Bury 1,Oldham Athletic 1 by Chris Hall

SHAKERS boss Andy Preece was left seething at referee Alan Bates after watching his brave charges concede a cruel last-gasp equaliser.

On a night when the people of Bury rallied to save the town's football club, a crowd of 7,953 turned out to plough some much-needed cash through the turnstiles in a bid to help keep the club afloat.

But the home fans were left dejected when substitute Cristian Colusso cancelled out Martyn Forrest's first half effort two minutes into injury-time.

Up to that point, Bury had fought manfully to cling on to a vital three points but Preece said the odds were stacked against them as Bates awarded an incredible 19 free-kicks to Oldham compared to just four given in Burys favour.

"I think the referee got the result he wanted in the end," he said. "I can't believe some of the decisions he made. The players were fantastic and they should be proud of their performance. But what can you do when you are up against that?

"The 19-4 free kick count speaks volumes. He gave two free kicks against Jason Jarrett which were two of the most embarrassing decisions I have ever seen. We are fighting for our lives and we get that."

Preece also turned his wrath on the club's administrators, who were brought in last week to help secure outside investment to save the Shakers from going to the wall.

He claimed letters were sent to all his players on the morning of the game, highlighting Bury's financial plight, which could have affected his squad's preparations.

"I just don't know what they were thinking about," he said. "Thankfully the players remained professional and kept their focus but I think the administrators need to liase a bit more. "We want to be in the Second Division next season and things like that don't help matters."

The bumper crowd, boosted largely by a strong travelling support, generated a tense cup tie atmosphere. And a giant-killing looked on the cards when Forrest volleyed a Paul Reid corner through a crowded penalty area for his first senior goal after 13 minutes.

Oldham created the better chances either side of half-time but Reid and Michael Nelson put in a mountain of defensive work and seemed to be steering Bury to derby victory until the frustrating succession of free-kicks reached full flow.

Finally, Latics drew level when Colusso latched on to a Julien Baudet knock down to lash home from inside the box deep into stoppage time.