#BurtonAlbion | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

fan-of-mulligan · 6 years ago

Text

FOM BLOG: GILLINGHAM 3 - 1 BURTON ALBION

My Thoughts On Gillingham V Burton Albion……………………

I left My House at 12.50PM, and I made sure that I had the following things on me, (Money, Keys, My Gillingham Season Ticket, Sony Xperia XA1, My Gillingham Jacket, Spare Lids, My Gillingham Scarf, My Gillingham Bag, Match-Day Programmes, Packet Of Polo’s, A 500ML Bottle Of Coca Cola, and Pad and Pens) - And I double checked that I had everything on me before I left the house, And I made The fifteen to twenty minute walk from my house to Rainham Train Station, And Once I arrived at Rainham Train Station, I paid for my return ticket to Gillingham which cost me £4.10, and I waited for The 13.15PM Train to arrive, and once The 13.15PM Train arrived, I got on the train and I updated My Status Updates with the following responses on Facebook and Twitter, On my way to Priestfield Stadium, As Gillingham take on Burton Albion In League One this afternoon, Today's match is the first time we have watched Gillingham at home since The 5-2 Home Win Against Plymouth Argyle, the same result today would be superb - COME ON THE GILLS!!!!!

And while I was on the train, I saw one Gillingham Result come through as The U18’s came back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 against Southend United, A Fantastic Result For The U18’s and I am hoping that Gillingham can back there result up with a result against Burton Albion This Afternoon, But it is going to be extremely difficult, Because Burton Albion were relegated from The Championship and they will give Gillingham a much sterner test then Accrington Stanley did the previous week, that isn’t to say that last week’s win against Accrington Stanley was easy, But you would think that Burton Albion coming down from The Championship will have a stronger squad then Accrington Stanley getting promoted from League Two.

I arrived in Gillingham at 13.19PM, and I headed towards Priestfield Stadium and I saw Diane out-side Sainsbury’s, and we made our way towards the ground, and Diane mentioned that it was strange listening to The Accrington Stanley Game On Radio Kent and not being at the ground and I did mention that a few Gillingham Supporters were asking where are you and why you were not at the game, But Diane is going to Millwall and then making a weekend of it for The Walsall Game, So I will be traveling to both of those matches via coach, You can travel to Millwall via train and get a group save, but Me and Diane only went to Millwall via train once, and that was for A Football League Trophy Match where many supporters boycotted the competition and we wouldn’t have traveled via train in any other circumstances, and I have already booked on the coach for Millwall Away.

But we looked ahead to the game against Burton Albion and Gillingham’s First Home League Game Of The Season, And Gillingham will be wearing The Black And White Away Kit for the match against Burton Albion as well, and given how Gillingham struggled to pick up wins at home last season, five wins in total, It is absolutely crucial that Gillingham make Priestfield Stadium A Fortress This Season, A Draw would be a respectable result, but a win would be out-standing and would mean that Gillingham would make the perfect start to The 2018 / 2019 Season With Gillingham picking up six points out of six.

But if we want the home form to improve, yes, performances on the pitch have to improve and there is no doubt that last season, we saw Gillingham put in better performances on the pitch when we were traveling to the likes of Portsmouth, Scunthorpe United, Rotherham United, Charlton Athletic and Peterborough United, five matches, all of which Gillingham managed to win, but the one thing those matches all have in common is the support from The Gillingham Supporters was there, players were given encouragement and there is no coincidence that the better performances on the road are there because the players are given more support from the supporters in the stands, I mentioned to Diane that In My Gillingham Supporters Q & A For 2018 / 2019, When I asked supporters for what needs to change to improve the home form, the vast majority spoke about negativity from the stands being an contributing factor to Gillingham’s Home Form Last Season.

