Steven Pressley today said Nathan Thomas has “apologised” after refusing to do extra training.

The Carlisle United manager said he asked the forward to stay away from the training ground on Friday after the incident.

It followed Sheffield United loanee Thomas initially refusing to do extra fitness work the previous day, according to Pressley.

“A situation occurred where my fitness coach [David Waldie] asked him [Thomas] to do additional work, and he declined,” Pressley said in his press conference after United’s 4-2 defeat to Crewe.

“On the back of that I spoke to him, and in the end he did the work.

“He came into my office to apologise for what he did.

“I told him to stay away [on Friday] because we didn’t need any issues prior to the game.

“He was in today [Saturday], doing additional work, and he’ll be back in on Monday.”

Thomas missed last weekend’s defeat at Newport through illness and Pressley said that, combined with the training issue, meant he was out of the squad for the Crewe game.

He could return for Tuesday’s Leasing.com Trophy game against Blackpool.

Pressley added to the media: “The big thing on this is, you need to speak to the group, what we feel as a group. Not just me, the group.

“We are so together on so many of these things it’s untrue.

“No person can step outwith that group. And he [Thomas] stepped outwith the group. But he has apologised.”

Pressley, meanwhile, said he has “absolutely no issues” with Harry McKirdy despite leaving the ex-Aston Villa man out of the side again.

McKirdy was an 80th-minute sub despite being involved in a large proportion of Carlisle’s goals so far this season.

Pressley said his front two of Hallam Hope and Olufela Olomola kept their places because of the level of their displays at Newport.

He was asked by BBC Radio Cumbria whether there had been a “bust-up” with McKirdy.

The manager said: “The first thing is I don’t like the use of the word ‘bust-up’. Because that’s not true.

“If you ask every one of my players how I treat them, I treat them like proper people, with respect.

“I make big demands on them, they all know that. When they signed here they knew exactly what they were coming in to.

“Me and Harry have got a strong relationship. Harry takes a bit of management but there is absolutely no issues with me and Harry McKirdy, none whatsoever. He’s in my office regularly, talking to me. There’s no issues.”