FIVE hundred and 34 miles, two red cards and two penalties ultimately ended in one point for Southend United at Plymouth Argyle on Saturday.

But while there was plenty of drama and many positives for the Shrimpers, there was also a sense of frustration due to what could and maybe should have been.

Just like against Doncaster Rovers on the opening day of the season, Blues began brightly and pretty much dominated the early exchanges.

However, similar to the previous Saturday, the chances which were created during the prolonged period of pressure were not converted before Southend ultimately found themselves falling behind.

This time around though, there had to be sympathy for the Shrimpers who fell victim to a hugely contentious penalty decision after Stephen McLaughlin was somehow adjudged to have fouled Tafari Moore.

Perhaps being ultra analytical and probably unfairly critical, McLaughlin could have eliminated the controversy altogether by reacting quicker to the rebound after Mark Oxley had pushed out a header from Conor Grant.

But that does not change the fact McLaughlin barely brushed against Moore and the decision to award a penalty ranks alongside the worst calls I have ever seen in 28 years watching the Shrimpers.

Referee John Busby pointed to the spot on the advice of his assistant on the far side and the standard of officiating is something which seriously needs to be looked at by the Football League.

I fully understand and appreciate how tough it is to take charge of a game, even more so after training to become a referee myself for a very short period for a story in this newspaper a few years ago.

However, in this day and age, with millions of pounds being pumped into the lower leagues and fans spending hard earned money on tickets and travels, decisions like the one on Saturday are simply not acceptable.

Television replays are unlikely to be introduced in the third tier of the English game any time soon due to the incredible expense but perhaps professional referees are something which now need to be looked at to eliminate errors like the one at the weekend.

The officials took centre stage again just before the break when Blues boss Chris Powell and Plymouth chief Derek Adams became the first managers to be shown red cards as part of the Football League’s new guidelines.

The bosses clashed on the sidelines in the aftermath of Ryan Taylor’s aerial challenge on Jason Demetriou but, on first viewing, their dismissals seemed something of an overreaction.

Despite that, the saying ‘could start a row in an empty room’ seems to sum up Adams’ style and something serious must have happened for the usually calm Powell to lose his cool.

Obviously losing your temper and being sent to the stands can never really be seen as a good thing for any manager but it was hard not to enjoy Powell’s explanation of the incident where he emphasised his desire to stick up for his players.

The clash could well have carried on from last season where Blues were angered by another Taylor challenge on Michael Turner before Adams dismissed Southend’s form in his post-match interview.

That game – in mid-April – saw the Pilgrims run riot against the Shrimpers as they secured a comfortable 4-0 win which remains the biggest defeat of Powell’s reign.

However, Saturday’s rematch was a completely different contest altogether as Blues looked the stronger of the two teams and exactly the same defence was able to keep Plymouth’s attacking players quiet.

As a result, Blues goalkeeper Mark Oxley was not called upon too often while in stark contrast at the other end of the field Argyle shot-stopper Matt Macey was forced into making some fine saves.

The Shrimpers did seem to settle for a point late on when perhaps victory could still have been up for grabs but overall they should again be pleased with their performance.

The introduction of promising midfielder Michael Klass for his League debut late on was another positive from an incredibly wet afternoon at Home Park and so was the character shown by Southend after falling behind.

Last weekend, one goal quickly led to three but there was no repeat on Saturday.

And performances like this suggest better things lie in store for Blues, providing a higher percentage of their goalscoring opportunities can be taken during the fixtures to follow.