The fact that Halifax need to win their remaining five games, when they have only won seven all season, virtually assures the Cumbrians of safety.

The relief shown by manager Roddy Collins, his players and supporters was evident at the final whistle after a Richie Foran winner, deep into injury time, blew away the self doubt that still lingered.

With Carlisle still suffering a transfer embargo, Collins was beginning to wonder where his next win would come from, as a crippling injury crisis forced his dependence on inexperienced youngsters to make up a now threadbare squad.

Collins was quick to praise his young guns and said after the game: “There were a few little things that were frustrating. But it’s a bit unfair when I find myself screaming at kids that don’t know what you’re trying to tell them, because they’re still being educated and it’s not their fault. But they showed a will to win and a lot of passion to compensate. It was a pressure game. You don’t want to be going into the last games of the season needing points and we needed to win our home games. I was brought in last August to keep the club in the Football League and I now haven’t let anybody down and I am a very happy and contented man.”

After a very sedate opening the game burst into life on seventeen minutes when Carlisle opened the scoring with a goal that would have graced the Premiership. A surging run took Richie Foran passed three defenders before cutting a ball back from the by-line to Ian Stevens, the veteran striker swivelling on the proverbial sixpence to crash a shot into the bottom corner.

The goal failed to spark the game into life and a further fifteen minutes drifted by before a Dave Savage through ball sent Jamie Brooks clear only for Lee Andrews to get back to make a saving tackle for the Cumbrians.

Three minutes later an almost identical move brought an equaliser for Oxford. Paul Powell’s long ball was helped on by former Sunderland striker Phil Gray and Brooks made no mistake as he rounded Peter Keen to slot home from the edge of the box.

With a minute of the half remaining Peter Murphy put himself into a great position, after ghosting passed three defenders, only to curl his right foot shot over the bar with only Oxford keeper Richard Knight to beat.

Nine minutes into the second half Oxford almost snatched the lead when the impressive Brooks was unlucky to see his cross cum shot come back off the bar with Dave Rogers scrambling the loos ball away for a corner.

Former Carlisle favourite Dave Morley was then left staring in disbelief as his header, from a Matthew Bound free kick, was cleared off the line by Foran.

As the came appeared to be petering out into a tame draw the Carlisle winner came deep into injury time. The ball broke to Foran on the edge of the box and a powerful run took him passed Sam Stockley before squeezing a shot through Andy Crosby’s legs and passed the advancing Knight for his thirteenth goal of the season and his first for ten games.

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