We arrived out-side Priestfield Stadium at 13.30PM, and I went inside The Ticket Office to queue up and buy My Ticket For Walsall Away, Which Cost Me £20.50, And I then went inside The Club Shop to collect The Two Gillingham Shirt’s I brought when I renewed My Season Ticket, And I Brought One Match-Day Programme for £3, It was quite packed inside The Club Shop with many supporters collecting there shirts, and I brought Gillingham’s Home Kit, And The 125 Anniversary Kit, Which Is Gillingham’s Black And White Kit, And The Black And White Kit Is The Kit Gillingham will be wearing against Burton Albion this afternoon.

Diane and Myself got speaking with Alan, Irene, Lisa and Dennis out-side The Club Shop, and so far, the team news has not come in just yet, I mentioned to Alan, Irene, Lisa and Dennis how professional Gillingham were against Accrington Stanley the previous Saturday, Because Gillingham went 2-0 up and managed to see the game out, and this win was more impressive then it first appeared, because Accrington Stanley had not lost a home game in 2018, And Gillingham went to The Crown Ground and picked up an very impressive three points, and when you go back to last season, Gillingham’s First Win Of the Season was against Charlton Athletic, which was our seventh league game of the season, so to get that first win of the season on match-day one was massive, because it just calms everyone down, and had Gillingham lost against Accrington Stanley, then there would be more fear going into this game that Gillingham had to win, well, obviously, we still would like Gillingham to win against Burton Albion, but winning your first game just takes the pressure off the next game, and we go into the match against Burton Albion with more confidence as well.

But our talking point was the home form, Can Gillingham Improve Our Home Form At Priestfield Stadium, Can Gillingham Turn Some Of Last Season’s Eleven Draws Into Wins, Can Gillingham score before half time, because there were a lot of 0-0 goal-less draws at half time for home games, Can the supporters show the same level of support and encouragement we showed towards the players for The Plymouth Argyle On The Final Day Of The Season, and Can Gillingham back up Last Saturday’s Win Against Accrington Stanley with a win against Burton Albion ???

Eventually, Gillingham’s Team News Came Through On Twitter, And Gillingham Lined Up As Follows,,,,,,,,,,, Tomas Holy, Luke O’Neill, Max Ehmer, Gabriel Zakuani, Bradley Garmston, Dean Parrett, Mark Byrne, Billy Bingham, Regan Charles-Cook, Josh Parker, Brandon Hanlan SUBS: Tom Hadler (GK), Barry Fuller, Alex Lacey, Bradley Stevenson, Navid Nasseri, Liam Nash and Tom Eaves - Other than Alex Lacey in for Aaron Simpson, The Match-Day Squad Is The Same from Last Week, And The Starting Line Up Remains Unchanged, And I wouldn’t have made any changes to the team that started against Accrington Stanley Last Saturday.

Lisa and Dennis headed on in, while I spoke with Diane for a bit, and Diane mentioned that she won’t be hanging around after the game for too long, and Diane did manage to retain her usual seat in The Gordon Road Stand for this coming season, Diane then headed round to The Gordon Road Stand, And I said - c ya after the match - And I got My Season Ticket Out and ready and I was searched by one of the stewards prior to entering the ground, which is usual procedure now, and once I was searched, I then went through the turnstiles for Medway Stand Lower and I was handed A A3 Sized Certificate by staff members who were there ready to give the special certificate to supporters who had turned up for Gillingham V Burton Albion for the first home league game of the season.

I then got speaking with Ann, and I brought one fifty / fifty match-day lottery ticket, and we got speaking about just how long a journey it was to Accrington Stanley and back, and to have no USB / Plug Chargers On The Coach was very disappointing, surely for a journey that long, then the coach needs A USB / Plug Charger and thankfully, both of us took power-packs with us, and you have to take power-packs for away games, Ann is going to Millwall, But she is giving Walsall Away a miss because something else has come up on the same-day, I know Diane is driving to Walsall, but she is going to another event in Birmingham and making a weekend of it, So I will be traveling to Walsall via coach.

