Chris Beech wants Carlisle United to keep up the standards they showed in last weekend’s victory over Southend.

The Cumbrians go to Scunthorpe this weekend hoping to build on last Saturday’s 2-0 win.

Their third League Two fixture of the season comes in a climate of further concern over lower-league football following the halt to fans returning to stadiums.

Head coach Beech, though, said Carlisle will continue to aim to give of their best on the pitch.

“We’ve got to carry it on, providing we have an opportunity to continue in this great sport that we work in,” he said.

“I hope that is the case. I hope we can go to Scunthorpe, we’ll be in good spirits and we’ll look forward to it.

“We were so organised [against Southend], the shape was excellent and it suited the players.”

Beech felt the commitment and professionalism of his team shone through in their first win of the campaign.

They will hope for a repeat behind closed doors at Glanford Park against a Scunthorpe side that could include former United loan man Ryan Loft.

Beech said: “Work hard, do the right things, present yourself correctly and you’ll be fine.

“The team has connection to honesty which I know our fans will connect to.

“The group of people we’ve got working for us is very good and what we want to do is enhance that youth and spirit, which in turn brings out more talent to support that.

“We’re still working hard to build and, as we get better, we need to keep respecting the winning traits.”

Beech also commented on how United recruited during the summer, at a time when football had been put on hold during the Covid-19 outbreak.

He said the challenges of that period saw Carlisle focus on players who wanted to be at Brunton Park.

“It put massive pressure on David [Holdsworth, director of football] and myself to recruit,” he said.

“It was difficult talking to players because we’ve offered, you could argue, pre-pandemic contracts, and it separates players who want to play, or are holding out for the extra so much per week.

“There’s lots of players still available that aren’t attached that have been very good in the Football League. People like Alan [McCormack, who played for Southend on Saturday] then decide to commit at this point, [when] the season’s started.

“We decided to try and do it the other way. We wanted players that wanted to be here, because we want to connect with the community.”

Beech said it is important his players continue to show a strong mentality at times when they face criticism, such as in the wake of the three defeats that preceded the Southend win.

He added: “ Carlisle is a massive club, the facilities are unbelievable and the supporters are fantastic. Even though we have League Two players, sometimes as well as accolades they get criticism.

“You’ve got to be able to deal with that, and that’s what all of our players did [last Saturday].”