Paul Simpson building new look Carlisle United defence

To date, three of the Blues' four summer signings have been defenders, with Saint Lucian international Terell Thomas and Aaron Hayden set to occupy the centre of defence and Scotsman Cameron Harper set to feature on the left-hand side. 

These defensive signings have come after the Blues released defenders such as Paul Huntington, Josh Emmanuel, and Corey Whelan at the end of their 2023/24 League One campaign which ended in relegation. 

In total, these former Blues played 38 times for the club last campaign. 

However, the Brunton Park-based outfit did also retain key defensive players such as Jon Mellish, Sam Lavelle, and Jack Armer who accumulatively made 138 appearances for the Blues in League One.

Despite, retaining their defensive core, Simpson throughout the early stages of the transfer window has hinted at building competition for places at the back and being able to fill in for injured players.

Speaking on the club's website, he said: "It’s up to them all to fight it out and show me and the rest of the staff that they deserve to play.

"Jack Robinson won’t be fit for the first part of the season and it’s really important we hit the ground running."

After the club announced the signing of Terell Thomas, who made 40 appearances for Charlton Atheltic last campaign, Simpson also revealed that the club are still looking to make one more defensive addition before the start of the season.

"We've still got one area in defence to resolve which we're working one," He said. 

"We are working very hard to get players into the building and we'll keep going until they're here with us."