Manager Jim Nichols admits new Carlisle City signing Quinn Fahling has given him a selection headache.

Fahling, who has played under Nichols for Cascadia, made his debut for the Sky Blues in Tuesday’s 5-1 Cumberland Cup home win over Whitehaven AFC on Tuesday night, getting a debut goal, although Jordan Palmer was the star of the show for City with a hat-trick.

Ahead of today’s Northern League, Division Two match at third-placed Ryton & Crawcrook Albion today (3pm kick-off), Nichols explained how he had come to sign Fahling.

“Quinn messaged me. He wanted to play football over here, so he has moved over with his mate who lives over here,” Nichols explained.

“He is living over here, having come from Seattle. He just wants to play.

"To be honest, he is very, very highly-rated by Seattle University. He was close to the MLS [Major League Soccer] Draft.

“The only issue he has is he can’t play at any sort of level where money is involved because he can’t get a work permit because he hasn’t played for the US.

"So, he is caught between a rock and a hard place, really.

"He wants to play and he wants to play as high as he can, but he is very limited because he can’t collect money from it.

"So, he messaged me to ask if he could come and play. I thought he did really, really well and it gives me a selection headache today."

Ryton & Crawcrook Albion are fourth places and 10 points better off than City in the league table.

“They haven’t conceded for seven games now. So, we know it’s going to be tough,” said Nichols, a former Penrith AFC manager.

“But we will have very, very good squad depth, and I don’t go there worried, to be honest.

"I go there thinking, if we perform, we have a good chance of coming away with the points, and I think that says a lot about the strength of our squad.”

Nichols also praised frontman Palmer after his three goals in midweek.

“Jordan has been brilliant, to be honest. The only thing that has been lacking in his game this year in comparison to last year is he probably hasn’t been quite as ruthless,” he said.

“But he has been sharp, he is very dynamic in the final third, and I don’t think teams particularly like playing against him.”