Mike Williamson believes “brave” Dominic Sadi will only get better after scoring his first senior goal.

The Carlisle United loanee was a bright spot in Saturday’s 3-2 defeat to Grimsby Town.

Sadi’s close-range finish put the Blues 2-1 up before the visitors turned things around.

Head coach Williamson brought the 21-year-old back into his starting line-up and felt the AFC Bournemouth prospect showed plenty of promise.

“He’s a very brave player and he takes a lot of responsibility,” said Williamson of the attacking midfielder.

“He wants to take the shots on and it shows that he's willing to take risk, which is massive for a young lad.

“He's only going to improve. I was really pleased for him. I thought there were some positive things and he was one of them.”

It was Bournemouth loanee Sadi's first senior goalIt was Bournemouth loanee Sadi's first senior goal (Image: Ben Holmes)

Sadi will now hope to keep his place for Tuesday night’s home clash with Notts County.

Carlisle will be targeting a swift response after the deflating second-half against the Mariners, who scored twice late on to turn things around.

On the work that will follow Saturday’s defeat, Williamson said: “We will watch it back first and  identify what we think is most prominent and important.

“It’s such a quick turnaround that, physically, we can't get anything into the boys – we've just got to recover as hard as we possibly can and make sure that we're ready and we're prepared before we look forward to a tough one on Tuesday.”

Williamson said he was delighted with the reception he received from United’s fans before the Grimsby game and said it was a sign of the strength Carlisle can gain at home once their fortunes fully turn.

“It was brilliant, it really was, and it gives you the sense of what this place is going to be like when confidence is high and we're looking forward to playing here it's a fortress,” he added.

“The second half was frustrating – the players were still giving everything, and it was not a lack of effort, it was just a lack of quality and that concentration.

“So there's loads for us to work on and loads for us to improve on – we know that and we're looking forward to having more time with the boys.”