Hereford have fallen to their second straight defeat as South Shields took advantage of a poor performance and make the 264-mile trip back home with three points.
The visitors were able to carve the Bulls open far too easily as they lacked bite in midfield and had a two-goal lead going into the break.
There was a small glimmer of a resurgence for Paul Caddis's side who ended the half with a flurry of good chances, but a sucker-punch goal early in the second half condemned them to defeat.
The Bulls, who would've been hoping to bounce back from Saturday's 2-0 defeat at relegation-threatened Darlington, started the first half under the cosh. Some dubious defending saw Howkins strike the ball against an onrushing attacker, but the Bulls were able to recover possession from the stumbling frontman.
That was enough to see Maziar Kouhyar sent on his way down the right and his spirited solo run, evading three challenges, and delivering the ball into the box. Cowley's subsequent strike was deflected, and the ball zipped past Alex Babos before being cleared.
Despite the promising break from the York City loanee, and a weak Yusifu Ceesay header from a Jason Cowley lofted ball saved by the keeper, Hereford were soon back under pressure with the back four of Aaron Skinner, Ollie Southern, Kyle Howkins and Camron McWilliams kept busy by Shields counter attacks.
The best of the early pressure saw right-back Camron McWilliams, signed after the demise of Nuneaton Borough, lose the ball in midfield, leaving the defence vulnerable, before a quick counterattack saw a driven effort from Will Jenkins go inches wide and hit the stanchion.
The pressure continued and in the 17th minute, the Whites found themselves a goal down from a whipped corner. With Curtis Pond flapping at - and missing - the ball, it fell yards from goal and despite a first effort being blocked, it was forced over the line to give the visitors the lead.
The Bulls tried to respond immediately as Alex Babos blazed a shot high and wide before a good Tope Odabeyi cross from the right just missed the head of Ceesay.
Play Was Stopped As The Referee Felt This Player Had A Head Injury. Hereford Manager Paul Caddis Wasn't Happy.
An absolute pearler of a cross was met by the head of Cowley but, under pressure, another weak header was no trouble for visiting keeper Myles Boney.
The half chances for the Bulls weren't enough to cover what was a poor first half performance with South Shields maintaining their stronghold in the game, cutting through Hereford like a knife through butter for the second goal.
After Paul Blackett was picked out with a long-range pass, he weaved his way forward and, despite an Ollie Southern challenge on the edge of the area, the striker slotted a diagonal ball past Pond.
With the Mariners closing the Bulls down and rendering them unable to string passes together, coupled with the lack of bite in midfield to win back possession, it was a frustrating performance for the 1,850 home fans at Edgar Street.
There were a string of good chances at the end of the first half, including in the six minutes of added time for two lengthy stoppages for injuries and some timewasting from the visitors.
Starting with a low Cowley shot from outside the area which proved an easy save for Boney, the Hereford frontman - who had been isolated at times throughout the half - was then teed up by Ceesay, who did well to control a long ball, to unleash another shot which couldn't get the better of the stopper.
Boney then kicked the ball straight at Cowley whose effort bounced back of the keeper and sailed wide, before the resulting corner fell to Mendes whose effort flies just past the post.
Aaron Skinner, still at right-back, was then left wondering how he hadn't scored when his header from a cross smashed against the crossbar and down onto the line before being cleared.
Half time: Hereford 0 - South Shields 2
With the bright end to the first half, despite the two-goal deficit, Caddis could be forgiven for allowing some time before making his first changes.
But it wasn't long before things went from bad to worse as the Mariners found their third, effectively killing the game off despite there still being 42 minutes left. Jed Abbey well-controlled a lofted ball and with the home defence once again being carved open, fired across Pond and saw his shot nestle in the back of the net after hitting the post.
Jason Cowley then had yet another chance to get his name on the scoresheet but his header struck the crossbar and was claimed by Boney on the line, with the officials not even entertaining the idea of a goal despite protests.
Caddis then introduced Kieran Phillips, the striker on loan from Kidderminster Harriers, in favour of Kouhyar but the frustrations continued as Shields were still unable to comfortably pass the ball around as they chose.
Cowley's last chance of the game was a wasted effort, being played through before taking his shot too early.
With Andy Williams now on the pitch, as well as Aurio Teixeira for Lassana Mendes, it seemed as if these were the changes that should've been made 15 minutes earlier.
Within minutes of being on the pitch, Williams had shown his worth with a lightning run into the box - albeit too far to meet a low Ceesay cross - and then having an effort blocked and put behind for a fruitless corner.
It was then McWilliams who slipped on the right deep in the Mariners' half but Teixeira was able to win it back. But the Bulls weren't able to keep hold of the ball for long as a poor cross-field ball from captain Skinner was easily intercepted by Blackett. He then burst towards goal but the combination of a last-ditch challenge and weak effort saw Pond claim the effort.
There were chances for Hereford in the dying stages of the game, but having been poor in possession against a well-organised, full-time outfit, suffered. They took advantage of Hereford's makeshift defence, took their chances and largely dealt with the fleeting spells of pressure they were under. Theatrics and timewasting, apart from a booking for the keeper in the 73rd minute, also seemed to work on referee Craig Scriven so it was an all-round disappointing evening.
Attendance: 1889 (39 away)
Sponsors' man of the match: Alex Babos (who else though?)
Hereford: Pond, Skinner, Ceesay, Babos, Cowley (Williams 70), Kouhyar (Phillips 55), McWilliams, Obadeyi, Mendes (Teixeira 70), Southern, Howkins.
Subs not used: Rooney, Cameron
South Shields: Boney, Lufudu (Fletcher 39), Clarke (Abbey 19), Broadbent, Morse, Smith, Heaney, Briggs, Blackett, Stephenson (Sloan 79), Jenkins
Subs not used: Savage, Martin