The former Gateshead man turned in a solid display in his first start for the club in the FA Cup win against Tamworth.

Richardson had to overcome an injury-hit start to his Carlisle career but now hopes better things are ahead – as he wants to play a big part in things at a club he feels can go places.

“It's been very frustrating, but for me I'm always just trying to drive standards every day in training,” said Richardson.

“Obviously if you're not playing it is frustrating but then you've just got to be the best team-mate that you can be.

“I've had to wait for my opportunity but I've been absolutely buzzing to be here, and I really want to do well here.

“I've got a massive drive to do that, to succeed with this football club, because the potential is astronomical.

“We can really kick on and go through the leagues – and [to do that] we do need to create that winning habit.

Richardson was in the United XI for the first time against Tamworth (Image: Ben Holmes)

“We have done that in recent weeks but that’s all well and good, and you can’t rest on your laurels, because we’re nowhere near where we want to get to yet.”

Richardson, after two substitute appearances, was finally in United’s starting line-up for last weekend’s 2-1 win in the FA Cup fourth round qualifying.

The 27-year-old gave a composed defensive showing and also had a hand in Carlisle’s second goal, when his testing cross was headed into the path of goalscorer Regan Linney.

The ex-Gateshead man admitted he was relieved to get his long-awaited first start.

“I’ve been working hard behind the scenes to get on the pitch and to play, so I was absolutely buzzing,” he told the News & Star.

“I was a bit embarrassed to come off with cramp at 55 minutes, but I haven't played [from the start] since Motherwell in pre-season, so I was over the moon to be on the pitch.

“The message [from the head coach] was just to bring my strength – being a leader on the pitch, being someone who's vocal who tries to drive things, not letting games become flat.

The defender's cross led to Regan Linney's second goal against Tamworth (Image: Ben Holmes)

“We touched on last week with the Kidderminster game being a bit slow, the tempo was really flat, and we wanted to excite the fans and create a bit of tempo in the game.

“For me, that's one of my strengths, to use my voice. Try and get on the ball and keep it moving, keep the ball's speed high so we can move teams around.

“One of my strengths is my voice and I just want to bring that every game and try and drive standards.”

United started brightly against Tamworth with Richardson involved in some early attacks.

“I always want to try and affect the game,” he said. “It’s not about trying to be the hero early on, but you want to try and affect the game in a positive way and try and create some tempo, and create something that the fans can get behind.

“I think we did that in the first ten minutes, and we work on it every week. We do a lot of work with the coaching staff. Everyone knows their roles and it's starting to come to fruition.

“It's just about getting in those areas and really not letting teams breathe. Creating chances, and if we don't put one away, we keep going and look to be relentless with everything.

“We try and limit the opposition to very little but for us, it's about creating loads of chances and always putting the opposition under pressure.”

After Carlisle led 2-0 at half-time, the second-half became a closer-run affair when Tamworth pulled on back. Richardson watched much of the second period from the bench and said: “I was confident in the lads but it’s a lot more nervous when you watch it because it's out of your control.

“At start of the season, when I was out injured and I was watching games, I was really nervous but I had full faith in the lads and they saw the game out very well.”

The defender had previously been limited to two sub outings after an injury-hit start to his Blues career (Image: Richard Parkes)

Carlisle are unbeaten in four games in all competitions, with three wins in that spell, and such results have been vital, Richardson believes.

“It's massive because winning is a habit, just like losing is a habit,” he said. “You need to create the winning culture.

“Good teams, if they don't play well, still win. It doesn't matter how many chances you create, you need to score them. It doesn't matter how many chances you concede, you need to keep the ball out of the net.

“It's about being ruthless in both boxes and that's what we've really tried to nail down the past couple of weeks.”

Richardson is just as eager to nail down a place in the side, with competition for the right-sided central defensive position having further increased with Toby Mullarkey’s return to fitness. Jack Ellis has been preferred in the role in recent league games, while other options in the heart of the back line include Tom Anderson, Morgan Feeney and Brad Nicholson, while Bevis Mugabi remains out injured.

“I want to play games now,” said Richardson. “Saturday was a first impression for the home crowd. I've had a couple of cameos away from home but I hadn’t played at home yet, so I wanted to make a good first impression.

“Jack Ellis and Toby have done really well when they've played. We all get along really well and we all push each other to do well. I wouldn't say it's an unhealthy competition, it's a healthy competition. We all drive each other and that can only make us better as players and make the squad better.”

Richardson says Carlisle must show the right kind of "arrogance" when they take on struggling Solihull Moors at Damson Park (Image: Richard Parkes)

Next up is a trip to Solihull Moors, who are second bottom after a poor start to 2026/27. It ought to be an opportunity for Carlisle to start climbing the National League – and they must head to Damson Park with a confident mindset, Richardson believes.

“We need to be relentless,” he said. “We're a big club in this league so we need to have that big club mentality that we need to go and put them to the sword.

“Obviously you have to respect an opposition but for us we kind of have to have an arrogance about us.

“I know they're struggling at the moment. Yes, we will respect them but for us it's about not giving them a minute, creating a lot of chances and being solid defensively.”