With Plymouth nursing a poor home record that has not seen them win at Home Park since mid-March, it was Carlisle who started brightly with former Arygle loanee James Chester's long-range shot forcing a good save out of David Button early on. Pilgrims striker Rory Fallon then trying his luck with a few pot shots from distance that proved easy for Blues goalkeeper Adam Collin to take.
As the game descended into a bit of a midfield stalemate it was, not unusually, Harte from a free-kick who would have United's best chance of the first-half after Krisztian Timar brought down Craig Curran 25 yards out. Harte curling the free-kick across to the far corner of Button's goal only to see the Spurs loan signing make an excellent one-handed save as he pushed the ball away from danger.
Cumbrians central midfielder James Berrett then struck a drive from outside the penalty area straight into the midriff of Button, while Plymouth schemer Carl Fletcher made sure Collin was on his toes as he tested the former Workington man from distance. Neither side though able to make the breakthrough in the opening period as defences remained well on top throughout the 45 minutes.
There was extremely little action of note right from the start of the second half as both teams were unable to make the most of the possession that they had. Infact it took until the 68th minute for the first real chance, although it did provide the opening goal for United in a strong spell of possession for the visitors as Argyle struggled to get anything going upfront.
Berrett's partly cleared corner only being hammered into the ground by substitute Marc Bridge-Wilkinson, but with the ball skipping up into the air across the six-yard box Harte was the first there to glance his header into the back of the Pilgrims net. Curran then having a deflected shot easily taken by Button shortly afterwards as Carlisle looked to double their lead.
Plymouth finally did find some pressure late on as they searched for an equaliser and in the 83rd minute Patterson forced an excellent sharp low save out of Collin with a powerfully hit shot on the turn. Patterson then thumping a drive just wide of the target as the Pilgrims began to crank up the gears as the visitors defended their slender lead deeply.
Cruelly on Carlisle, faced with a 370-mile drive home, an Argyle leveller did come, four minutes into injury time. Bondz N'Gala and Joe Mason both involved as the ball bounced around the United box, but it was Patterson who found the killer touch, as this time his shot on the turn flew past Collin and nestled in the near corner of the Cumbrians net.