One header by Harrold, who else, one goal, two points lost for the Essex boys, annoying!
Blues boss Paul Sturrock announced an unchanged side from the one that beat Preston in the cup Tuesday to take on a Bristol Rovers side that on paper has a strong squad but has failed to deliver for whatever reason, and when winger Mustapha Carayol hit a 25 yarder just wide as early as the 11th minute it seemed it could be a long afternoon.
If it was in the end it had nothing to do with sustained Pirates pressure but Prince Harry grabbing the equaliser and two bottles of Old Perculiar at half-time, big mistake!
Anyway, most of the game, which wasn't the most exciting, is a long list of Shrimpers chances or shots that failed to find the back of the net, though one tackle by Mark Phillips in the penalty area was the classiest defending I've seen for a long time, at any level.
Bomber Harris heading a cross from Sean Clohessy wide was soon followed by a similar Bilel Mohsni effort that cleared the bar after a trademark Ryan Hall cross.
Harris again, and another header, but even closer as Rovers keeper Scott Bevan did well to push it on to the crossbar where it bounced out to safety.
39th minutes in and up came centre-half Phillips to try and show teh strikers how to do it, a superb shot from around 30 yards that looked to have a decent chance until it rose slightly at the end and found the seats in the South Bank rather than the top of the net.
After the break it was still the boys in Blues dominating with the Gas doing little but defending well enough, another cross from Hallfinding Mohsni at close range but Bevan did well to snatch the ball off the Frenchman's feet.
Coming up to the hour mark and left-back Peter Gilbert headed over a Hall corner, before Mohsni let fly from 25 yards out but the ball sped wide.
Through my Old Perculiar mist. I was quite enjoying the game letting it fly by, I was thinking if we could just get one the points would be ours.
Then, on 66 minutes, the goal came, but they weren't!
Liam Dickinson should shoulder barged Pirates centre-back Bryon Anthony off the ball, I would have been very annoyed if the ref had blown up for a foul here as Pirates boss Paul Buckle suggests, as I'm sure he would have been if the situation was reveresed, took the ball into the area before releasing a sublime pass that found Neil Harris lurking at the back post and he finished with aplomb, a strikers goal.
Hall nearly double the lead when his 20 yard shot was tipped wide by Bevan and with the game slipping away played his joker by bringing on Matt Harrold, cue a chorus of songs regarding the ex-Shrimper, some better than others, and then he scores!
A long throw, up jumps 6ft 1 Harry, rising higher than both the 6ft Chris Barker and 6ft 3 Mohsni in the process and back heading past Daniels and it's 1-1 with 13 minutes left. Bugger, but we should have dealt with it, poor.
Interesting Buckle should speak about the height of our players afterwards and how his side of quality players, lying 18th in the league, couldn't play real football on our rubbish pitch, when they grab the equaliser from the most route one of tactics. 'Nuff said.
Another hall shot and Luggy tries a change on 85 minutes, Anthony Grant coming on for Harris, and old Snoop Dog could have won it.
Bevan dropping a high ball under pressure from Dickinson, the ball fell to Grant six yards out and, oh dear, his poor effort clears the bar!
Hall shoots again, but it's well pushed on to the post by Bevan, doing better this time, and that's that.
Certainly two points dropped whatever Buckle says, and he's under enough pressure so who can blame him, and a tough trip to Cheltenham to follow in two weeks after the Oldham cup game.
It's certainly more exciting than this time last year!
Southend player markings: Daniels - 7, Clohessey - 7, Barker - 6, Phillips - 7, Gilbert - 6, Timlin - 6, Ferdinand - 7, Hall - 7, Mohsni - 6, Dickinson - 8, Harris - 6, (Grant 85).
Referee: Mr. D. Mohareb - 7.