OK with that.
JP
Yeah, the three (Mark Beck, Brad Potts and David Symington), we must talk about the contracts. That is great news for them and great news for the club that they are tied down for a bit, because I can’t help thinking that people will sniff around those?
GA
Well, that is what we want, because if they are sniffing round then they are doing well. That is what we need, we don’t want them to be just passed by, we want people looking at all our players because it means that we are doing well and the players are performing very well, so I am OK with all that.
JP
On a personal note for Jon-Paul McGovern, delighted to see him getting his goal and he really, really enjoyed that?
GA
Yeah, and second-half he has put in a tremendous shift, he has wanted to work hard, he has missed a little bit of the pre-season, quite a bit to be honest with a double hernia. But, he gives you that quality in terms of his crossing and that, and his understanding of the game. We have got others that if things aren’t right that we can fiddle around with stuff, it is nice for everyone to score but Jay enjoys scoring and very good for him.
JP
Yeah, indeed. Is this the sort of game because it is a defeat of sorts that you have to pick the lads up from or do you think they will be OK for the weekend?
GA
Nah, they will be OK, they know that Saturday we thought first-half we under-performed. We did a lot better second-half but they are the games where you have to pick them up and get the belief back, but tonight they have showed that they can compete against a decent side that spends an awful lot of money, and they have done it very well. They will be disappointed they didn’t win the game, but perform like that on Saturday and we will cause Hartlepool problems.
JP
Do you know what it feels like to be England after those penalties?
GA
Yeah, well I have been on the good side and the bad side, it is part of the game. But, the key is the improvement in the performance, disappointing for the fans that they haven’t beaten Preston because I know it means a lot to them, but take those negatives out and we move on with some positives from tonight.
JP
And a great opportunity at the weekend with another, of sorts, local derby for Carlisle at Hartlepool?
GA
Yeah and again, the rivalry is immense there and let’s go at it and see what we can do.