“Whilst you don’t want to speak too much about the previous year, you want to make sure that we remember how we felt at the end of it. It’s all those things to help keep the squad focused and get the job done. It was bittersweet. There was that added determination on top of naturally wanting to win a cup Final anyway, having hurt so much the previous year.”

The two-time winners won the EFL Trophy for the first time in 1997, overcoming Colchester United in the Final and again in 2011.

The Blues have also finished as runners-up on four additional occasions. They were defeated by Birmingham City on their first outing in 1995 at the old Wembley and they didn’t have much luck at the Millennium Stadium either, losing to Bristol City in 2003 and Swansea City in 2006, and later lost to Southampton under the arch in 2010.

“We were like Sevilla with the Europa League!” Thirlwell laughs. “Speaking from experience, for Clubs like Carlisle, you have to take it seriously because you know what the prize can be at the end of it. The experience I’ve had from it is an experience every EFL player would love to have. Until last year, I was the last captain to lift a trophy at Wembley.”

Carlisle had the know-how of former winner Tony Caig on their side in their showdown against Brentford. Collin’s understudy and the Club’s goalkeeping coach, who was between the sticks for the Cumbrians in the 1997 Final, was named on the bench against the Bees.

“I’ve known Caigy for years,” Collin adds. “He was doing the dual role of goalkeeper coach and number two at that point. I spoke to him about his experience. It was at the old Wembley then when he played. He gave me some little tips on how to handle myself and concentrate on my own game.”

Only Bristol City have won the EFL Trophy more times than Carlisle. The Robins claimed a record third scalp in 2015 to overtake the Cumbrians, but it is a competition that the Blues have always had a history with.

“It’s a competition that we took seriously because we saw that it had so many benefits and we had to do our best in it,” Abbott reflects. “The Club had the chance to make some money – the gate receipts (from the Southampton Final) were massive and it helped us along our way which is important to a Club the size of us.

“At the end of it, a team can get to Wembley which I still think is the best place to play football anywhere in the world. From my humble background and where I’d come from, the career I’d had was always around the lower leagues. Players at out level don’t get chance to play at Wembley or certainly not as often as other teams. Nobody can take away the experience.”

“We were like Sevilla with the Europa League": Carlisle United's last EFL Trophy triumph

“We were like Sevilla with the Europa League": Carlisle United's last EFL Trophy triumph