Wycombe Wanderers 1, Carlisle United 1.

WANDERERS made it a hat-trick of injury time equalisers as Stuart Lewis snatched a draw with his first goal of the season.

Blues looked like they were going to endure a frustrating day as a cruel own goal by last week’s stoppage time goal hero Grant Basey looked set to condemn them to a first defeat in six.

But right now Wanderers just do not know when they are beaten and Lewis slammed home from the edge of the area to grab another crucial point in the fight against relegation.

Until then they had struggled to break down a well-drilled Carlisle side who looked like they were going to take all three points after Jon-Paul McGovern’s shot cannoned back off the bar and hit the luckless Basey.

But they weren’t to be denied as the effort and endeavour they have shown in the last month was rewarded once again.

An early chance for Chris Hackett was tamely fired into Adam Collin’s gloves before Francois Zoko – who scored a late equaliser the last time the sides met in December – shrugged off a half-hearted challenge from Marvin McCoy and forced Nikki Bull into a good save low down at his near post.

That was Carlisle's only shot on target during the whole game.

The Cumbrians pressed high up the pitch early on but were dealt a blow when full-back Chris Chantler, just returning from injury, broke down again and had to be replaced by Lubomir Michalik.

The visitors proved hard to break down throughout the game and Wanderers knew they had to pounce on anything that came their way. Ben Strevens was just unable to react quickly enough when Collin spilt McCoy’s fizzing low centre and the keeper grabbed the ball at the second attempt from off the Blues striker’s feet.

Collin was worked for the first time when good work from Craig Eastmond opened up space for Stuart Beavon to have a shot, but the visiting goalkeeper was equal to it and turned it around the post.

There were appeals for a penalty from the corner that followed as Anthony Stewart – who kept his place in the team after an excellent showing at Stevenage last week – looked to be levered off the ball as he looked to head home.

A flashpoint midway through the half saw Danny Livesey and Lewis both pick up yellow cards, with the Wanderers midfielder reacting to a poor challenge by his opponent on Eastmond. Referee Rob Lewis allowed play to continue long enough for McGovern to scuff a shot wide.

Playmaker McGovern’s next act opened up Blues again when he combined with overlapping full-back Frankie Simek to present a chance to Lee Miller, but the striker made a total hash of it and blazed well over the bar from a good position.

But Wanderers had a good opportunity to take the lead in first half injury time as Strevens’ well-hit volley deceived Collin and the keeper ultimately did well to block it with his foot. The ball then spiralled up for Eastmond but the Arsenal loanee could only nod it tamely into the keeper’s gloves from a tight angle.

A lively start to the second period saw McCoy block Zoko’s shot and Collin reacting smartly to paw away a Chris Hackett cross that looked like it was going to evade everybody and end up in the back of the net.

Blues had a lucky escape when a lofted pass looked to send Liam Noble clear but the ball skipped off the turf and hit the Carlisle man on the hand. Had he been able to control it properly he’d have been through on goal with just Bull to beat.

And if that wasn’t close enough, Hackett then skittled over Noble in the area for what looked like a cast iron penalty but referee Lewis was the only man inside Adams Park not to think it was a foul.

Wycombe’s luck couldn’t hold and it ran out minutes later. Zoko managed to wriggle clear of the combined efforts of McCoy and Strevens before centring for the unmarked McGovern, whose fierce effort smashed against the crossbar and hit the luckless Basey and crawled almost apologetically over the line.

It knocked the stuffing out of Wanderers and it was a while before they were able to regroup and have another go at the visitors.

When they did Eastmond showed a lack of composure as he did all the hard work by dancing past a pairs of Carlisle defenders before blazing wastefully over the bar from just inside the box.

Lewis produced an airshot from Strevens’ knock down and Beavon headed over from Basey’s cross to lift the Adams Park faithful into believing Wanderers could snatch a late goal for the third match running.

They almost grabbed it when Basey, desperately trying to make amends for his earlier intervention, looped McCoy’s long throw into the area for substitute Anthony McNamee, but the shortest man on the pitch had his header clawed over by Collin.

Naturally they had to wait until injury time to grab the goal. Beavon flicked a cross into Lewis’ path and he fired beyond a despairing Collin from the edge of the box to snatch a share of the spoils again.

Wanderers: Bull, McCoy, Stewart (sub McClure), Doherty, Basey, Eastmond, Lewis, Bloomfield (sub McNamee), Hackett, Strevens, Beavon. Substitutes not used: Laing, Johnson, Ainsworth.

Attendance: 4,823