Ben Barclay: Carlisle United's Paul Simpson says 'massive shame' defender cannot play in final
- Published
Ben Barclay joined Carlisle on a season-long loan in July and has made 17 appearances
Carlisle boss Paul Simpson says it is a "great shame" that Ben Barclay cannot play in their League Two play-off final against his parent club Stockport.
The defender headed the extra-time winner as the Cumbrians beat Bradford 3-2 on aggregate to reach Wembley.
But the loanee must sit out the final, against the club he is contracted to.
"It's a strange twist of fate that happens in football that he's the one that gets us there, but unfortunately he can't enjoy the day," Simpson said.
He told BBC Radio Cumbria: "Unfortunately we knew there was always a risk that could happen.
"Ben understood it as well - he was quite emotional in the changing room but I gave special mention to him."
Had Salford beaten Stockport in the other play-off semi-final Barclay would have been free to play at Wembley, but the Hatters prevailed on penalties to deny him any game time.
Asked whether Barclay will be wearing Stockport or Carlisle colours for the final, Simpson said: "I think he's in our camp at the moment and I don't think I'll be allowing him to go back into Stockport.
"He's ours until the end of the month so he won't be going back there - there'll be no phone calls, I won't allow that.
"Thankfully we've got Jon Mellish available, we may even have Morgan Feeney available - he wants to try and train this week so we'll assess that, we'll see how he goes."
Simpson happy with 'chaos' of sorting out final
The pride for Simpson in guiding his hometown team to Wembley is given extra prominence as he will be leading out the club he loves on the biggest stage.
His arrival last season galvanised not only his players, but the supporters, businesses and sponsors around the city - borne out by increased attendances as the season at Brunton Park drew to this semi-final climax.
Now there is the short turnaround "chaos" of organising a Wembley trip, something the 56-year-old cannot wait to be immersed in.
"We've shown real character, and I think supporters can see there's a group of players who want to do things properly," Simpson added. "It's extended our season for a week.
"It's going to be madness getting all the tickets sorted and everything organised, but it's something to look forward to and I can't wait.
"I'd much rather have the chaos that will come, rather than on Monday going in and dealing with contract situations. But we can't just make up the numbers at Wembley, we've got to go and do it properly.
"We'll get incredible support, we have to make sure we perform."