Pierrot comes off the bench to gain a point for Galway United
Goalkeeper Evan Watts the star man as United and Shelbourne play out 1-1 draw
Galway United and Shelbourne played out a 1-1 draw at Tolka Park for the second time this season as the Tribesmen made it four games without defeat on the road.
Trailing to a 57th minute goal from Harry Wood, the visitors got back on level terms when Frantz {Pierrot forced the ball home in the 64th minute with his first touch, just seconds after he was introduced to the action.
While he got the all-important equaliser, United have goalkeeper Evan Watts to thank every bit as much for the draw, the Welshman producing a string of quality saves to keep his side in the game.
United manager John Caulfield bemoaned the fact that "seven or eight" of his players failed to fire in the 4-2 defeat to Bohemians last Friday night, so changes to the starting XI were expected, and changes are what we got.
Out went Connor Barratt, Conor McCormack, and Pierrot, who all been hauled ashore at half-time again Bohs; with Wasiri Williams the fourth change for the visitors.
In came Gianfranco Facchinieri to the heart of the defence, back after a three-game injury absence. Lee Devitt also came into a reconstituted back four, United abandoning the 3-5-2 set-up that failed them against Bohs; while Kris Twardek and Mattie Wolfe joined Ed McCarthy in a three-prong supportive line of lone frontman, Stephen Walsh.
While United had a full week to stew on last Friday's result Shels had little time to bask in a first home win of the season on the same night, as they were also in action in the Brandywell on Monday.
Joey O'Brien made five changes to his starting XI from that scoreless draw: Sean Gannon and JJ Lunney were both suspended, while Sean Boyd, Dan Kelly, and Zeno Rossie had to make do with a place on the bench.
Shels shaded matters in the first-half, but United weren't far off the pace in a disciplined display on a warm, night in Drumcondra.
Both goalkeepers produced saves from the top drawer to keep matters level in that opening 45 minutes, while the home side also hit both of Watts' uprights, but stalemate at the break was probably fair enough.
The Reds threatened first, Wood playing John Martin in on the right, who fired across Watts, but his effort struck the inside of the goalkeeper's right-hand post, and Aaron Bolger cleared the rebound.
They hit the woodwork again the 28th minute, only this time the wood denied Wood after the midfielder broke in off the left wing and also opted to shoot across the United goalkeeper, with the same outcome.
Shels had their own netminder to thank for being level at that stage, after Wes Speel produced a brilliant save to deny Twardek five minutes earlier.
Bolger was at his dogged best when breaking into the Shels penalty area, holding off a couple of challenges and then regaining his feet, with possession, after losing his footing, before a cheeky backheel put Twardek clear with the defence flatfooted.
The man who fired United into the lead in their last visit here back in February looked to have done the same, only for Speel to get down brilliantly and push away his effort for the first of three United corners in the half.
That came to nothing, but Wolfe and Stephen Walsh would get on the end of the other two, but both headed wide under pressure.
Watts more than matched his opposite number for heroics on the stroke of half-time, a brilliant reflex save keeping out Ali Coote's close-range header after the Scot get in between Killian Brouder and Facchineri to get on the end of Kam Ledwidge's cross from the left.
One of the Shels' groundstaff made sure to give a good half-time soaking to the half of the pitch United would call theirs on the turnaround, but it worked against Martin who slipped two minutes into the restart when trying to get on the end of Jarvis's low, drilled cross from the left.
Watts firmly planted his feet six minutes later to safely collect a 30-yard free-kick left of centre from Coote, which was bent around the wall but straight at the United goalkeeper.
The winger just failed to get a toe on another searching Jarvis ball into the United penalty area in the 56th minute, before the home side finally made the breakthrough a minute later.
Ali Coote pounced on a sloppy ball out of defence of United to pick out Martin on the right. He drilled in a low cross, and Wood ran on to it to side-foot it home from close range for the lead.
The United goalkeeper kept his side in it with a couple of saves in the next few minutes as United staggered like a boxer that had taken a clean one to the kisser, before Shels were hit with a sucker-punch in the 64th minute.
The Tribesmen had won a corner on the right, but before Dave Hurley could take it, United made three changes, introducing Pierrot, Williams, and Axel Piesold.
The three trotted into the Shels penalty areas, referee Paul McLaughlin blew his whistle, Hurley sent in an in-swinging delivery, and Pierrot got the crucial connection to send the ball past Speel and into the goal behind which the United faithful were massed.
Watts kept his side in it with another stunning save in the 68th minute, throwing out a right hand to scoop away Martin's scuffed effort from no more than a few yards out.
Pierrot almost grabbed his second from another Hurley corner in the 76th minute, this time the delivery coming from the right, but the Haitian's glancing header was cleared off the line at the far post by Mipo.
United stomachs were churning with nerves at the other end in the 82nd minute when Wood lined up a 20-yard free-kick that was in line with Watts' right-hand post, but in clearing the United defensive wall, his effort also cleared the crossbar with the last clear chance of the game.
Shelbourne: Speel; Bone, Barrett, Ledwidge; Mbeng (Lundgren 85), Chapman, Caffrey, Jarvis (Kelly 61); Coote (Mipo 73), Wood; Martin (Boyd 73).
Galway United: Watts; Keohane, Facchineri, Devitt; Bolger (Kazeem 85), Hurley (McCormack 85); Twardek (Williams 64), Wolfe (Piesold 64), McCarthy (Pierrot 64); Walsh.
Referee: Paul McLaughlin (Dublin).