Cumbrians earn vital victory

Carlisle responded to manager Keith Curle's rallying call with a vital 1-0 win over Dagenham to go six points clear of the relegation places.A goal early in the second half by on-loan Bradford midfield man Jason Kennedy was enough to see off an unambitious Daggers outfit as Carlisle ended a four match losing run to go fifth bottom.Carlisle had the better of first half exchanges but, in a difficult swirling wind, both sides had problems creating many clear chances.Sean O'Hanlon went closest for Carlisle in the 12th minute when he got on the end of a swinging cross from Kyle Dempsey only to see his effort strike the right hand post.Daggers' first shot in anger came from BIlly Bingham in the 26th minute. His well struck shot from outside the area was beaten away by recalled Carlisle goalkeeper Mark Gillespie.Dagenham goalkeeper Mark Cousins made a timely dash from his area to thwart Derek Asamoah and Charlie Wyke missed a chance to give Carlisle the lead just after the break when he latched on to Asamoah's pass but delayed in shooting too long allowing the defence to recover.The breakthrough for Carlisle came in the 56th minute when Kennedy turned the ball in from six yards, following in after Patrick Brough had the first effort from Wyke's pull back.There was drama in the six minutes of added time as Ayo Obileye for Dagenham and Troy Archibald Henville were sent off following an 18 man scuffle in the Carlisle penalty area.And right at the death Matt Partridge rattled the underside of the bar as Daggers came within an inch of snatching a draw.