“This is the club where I turned into a man,” says Charlie Wyke, thinking of his first spell with Carlisle United. His mind goes back to a bruising encounter at the end of the 2014/15 campaign.
“It was the last game of the season and I got my nose broken. I think it was the best thing that happened to me as a player because I thought, ‘This is not going to happen to me again. I’m going to do that to somebody else’.”
Keith Curle was the manager who signed Wyke from Middlesbrough and told the then young striker that the rearrangement of his nose was part of the hardening-up process. Wyke, of course, has had more to deal with than a painful facial injury since then.
The 31-year-old is, happily, approaching the three-year mark in his recovery from the cardiac arrest that nearly killed him. Before considering the impact he could have on Carlisle’s promotion ambitions, having rejoined the club this summer, it is simply a joy to see Wyke playing, back in good condition, smiling.
He has dealt with the most gruelling parts of his comeback and now his focus is, quite understandably, on making the most of every second he has in football.
“When all that happened [he collapsed in a training session with Wigan Athletic in November 2021], the first thing that I was concerned about was just being healthy, but I've worked so hard to get to the position I'm in today,” he says.
“I don't want to waste another game, another minute.
“No-one really understands what I went through. It's been a tough few years, but I've got myself back in good shape and I feel back to normal again.
“Some people don't really get back to doing exercise when they have a cardiac arrest, but I've got back to actually playing. I was back in the Championship after six months, so it's been a quick turnaround.
“I think everyone knows how much I love football and that was my main aim – to get back on the pitch. Apart from taking a bit more medication, I feel absolutely fine.”
Wyke made a remarkably quick return, in the circumstances, and has suffered no ill-effects during his resumption with Wigan and, last season, on loan at Rotherham. His daily routines are naturally different but these are keeping everything where it needs to be.
“I've got monitors in my chest which get tracked every day and obviously a bit of medication,” he says. “I always speak to Rob Cooper, who works [as a consultant cardiologist] at Liverpool Heart and Chest [Hospital], so I'm always going to be safe, as long as I don't do anything daft!
“I feel back to normal and I feel good.”
This is great for football to hear, let alone Carlisle. And now Wyke wants to complete something he started first time around at the Blues, but which circumstances never allowed him to finish.
After helping United rebuild under Curle, Wyke grew prolific in the 2016/17 campaign, scoring 18 goals between August and January. Carlisle were bound for automatic promotion but Bradford City triggered a £250,000 clause and Wyke departed mid-season.
It ended a positive two-year spell and that was clearly on Wyke’s mind when he made what he says was a quick and clear decision that he’d be coming back this summer.
“I had to move at the time – it was the right step in my career – but I left at the bad time, really,” he says of 2017. “I think if I’d stayed, we would have probably got promoted. It didn't work out in the end [United, post-Wyke, lost in the play-offs], but we had a great team and I had some good memories at this club.”
His decision to return this time, Wyke having left Wigan at the end of 2023/24’s League One season, was something based on “the direction that the club's going in.
“They've got a project, they've got a plan for the next few years and I've come back because I want to do well and I want to succeed and get this club promoted. Obviously, we couldn't do it last time, but hopefully this time I can come back and do it.”
The club where he “became a man” has often been on Wyke’s mind in the last seven years. Last season, when he scored for Wigan in a 1-1 draw at Brunton Park, there was no celebration. “I’ve got respect for this club,” he says. “It gave me the platform to build my career on.”
Wyke’s goalscoring record and profile would have made him an eyecatching signing for anyone in League Two at least this summer. Was there much for him to consider?
“No – for me, I just wanted to come back as soon as I spoke to the manager [Paul Simpson], the chairman [Tom Piatak] and Greg Abbott [head of recruitment] as well,” he says.
“I knew this club was one that's going to be fighting for promotion. I know I keep saying it, but that's the main aim. No-one's hid the fact that that's our main aim this season and like I say, it's a club that's going in the right direction and I want to be part of that.”
There were “definitely” no reservations about dropping to the fourth tier. “This club made sense for me to come. My family loved it when I was here before.
“It's not a club that I'm unfamiliar with, so I've settled in really quick. I know there's still a lot of work to do fitness-wise and I've had a bit of a stop-start summer, but I feel better every day and we'll be ready for the start of the season.”
Wyke’s return was greeted very positively by supporters and this does not go unnoticed. “That’s great. They've been great with me,” he says of Carlisle’s supporters.
“It's one of those where you see a lot of familiar faces when you come here. The hardest part about getting a new club is settling in the first few weeks, but it's been perfect here. I know a few of the lads a lot of the staff are still here, so it's been really easy settling in.”
Wyke left Carlisle at 24 and returns much more experienced. He feels he can bring plenty to the squad in this respect.
“I'm the type of person who gets on with everyone in the dressing room. I never really fall out with a manager or players. I think I'm quite well respected,” he says.
“Obviously, I've been at good clubs where there's been ex-Premier League players and I've been around a lot of good people, so I think I've got a lot to give.
"I've learned a lot over the years since I've been here.”
Wyke returns amid significant changes at Carlisle under their new American ownership. Having experienced top-grade facilities at clubs such as Sunderland, he believes the Piataks’ plans for United have the right aim.
The scheme for a new training ground is, the striker says, “one of the things the club needs to do to move forward. I think it's a massive part of being at a football club and having a good base to do your work because 90 per cent of the time you're on the training ground.”
Simpson will now endeavour to get the best out of Wyke: more goals, more impact. “He’s been good so far,” says the striker of United’s manager. “He wants to play attacking football. We're well-drilled.
“Like I say, we're not hiding the fact that we want to get promoted this season and we've got the squad to do so. We've just got to get the most out of pre-season, so we're ready to go from day one.”
That pre-season currently involves a five-day training camp at the University of St Andrews, where the accent is on and off-field bonding.
“Yes, I’m going to have to do an initiation. Can't wait for that one,” smiles Wyke.
“It’s going to be a good week. We'll be doing double training every day and it’s a good chance for everyone to be together and get to know each other a bit more. So we'll have a good week and hopefully we'll have a good workout on Friday against St Mirren.”
Wyke was pleased to register his first goals back in a United shirt at Kendal Town last week. Carlisle’s third friendly was a stalemate at Workington Reds where their creative efforts came up short.
Wyke and United could not find a way past Workington Reds in their latest friendly (Image: Ben Holmes)
“I thought they [Workington] were well-drilled, with their set-up behind the ball,” he says. “It was a bit of a frustrating day for us…there's no excuse but the surface wasn't what we're used to. It was hard to move the ball fast but fair play to Workington.
“It was very frustrating but we've just got to take it for what it is. It's pre-season and everyone's got minutes again.”
Harder tests await, with United due to face St Mirren, Rochdale, Stockport County and, provisionally, Gateshead, before league action starts. Wyke, given all he has experienced and all he sees ahead, will relish them all – and the big kick-off, at Gillingham on August 10, will see his Carlisle story fully resume.
“It's a tough game – all games in this league are going to be tough – but by the time it comes around, we'll all be ready, we'll all be fit. I’m excited to get going.”
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