Carlisle boss Greg Abbott praises striker Mark Beck

Carlisle United manager Greg Abbott has labelled teenage striker Mark Beck's pre-season form as "terrific".

Beck, 18, has scored seven goals in four pre-season games, including a hat-trick in the Cumbrians' 3-0 away victory against Durham City on Tuesday.

"He's improving and developing all the time and it's been a terrific pre-season," Abbott told BBC Radio Cumbria.

"Mark's going to get a bit of attention for that and that's fantastic. He's working his way into coming with us."

He added: "He's learning his trade and making people sit up and take notice."

Included in the Carlisle side against Durham were triallists Alessio Bugno, Dale Hopson and Mark Kerr.

However, Abbott admitted he would not be rushed into making a final decision on whether to sign these players on a permanent basis.

"I have to make what I consider right decisions and we've only started opening our legs up these last 10 days," he said.

"I've got to make sure what we bring into the club will help us in terms of making our squad stronger.

"While I don't think there's anyone that's miles ahead of anyone in the squad, there's one or two I've got to think closely about.

"We're still looking for one or two more from outside that are really impressive, players that make us better, but we're also seeing the squad's in decent shape."