United face Stockport in league competition for the first time in nearly 13 seasons tonight, when the sies came together for a 0-0 League One draw at Brunton Park back in January 2010.
“It won’t be an easy game at all,” gaffer Paul Simpson said. “They’re a good side, they’re one of the fancied teams for this season. I expect them to come through on that.
“It’s a tough game but a great one to look forward to. We talked this week about the next three fixtures giving us an idea of where we are, and the result didn’t go our way on Saturday, but I think the level of performance and footballing ability we showed was a real positive to take from it all.
“It doesn’t really matter what happened to them on Saturday. That was a good result, but it’s about what we do, how we go about it.
“They’ve come up, they’ve got a really good set-up going on at Stockport, they’ve got great backing by the supporters who are really passionate and want their team to do well.
“We’ve got to go and really get stuck into the atmosphere there, go and enjoy the challenge and show we can be a good side as well.”
Having had a rocky start, the Hatters appear to finding a run of form that comes from confidence and consistency in performances.
“It’s a massive test, they’re a good team, they’ve got some really good individual players,” he told us. “Certainly players who can hold their own at this level in terms of Madden, Wootton, Sarcevic, and others.
“It’s going to be a really good challenge that I’m already looking forward to. If we show the type of character and personality we had on Saturday, particularly in the second half, I’m sure it will be a really good game of football.”
The trip to Edgeley Park is a return to a former stomping ground, with him having had a 27-game spell in charge back in 2010.
“I’ve got fantastic memories of winning the championship there with Carlisle in my first time round,” he said. “It was my last ever game as a professional footballer so I’ve got positive memories of that.
“I have zero positive memories of my time there as a manager. Thankfully it’s out of my system, I’m able to move on.
“I’ve done some unbelievable things since I left there. I’ve had some fantastic experiences in life and in football.
“I’m looking forward to going as the Carlisle manager and hoping we put on a performance, show the personality we have all season so far, and hopefully coming away with a result.”