SAINTS dropped out of League One’s top six after suffering a 3-2 defeat at Carlisle.

Despite Saints making a game of it in the second-half, the hosts were good value for their victory.

The result drops Nigel Adkins’ side down to tenth, while Carlisle leapfrogged them to go fourth.

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Ben Marshall and a Dan Harding own-goal gave the Cumbrians a 2-0 half-time lead.

Alex Chamberlain pulled one back after the break, but James Chester restored the hosts’ two-goal advantage.

And, despite a Dean Hammond screamer, Saints couldn’t rescue anything from the long trip north.

The result left the 300-plus mile journey home all the more depressing for the hundreds of travelling fans.

Saints had the first chance of the day, as Richard Chaplow dispossessed Peter Murphy on the left touchline and raced towards the box.

His cutback found Alex Chamberlain, but the teenager’s effort went high and wide from ten yards out.

Saints had plenty of possession in the early stages, but chances were proving hard to come by.

Rickie Lambert threatened to get on the end of a long ball after 14 minutes, but Murphy got back to tackle well in his area.

Carlisle’s first real attack arrived a minute later, as Frank Simek got down the right.

His low cross was met by James Berrett, but the midfielder’s shot was well charged down.

Lallana got a sight of goal shortly afterwards, after being fed the ball in the area by Dean Hammond.

The winger cut onto his right foot, but hit his shot straight at Adam Collin in the hosts’ goal.

Francois Zoko then fired in an effort from the left edge of Saints’ box, but it was too weak and Kelvin Davis gathered it up comfortably.

Chamberlain tried his luck from 30 yards after 20 minutes, but his shot sliced high and wide.

However, the deadlock was broken a minute later.

Gary Madine burst through the middle and fed Ben Marshall, who was racing forward to his right.

And the winger fired his shot across goal and out of the reach of Davis to give Carlisle the lead.

Lambert headed over under pressure in the 25th minute, as Saints looked to reply instantly.

Davis then had to keep Marshall’s low shot on the turn from 20 yards out, but Carlisle did double their lead in the 28th minute.

Mike Grella’s teasing cross was heading towards Marshall at the back post, forcing Dan Harding to slide in to try and divert it.

But he only succeeded in looping the ball over the head of Davis and into the net.

Saints’ left-back was then shown a yellow card for a late tackle on Marshall, who was giving Saints a lot of problems.

Zoko was the next into the referee’s book, for dissent, before Jose Fonte followed him, wiping out Grella as he looked to break clear.

James Chester should have made it 3-0 a minute before half-time, after Berrett’s corner found him unmarked eight yards from goal.

But the left-back somehow completely missed his header and Saints escaped.

Lallana fired a left-foot shot from distance just wide, as the visitors mounted a rare attack, before Chaplow fizzed a dangerous ball across the face of goal, but just out of Morgan Schneiderlin’s reach, as the half came to an end.

Saints got on the front foot immediately after the restart, as Chamberlain raced down the right to force a corner, but it came to nothing.

However, they did get one back in the 49th minute, as Lallana worked his way into the box, before standing a cross up to the back post.

Chamberlain was there to meet the ball and powered his header into the top corner from close range to give Saints a lifeline.

Lallana then tried his luck from 20 yards a minute later, but his shot was straight at Collin.

Davis had to be at his best in the 57th minute, turning away Berrett’s fierce effort, after he played a wonderful one-two with Zoko.

But he couldn’t keep Carlisle out from the resulting corner, as Chester this time made no mistake from Berrett’s corner, thumping his header home to make it 3-1.

Nigel Adkins made his first change in the 61st minute, replacing Harding – who received huge cheers from the Carlisle fans – with Ryan Dickson.

Carlisle boss Greg Abbott responded by bringing on Matty Robson for top scorer Gary Madine.

The game had gone into a bit of a lull, which suited the hosts fine, as they looked to see out the remaining time with as little worry as possible.

Lubomir Michalik’s trip on Lambert earned the Carlisle centre half a booking.

From the resulting free-kick, the ball was cleared only as far as Dean Hammond, whose low drive was brilliantly tipped wide by Collin.

Chaplow should have pulled one back in the 72nd minute, after Lambert’s clever ball played him in, but his shot across goal went well wide.

Adkins then threw on Lee Barnard in place of Schneiderlin, with Saints switching to a 4-4-2 formation in a bid to rescue something from the match.

Grella looked to release Zoko with a smart through ball, but Davis got out to clear the danger well.

The two combined again a minute later, as Zoko turned Grella’s cross from the right just over.

Barnard got in his first shot in the 77th minute, but the ball flew tamely wide, as nothing Saints tried seemed to work.

The lively Zoko was replaced by Craig Curran with ten minutes left on the clock.

Saints were handed a second unlikely lifeline just moments later, as Hammond fired in a vicious shot from 30 yards that eluded Collin and made it 3-2.

Barnard then fizzed a shot narrowly over from just outside the box, as Saints looked to complete a dramatic comeback.

Saints were pressing for an equaliser as the game neared the end, and there was a huge groan from the home fans as five minutes of stoppage time were announced.

But Carlisle saw out the final few minutes with a relative degree of comfort to hang on to a victory that pushed them into the top six and Saints out of it.