Regan Linney Aims for 20 Goals and Wembley Glory
Regan Linney is not finished yet.
Carlisle United’s leading scorer has 23 goals to his name, third place secured, and the play-offs looming. But as far as he’s concerned, there’s still work to do – and still a debt to pay to a travelling support that has followed the club to the edge of the map.
Chasing 20 – and Wembley
Linney’s winner at Truro City, lashed home in front of 880 Carlisle fans who had made the long haul to Cornwall, took him to 19 league goals and four in the cups. The personal target is clear.
“I wanted 20 in the league, there’s still one game to go before the play-offs, and hopefully I can get that,” he said. “I've had a decent season, it could have been a lot better, but to still get 23 goals is a decent season, I'm happy with that.”
The numbers tell one story. The ambition tells another.
Promotion is the real prize. Linney talks about Wembley as much as he talks about his own tally.
“Obviously I'd be delighted if I managed to score a goal in the play-off semi-final, but as long as we get the result, that's the main thing, as long as we get a chance to play at Wembley and compete for promotion.”
The final league game, against Brackley, is not a dead rubber in his mind. It’s a tune-up.
“All the boys will be raring to go, hopefully get another win against Brackley, finish the season strong and go into those play-offs.”
Why he came to Carlisle
If anyone needed a reminder of what Carlisle United still are, even in the National League, it came at Truro. Nearly 900 away supporters, filling the stand, singing through a scrappy contest against the division’s bottom side.
For Linney, it was exactly the sort of day he imagined when he signed last summer.
“I've always wanted to play in front of large crowds and play for a team where the support's massive,” he said. “This club is football mad, the fans and everything, so to be able to give them a little bit back by scoring goals and making their journey worthwhile, I'm delighted with that.”
He gave them the decisive moment. He didn’t feel he gave them his best performance.
“I didn't think I was decent, I thought I was off it, but we managed to create that one chance and put it away, so I'm delighted with that.
“I think a lot of the lads were off it, but we managed to get the win. They were already relegated as well, so we probably expected to batter them today, which we should be doing, but we haven't.
“But the main thing was that we got the win and secured that third spot.”
Carlisle laboured, looked flat, and still found a way. Linney couldn’t quite explain why.
“I couldn't really put my finger on it. I don't know if we were tired, if we were just off it. I think we were really slow in that first half, but we knew if we kept creating chances, we'd end up getting one and we'd put it away, and that's what we managed to do.”
Levels to climb
That level won’t be enough in the play-offs. Linney knows it, and he doesn’t bother dressing it up.
“Of course – we’ve got to take it up levels and levels,” he said. “The fans travelled in their numbers, which we're grateful for. We wish we could have put on a better show for them, but the main thing is getting the result, getting that third spot and moving on into the play-offs.”
With third place secured, some players might welcome a rest before the semi-finals. Linney is not one of them. He wants Brackley, he wants minutes, and he wants that 20th league goal.
He even found room for a joke at a team-mate’s expense, recalling Dave Ajiboye’s missed chance at Truro.
“I’ll tell you one thing, I won’t be passing to Dave again,” he laughed. “I’m joking. But hopefully I get that 20th league goal and reach my target.”
The personal milestone is close. The collective one, the one that really matters, is still out there – and Carlisle’s No 9 is intent on chasing both.
