At what stage did you realise we would be bottom of the league going into the last game of the season?   I had an impending feeling of doom when we went to Scarborough and lost 3-0. It just seemed so unbelievable that we had folded and died in such an important game. There was a large United support that day, despite the terrible traffic conditions, and it was such a disappointment to lose so badly. It shouldn’t have been the end though. Four of our six remaining games were at home. I must admit, as each home game went by and we still couldn’t notch up three points, I became more and more convinced that it was not our year. The 3 - 3 draw at home to Darlo (penultimate home game) was when I really lost heart. We really needed to win that one.

How did you cope getting through that last week?  It was difficult because everyone at work wanted to talk about it. I work with lads and lasses from all over the country and they all wanted to know what I thought the outcome would be. Problem was, I really didn’t want to think about it. All the signs were that the odds were stacked against us. It was, and still is, difficult to imagine life without CUFC in the league. People constantly wanting to discuss that very possibility were not part of my agenda.

Did you hesitate about going to the game?  No, not at all. I was going to be there whatever the outcome. I think it would have been a betrayal to have not gone to the very game that could well have been our last in the Football League. That is why I felt it necessary to drive to Brighton in 2000. I really could not miss it, if it was within my means to get there.

How did you feel as you walked into the ground?   It was a strange feeling. I can’t say if I imagined it, but there seemed to be a heavy atmosphere prior to kick off. There were plenty of people discussing the fact that “this could be it” which did not help at all. I remember looking around and thinking - Christ, we don’t deserve this.

When did you hear that Peterborough had scored?  There was a roar and it was obvious that something had happened. It took a matter of seconds for the news to filter through and it had the desired effect on the crowd. We definitely picked it up and did our bit.

When the Dobie goal was disallowed, did you feel it wouldn’t be our day?  I was celebrating like a nutter. It was the wife who told me that the ref had blown to disallow it. I couldn’t believe it, as it looked a perfectly good goal to me. All those ‘conspiracy theory’ stories started to flash through my mind so, yes, I did get the feeling it would not be our day.

At half time were you optimistic or depressed?  I was in a sort of suspended state as far as emotions were concerned. Everyone around me was talking about the situation and the general consensus was that we were finished. Not enough was happening in front of goal and McCall was having a blinder for Plymouth. It all seemed stacked against us. I talked very little during the break because I was still wondering how the hell we had ended up in this position when only 3 years earlier we had the foundations of a team that could have held its own in the First Division.

When Plymouth scored what were your feelings?  Inevitability. It just seemed that if there was a script somewhere, then this moment was written into it. The gasp that accompanied that goal was almost as loud as any roar I’d heard at Brunton Park. Even the Plymouth fans seemed to understand the enormity of it. Full credit to all of us who were there that day though, as soon as the game re-started there was one hell of an atmosphere. We all seemed to decide that if we were going out then we would be buggered if it were to be without a fight.

When Brightwell scored how did you feel?  It was actually a very good goal. That was my first thought. It flew through the gaggle of players and left the keeper with no chance. Call me Mister Slow but it was only when those around me started screaming “Come On - WE CAN DO THIS” that I realised we were back in with a shout. The atmosphere then is beyond description.

At the end of normal time Colin Carter came on the tannoy announcing the Scarborough final score and tried to lift the crowd, what were your feelings then?  It seemed like a lost cause. Yes, Plymouth had fallen deep and, yes, we had a lot of the ball, but it all seemed to be going nowhere. We had been very vocal during spells of this game but everyone had fallen silent around me. I guess that they, like me, had resigned themselves to the worst.

What were you thinking as we won the corner and Pearson waved jimmy forward?  I had just turned to my mate Paul and said, “I can’t believe we are in this position. This is the end,” when we won the corner. Everyone was shouting and urging the lads to get on with it. We knew time was running out. As we won the corner Nigel Pearson was hunched against the dugout but he seemed to come to life when he realised we had one last chance. Jimmy meandered to the centre circle and those that had spotted him were yelling at him to go forward. I didn’t see that until my mate told me that Pearson had just waved him on. Watching him run into the box was not funny to me. I remember thinking that it summed up the sadness and desperation of the situation we were in. I kept repeating “Make it a good ‘un, make it a good ‘un” as Anthony prepared to take the corner and my heart was in my mouth as it came into the box. The incidents that followed were a blur. Dobie and the header that I thought was going in - only to be gutted when it didn’t, and then the follow up. It all happened so quickly.

What were your thoughts when Glass scored?  I saw the ball hit the back of the net and that was all that mattered. I was then engulfed in a mass of flailing arms - most of which belonged to people I have never met before or since. It was a long time after the goal had gone in that I actually found out it was Jimmy who had scored it. The thing I remember most is being turned round by a comfortably large chap who was standing behind me. “Look at Knighton,” he told me. Whatever we have all said, or whatever we think about Knighton, I have to say that he was jumping around and punching the air as much as any of us. After that it was just one big party. In between singing we were urging the fans to get off the pitch so we could get it over with.

Did you go on the pitch after the game?  No, I had an excellent viewpoint from my normal spot in the Paddock. As soon as it was confirmed the players would be appearing in the directors box I decided to stand my ground. I wanted to hear what Pearson had to say and I wanted to applaud the lads for the effort. It had been a difficult season in difficult circumstances and they had given their best.

How did you feel after it was all over that day?  Beyond all shadow of any doubt that day is the biggest emotional roller coaster ride I have ever been on. To grasp victory from the jaws of defeat in such a dramatic manner is far beyond anything anyone could ever dream up. Football fans everywhere still talk about that day. To have been so deeply involved, as both an individual and as a group of supporters, is something only we as Carlisle fans will ever understand.

I went abroad, as part of my job, last year. A friend sent me a taped copy of the Radio 5 special that was produced about the dramatic final day of that season. During one of our slack periods I put the tape on. There were about 8 people sat there and I can honestly say that not a peep was heard from any of them throughout the whole programme. As it finished they all had a smile on their face and they all commented on how fantastic it must have been to have actually witnessed it. I couldn’t answer - I had a lump in my throat.

Looking back on that day now, how important do you feel that game was?   This goes without saying. League football is so important, not least to the club’s football fans let alone the City, the County etc. It is just so sad that we were not allowed to learn from it. If anything things have got worse. To be in that position once is careless. To be there twice is negligent. To be facing it for a third time is downright criminal. The club is now in a position where most football fans will feel that we deserve to go out of the league after being given such a dramatic lifeline. That the decision not to take hold of that lifeline has been made is something I cannot understand. However, St Jimmy’s day has taught me one thing. It certainly isn’t all over until the whistle is blown. Here’s hoping.