Last updated at 12:07, Monday, 16 July 2012

Frustrated winger Andy Welsh is determined to go from bit-part player to key man for Carlisle United next season.

Andy Welsh

Welsh admits he was glad to see the back of a disappointing first season at Carlisle, and is focused on pinning down a first-team place when the new campaign kicks off.

The jet-heeled 28-year-old endured a nightmare start to his Brunton Park career after joining the Blues from Yeovil last summer as he spent four months in the treatment room with a calf injury.

He then struggled to break into Greg Abbott’s side as the Blues emerged as play-off contenders, and the bulk of his 24 appearances came from the bench. Welsh is now determined to live up to the high expectations that accompanied the experienced former Sunderland, Leicester City and Blackpool campaigner’s arrival in Cumbria.

He played the second half of Friday night’s 3-0 win at Kendal Town, and is expected to have another run out at Workington Reds tomorrow when Carlisle continue their pre-season campaign.

“To say I was frustrated about last season is putting it mildly but what’s done is done – and now I just want to look forward to having a good season,” he said.

“I’ve just got to make sure I’m fit and that when I’m called upon to play I give my best for the team. It’s not just about the individual, it’s about the team.

“I’ve been fully fit since January and not had a problem since but when I came back the team was doing well.

“At times I may have had an argument to play, other times I may not have. It’s one of those things, but it’s well and truly behind me now and now it’s onwards and upwards.

“Injuries are part and parcel of football but everyone starts with a clean slate in pre-season.”

This summer’s departure of Francois Zoko has opened up a fresh opportunity for Welsh on the wide left.

However, he insists he has no strong preference about which role he will fill – as long as he is in the team for the opening game against Accrington Stanley in the Capital One Cup on August 14. He said: “I’ll take any role in the team – it doesn’t matter to me. I just want to play football.

“Everyone is focusing on the fitness work we have to do in pre-season and then they will be looking to get as many goals or clean sheets as possible to pin down a shirt.

“It’s a case of using pre-season to get ourselves really fit and as the games start coming you start to focus more on where we can improve on last year and look forward to the first league game and how we can progress in the league.

“At the moment all the focus is on fitness work and as the weeks go on I’m sure we will put our focus into where we want to progress as a team.”

First published at 11:25, Monday, 16 July 2012
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk