Crawley conceded two goals in the last eight minutes as they went down to a harsh 2-1 defeat to leaders Oxford United in the Blue Square premier tonight.

Reds were hanging on defiantly to the lead given to them in the 17th minute when Thomas Pinault pounced from close range to score his first goal of the season.

Oxford pressed in the second half and drew level in the 82nd minute when Adam Chapman drilled the equaliser through a crowded penalty area after the home side failed to clear a corner.

A minute from time Simon Rayner saved James Constable's penalty after Karl Broadhurst had pushed Oxford's top scorer in the back.

It looked like preserving a deserved point for the hosts who could have won it themselves when Mikey Malcolm clipped his shot wide of the post with only Ryan Clarke to beat in the 90th minute.

Instead Constable made amends when he met Kevin Sasndwith's left-wing cross in the fourth minute of stoppage time to head home his 15th goal of the season.

Assistant manager Paul Raynor admitted he was stunned by Oxford's late show.

He said: "There are some very disappointed players in our dressing room because we did not deserve that.

"The players gave absolutely everything and we deserved something from the game. Teams at the top tend to get the breaks and they could make changes off the bench which made the difference but it feels like a very cruel game at the moment."