It was the home side who started the brighter, as a totally new team looked keen to impress in front of their own crowd.
They made the breakthrough after 21 minutes with what already could be a contender for goal of the season as a Craig Young shot from 20 yards curled into the top corner.
Young could then have put the game beyond doubt on the stroke of half time, but his header form close range went wide of the post.
In the second half, it was a different story as Arbroath stepped up a level in search of an equaliser. Striker Jay Stein went close twice in the space of five minutes early in the second half but failed to beat Jamie Ewings in the Rovers goal on both occasions.
The equaliser eventually came when Marc McCulloch sent in a deep cross to the back post, and Greg Miller was on hand to nod the ball home.
At this stage it was all Arbroath as they went all out in search of taking maximum points, and after 83 minutes, McCulloch thought he had scored the winner as he headed home from a Stein cross.
However, with two minutes to go, a spectacular dipping volley from substitute Scott Houston snatched Rovers a point.
It could even have been three, deep in injury time, as Albion's appeal for a penalty following a foul on Ian Chisholm was waved away
.