Carlisle United’s players are set to receive help in “manning up” and “being nastier” from a specialist coach, Paul Simpson says.
The Blues boss revealed that the squad will be visited by a performance coach who will aim to lift the team’s mentality.
The coach has worked with United at other stages this season and will visit the club again early next week.
Manager Simpson says the accent this time will be on his call for Carlisle to be less “nice” in their bid to turn their League One form around.
“There’s a guy [Brendan Donnelly] who has a company called Coniston Stonecraft who sponsors a performance coach that we have, who comes in four or five times over the season,” said Simpson.
“He’s done three sessions with us so far.
“He has loads of jobs, he works all over the world – he’s got a job with the United Nations, he’s been over in the States recently, and he’s back in the country now.
“He’s coming in before the Burton game to do some work with the group on Monday, about positive mental attitude – basically, because of what I said recently, he’s going to do a bit about ‘manning up’, and being a bit nastier.”
Simpson called on his side to be “nastier” after the way they conceded the decisive goal in last weekend’s 3-2 defeat to Leyton Orient.
That was a fifth straight defeat which now sees United 11 points adrift of League One safety.
United’s boss is preparing his side to take on leaders Portsmouth this weekend.
And Simpson has urged his struggling side to play with “freedom” against the table-toppers.
“The simple message going into this Saturday’s game is don’t have any fear,” he told this week’s south Cumbrian supporters’ club fans’ forum.
“Everybody’s already written us off. We’re playing a team on Saturday who yes, are top of the league, and we’re bottom.
“People don’t have an expectation so what is there to fear? You may as well go out and just play with freedom, have no inhibitions, show what you’re all about.
“In my mind that is all we can do and then we’ve got to do our final preparation going into Saturday’s game and then hope they go and perform.”
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