Mental strength vital for big games

ATHLETIC star Charlie MacDonald writes exclusively for the Chronicle.


IT SEEMS right to talk about England’s progress to next summer’s World Cup finals this week.

England performed very well under pressure to get the two wins against Montenegro and Poland.

From Wayne Rooney to the inexperienced Andros Townsend, they all stepped up when it really mattered.

My encounters with must-win games have been a bit of a mixed bag, involving play-offs with different clubs, some resulting in defeat, occasionally when players were under par or froze on the big stage. On the flip side, I have been fortunate enough to win a league title. Playing at a consistent level for the course of a season is tough, but success is the reward.

Character and mental strength are huge attributes in a professional footballer - something England, under Roy Hodgson, displayed in abundance.

I had doubts over the choice of England boss; many thought Harry Redknapp was the man for the job.

But with his last two brave team selections proving correct, Hodgson has discovered a great mix to take us forward, with some very exciting young players.

Looking ahead to Brazil, we have a good chance of doing well, but I think there are a lot of stronger countries with a more realistic chance of winning.

International fixtures forced us into a free weekend last week, so the boss gave us a few days off.

We arrived back at Boundary Park fully refreshed and ready to go, and Monday and Tuesday brought morning and afternoon sessions to get the tactical work we needed on the training field.

Carlisle are enjoying a great run under aretaker boss Graham Kavanagh. A haul of 10 points in their last four games has seen them catapult from a poor start up to mid-table.

We in turn need to improve our home form and make Boundary Park a fortress. This is the perfect chance; I feel three points are a must for us to kickstart our season, what with the difficult match against Wolves coming up in midweek.

Competition for places is fierce and with Adam Rooney doing well at Preston and Danny Philliskirk scoring, it gives the manager a selection headache, but a welcome one!

The lads are determined to give the fans something to cheer. A home win would do that and also breed confidence.