Hughes unsure of more Carlisle transfer business

Carlisle United head coach Mark Hughes is unsure whether the club will do any more transfer business to see them through until the end of the season.

Hughes says that a meeting is planned to assess if anything can be done before next Thursday's deadline in the National League.

With eight games to go, Carlisle sit third in the table but with automatic promotion hopes all but over as they sit 16 points behind leaders Rochdale.

That means the play-offs offer the only realistic route that will enable the Blues to secure an immediate return to League Two.

"There's a meeting planned over the weekend to discuss what we feel we might need towards the end of the season," Hughes told BBC Radio Cumbria.

"We'll have those conversations and see where those take us."

Carlisle were top of the table early in January, admittedly having played more games than the sides below them, but they have been unable to match the consistency of Rochdale and second-placed York City.

The Cumbrian side are four points clear of Boreham Wood as they chase third and a direct passage into a home semi-final in the play-offs in early May.

But while Hughes searches for a player who can potentially make the difference between going up and staying down, the Welshman admits that they have tried unsuccessfully to bring more players in.

Full-back Ryan Galvin was signed in January followed by loan arrivals Archie Mair and Hugh Parker, but fans have been hoping for more.

"It's a little bit disappointing as you get close to deals and they don't happen and you just have to move on," said Hughes.

"The key is you don't move on to a lesser target.

"It's not an exact science and it's not Football Manager either. It's people's lives - they've got to make decisions and sometimes what we want them to agree to doesn't suit them."

Carlisle's next game is at home on Saturday to mid-table Boston United (15:00 GMT).