Carlisle United striker leaves club amid Australian interest

The 22-year-old has departed the Blues by mutual agreement.

It comes amid interest in the former Leeds United centre-forward from Australian club Central Coast Mariners.

Edmondson was not in the United squad for Tuesday's 2-1 defeat to Barnsley and his year-and-a-half spell at Brunton Park is now over.

Manager Simpson said: "I'm led to believe it's Central Coast Mariners where he's going, and it's a head coach [Mark Jackson] who worked with him at Leeds when he was in the Under-23s there.

"It's something that's been going on for a number of weeks."

Simpson said the first inclination he had that Edmondson could be looking to move on was when he left the apartment he was renting in the area at the turn of the year.

"It got to a point where Ryan came to see me and said, 'I really want this to happen - I think for my life and career it's an opportunity I don't want to miss out on'," added Simpson.

"Sometimes you have to take your selfish head off. I've got to do what's right for the football club but I also have to do what's right for people as well.

"I just felt it was one of those things where I had to agree to let him go. He's left the club today and we wish him all the best and thank him for what he's done."

Edmondson leaves United having made 53 appearances and scored seven goals.

He has struggled to hold down a starting place in League One this term with his solitary goal of 2023/24 coming as a substitute in December's 2-2 draw with Northampton Town.

After firing six goals last season, he also converted a penalty in the League Two play-off final shoot-out against Stockport County as the Blues clinched promotion.

Edmondson's seven goals for United included a memorable late winner at Swindon last season (Image: Gareth Williams / AH Pix)

Central Coast Mariners sit fifth in the A-League. Jackson, the head coach, coached in Leeds' academy from 2015 including a spell from 2020 to 2022 as Under-23s boss.

After a period in charge at MK Dons, he joined the Australian outfit in September last year after the Mariners' victory in the A-League Grand Final.

Simpson added of Edmondson, who joined the Blues in the summer of 2022: "It probably hasn't worked out as well as we would have liked it to.

"He got injured last year, couldn't really get himself fit and this year we've had other players ahead of him and that's just the way it goes.

"There have been a couple of times where he's threatened to take off, but that's been about it.

"He's thrown himself into the football club. We wish him all the best."

Simpson said that, even without the Australia scenario, he would have been prepared to allow Edmondson to leave in the event of United bringing in more attacking reinforcements this month.

"It doesn't change anything," he said. "[But] it makes me keener to try and get another forward player in as quickly as we can," said the Blues boss.