Given that Carlisle United have already been relegated to the fourth tier, the focus is now very much on next season. Although they’ve not given up just yet, as seen through their 1-0 victory over Cheltenham Town on Tuesday night, it’s the future which matters more to the club at this point.
One of Carlisle’s many downfalls this season has been the recruitment, with a plethora of signing’s time with the club not exactly going to plan. That doesn’t exactly mean that the Blues would’ve stayed up with better summer recruitment but it would’ve certainly increased their chances.
The Cumbrians found themselves in a hard spot in the summer, with a lesser budget than many other teams in the division as well as the geographical location also playing a part in some transfers not quite getting over the line. As a result it may have meant they potentially had to settle for lesser options, or at least players who didnt exactly have a load of experience in the third tier or higher, which has impacted them at points this season.
They would however capture the signing of Sean Maguire, a player who had been previously applying his trade in the Championship with Preston North End and then Coventry City. With 166 Championship appearances to his name, he was expected to bring some quality to the Cumbrians attack.
However things really haven’t worked out this season for the former Republic of Ireland international, who has found the net just twice in League One for Paul Simpson’s side. Maguire has made 32 appearances for the club in the third tier, 18 of those being starts, so his numbers this year haven’t exactly been down as a result of a lack of opportunities.
Given he had only signed a one-year deal with the club last summer, it’s highly unlikely that the forward will be back at Brunton Park next season. It’s only the more likely with the Irishman also slipping further down the pecking order since the arrivals of Luke Armstrong and Georgie Kelly in the January transfer window.
Maguire may have also played his last game for the club, with it being revealed by Paul Simpson in an interview with the News & Star that the striker had aggravated a previous Achilles injury and will miss their three remaining League One fixtures.
“Sean has been managing a long term achilles injury which he’s been trying to get through, because he knew we needed him available.
“Credit to him for that. But he’s had to have an injection to settle that down, because he got to a point on Saturday where he said, ‘I’m in too much pain and now that it’s sealed and we’re relegated, I need to get myself sorted out’.
“I think he’s had the injection [on Tuesday] which I think will put him in a boot for a couple of weeks. Then that takes it through to the end of the season.”
With the Cumbrians already down this season there seems to be little point in the striker making a fairly long-term injury worse, and he may already be thinking about his whereabouts next season. Now 29-years-old, it does seem as if the striker is beginning to slow down rather than entering his prime years and his next move will be a big one for his career.
He may well return to his native Ireland, where he has previously shone in the country’s top flight. With 39 goals and a further 21 assists in the League of Ireland Premier Division during his time with Cork City, perhaps a move could reignite his career. Equally, a move to another English club isn’t exactly off of the cards just yet but based off of this season, there’s probably not too many teams that will be queuing up for his signature.
If Maguire doesn’t re-sign with the Blues in the summer, then he’ll be remembered as one of the signings that head of recruitment Greg Abbott got wrong. It was a bit of a make-or-break signing which would allow the Irishman to prove himself but he hasn’t exactly given the best account of himself during his time in Cumbria.
That doesn’t mean that he cannot bounce back though as in previous seasons, the striker has shown his quality and at 29 years of age, still has plenty left in the tank. Perhaps that achilles injury has hampered him this season as well and it’s hard to say that he’s received good, consistent service from his teammates.
Maguire may enjoy a better year next season, but it looks like that’ll be somewhere else than Carlisle and we may have already seen his last game for the club.
It looks as if it’s going to be a summer of change at Brunton Park with a number of players out of contract but also a few who could be released from their current contracts based off of this season. With the new American ownership its certainly an exciting time for the club. This season may have not gone to plan but the future seems bright.
