Rovers picked up their first point of the season at the Withdean Stadium this afternoon after earning a 1-1 draw against Brighton & Hove Albion.

After a shaky start and a scrappy first half, the Pirates gave their hosts an absolute battering in the second half, eventually forcing a late equaliser from the penalty spot to deny the Seagulls what would have been a thoroughly undeserved win.

Nicky Forster forced an easy save from Steve Phillips early on as a series of punts forward from the long-ball specialists put the Rovers back line under some concerted pressure.

And the visitors cracked to go a goal down on just ten minutes, after a soft penalty was awarded to the home side for what was adjudged to have been a foul on Matthew Richards by David Pipe.

There were protests from the Rovers camp, but Forster showed composure and experience to keep his nerve and plant the ball home past Phillips from 12 yards.

Rovers responded with Chris Lines and Byron Anthony combining well to play in Craig Disley who couldn't quite get his shot away from ten yards, and then Richards saw a powerful effort deflected wide at the other end to win his side a corner.

Jeff Hughes and Darryl Duffy linked up well down the left before Rickie Lambert saw a rasping attempt blocked on the edge of the box, and then Lines was denied as his weak header was comfortably gathered in by Michel Kuipers.

The first half ended with Lines again involved, this time playing in Duffy whose shot on goal was deflected into the arms of a grateful Kuipers.

The second half was a far more one-sided affair than the first, with a series of attack-minded substitutions and plenty of forward play from Rovers seeing Brighton on the back foot for the majority of the 45 minutes.

Lambert rattled the Brighton crossbar with a thunderous free-kick, and the striker was unlucky again from the rebound as his volley sailed just a yard or two over the crossbar.

Another Lambert free-kick flew just past the post as Rovers continued to press, and then Steve Elliott was the next to have a pop with an ambitious volley that went well wide.

Ben Hunt came off the bench to make a positive impact on the game, and his ball into the path of Lambert saw the front man rifle a shot against the Brighton post much to the relief of a desperate home defence.

Rovers piled on the pressure as the minutes ticked by, and eventually they were rewarded for their perseverance in the closing stages.

Disley's shirt was pulled in the Brighton penalty box, and the referee showed no hesitation in pointing to the spot.

Lambert stepped up to take the penalty, and his powerful kick sent Kuipers the wrong way to put his side back on level terms.

Disley headed over from a Stuart Campbell corner as Rovers pressed for a late winner, and Andrew Whing enjoyed a rare Brighton chance on goal with a right-footed attempt that flew over.

The final whistle signalled the end of the game, with both sides pleased with the result for very different reasons.

Brighton had survived a second half onslaught without losing the game, while Rovers had rescued a draw from what looked like a likely loss with just five minutes of the match remaining.

Plenty of positives for Rovers, and plenty more things to build on as the season continues to unfold over the opening few weeks.

Reported by Ian Cole