His side created sufficient chances to have won this game at a canter but that will be little consolation to the fans when they look at the Third Division tables.

Ten points from thirteen games is relegation form in anyone’s book and by the dejected look on the players faces as the trooped off you wonder if they are losing belief.

Roddy Collins remained philosophical after the match and said : ”With the number of chances we should have won two games. They scored, we didn’t, it was as simple as that. We played well enough, created enough chances but it wasn’t meant to be. We’re rock bottom now and I asked the lads if they deserved to be bottom. With the work they’re putting in and the chances they are creating they said no. If we can continue to do the right things the chances will start to go in.”

Carlisle’s first of nine corners came after only seven seconds. Peter Murphy’s corner kick eventually found it’s way to Dave Morley and Steve Soley should have done better than head over the resulting cross.

Three minutes later Soley again missed a golden opportunity, this time pulling his shot wide after good work from Brendan McGill down the right.

As Carlisle continued to dominate Steve Halliday became the next to show little composure in front of goal. A lovely Richie Foran through ball left his fellow striker one on one with Exeter keeper Arjan Van Heusden, but a weak shot drifted disappointingly wide.

Little had been seen of the Grecians’ attack but on thirteen minutes Barry McConnell’s right wing cross was met by an Andy Roscoe header with Peter Keen making an impressive reflex save.

In a good spell for the home side Gary Birch twice forced Keen into action before Geoff Breslan’s 20 yard effort flew narrowly wide with Keen beaten.

The Cumbrians were then unlucky not to take the lead when Foran’s goalbound header was cleared off the line by McConnell.

As the game began to loose some of it’s edge Alex Watson almost put the ball past his own keeper when attempting to clear a Murphy near post cross.

Exeter came smartly out of the blocks in the second half with Breslan’s good run demanding better than a shot straight at Keen.

Keen then fumbled a McArtney shot and was relieved to see Stuart Whitehead on hand to clear the danger.

Steve Skinner came on for the out of sorts Foran, who had been ill overnight, and immediately should have opened the scoring on 56 minutes but pulled his shot wide with only Van Heusden to beat.

Four minutes later Halliday set Skinner away down the right and his cross found McGill unmarked, but lack of composure saw another shot pulled wide.

Skinner’s personal nightmare continued when he allowed Van Heusden to come out of goal to smother the ball at his feet without getting in a shot.

With all the Carlisle chances going begging you just felt that they would be victim to a sucker punch and on 64 minutes the inevitable goal came.

Breslan’s deep cross eluded Keen to find Roscoe on the back post. His header back across goal was gratefully forced home by substitute Graeme Tomlinson.

The Cumbrians had the opportunity to get the goal back when Murphy was pulled down in the box by Kwame Ampadu. Murphy took the spot kick himself but Van Heusden was equal to it, saving low down to his left to finalise just another one of those days for Carlisle.

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