Ann had The Black and White Kit on already, and I had both The Home and Away Kits on me in a bag, and for anyone who wants The Black And White Kit, they remain out of stock at the moment and only those who had pre-ordered the shirt in advance are collecting there shirt’s at this present moment in time, Both Ann and myself know that this is going to be a difficult match, Burton Albion have come down from The Championship and they have got plenty of decent players in there squad and Gillingham will want to get this season under-way with a win / draw from our first home league game of the season.

I mentioned to Ann that I will be in my new seat for The Burton Albion Game, I was looking to move towards the back of The Medway Stand for at least half of the season last season, and I was trying out different seats, waiting for spare seats and the only problems I had in finding a seat was for The Blackpool Home Game which was a cheap ticket deal, but other then that, seats towards the back of the stand were available, and at least this time I am in a set position and I have got the row I wanted, which is one from the back, and Ann mentioned that she will head round to where Diane is sitting in The Gordon Road Stand, But most of the supporters around me have moved to the Rainham End, or they just cannot afford to go, and whenever it rained, I got soaked and my view low down was restricted, which is another two reason’s why I have moved higher up.

I said cya to Ann before I went pitch-side and spoke with Martin by the advertisement boards, It was a good win against Accrington Stanley, and Martin was telling me how cheap the food and drink was where he was staying, £1.50 for A Coke, less then £2 for a beer, An All Day English Breakfast was cheap and you could go and get more bacon and sausages and each room they booked where they were staying was £40 a night as well, and Martin also got speaking about Jake Hessenthaler, pointing out that he was surprised that Jake Hessenthaler was released and how Jake Hessenthaler was often under-appreciated for the type of midfielder he is, I mentioned how for other players, there is pressure playing for Gillingham Football Club, and any lower league club in League’s One and Two, But playing for Gillingham Football Club must have been big pressure for Jake Hessenthaler, because his dad, Andy Hessenthaler, was such a legend and such a fantastic footballer, that maybe to get out of Andy’s Shadow, Jake needed to make a move, and fair play to Jake Hessenthaler, moving all the way up north to Grimsby Town is one heck of a move to make, and maybe we will see Jake Hessenthaler return to Gillingham Football Club in the near future as well.

But what we have seen from Gillingham’s Midfield from our opening league game of the season was the pace Regan Charles-Cook injects into this Gillingham Midfield and pace was something that Gillingham really did lack last season, Mark Byrne, Jake Hessenthaler, Callum Reilly and Lee Martin would be Gillingham’s Four Man Midfield and all four midfielders are athletic and can get themselves around the pitch, but there not lightning quick and none of those four mentioned can stretch opposition’s defenders and get in and behind, and the lack of pace may well have been one of many contributing factors for Gillingham’s Poor Home Form Last Season.

I then got speaking with Max, and how Brandon Hanlan and Regan Charles-Cook both impressed for Gillingham on the opening day of the season, and Max went to Dover Athletic V Gillingham and he was impressed with Regan Charles-Cook’s Performance In Midfield, and that was the day where I went to Ebbsfleet United V Gillingham, And the win Last Saturday Against Accrington Stanley just settles the nerves a bit and gives the players a bit of a confidence boost, But if we were to back that result up against Accrington Stanley with a draw or a win against Burton Albion, then four / six points from the opening two league games of the season would be an fantastic start to the season, We then got speaking about the players Charlton Athletic have released, Harry Lennon has signed for Southend United and he was a good player for Gillingham on loan, Gillingham have signed Brandon Hanlan and Regan Charles-Cook, and Joe Pigott is playing for AFC Wimbledon, and Charlton Athletic are not giving there young players a chance, and because Steve Lovell used to work at Charlton Athletic as Youth Coach, Then Steve Lovell can say to any young player at Charlton Athletic - Come To Gillingham - You might not get a lot of money but we will give you first team football, and Brandon Hanlan and Regan Charles-Cook are two players who have taken that opportunity.

I said C Ya To Max, before heading towards the back of The Medway Stand and took position in my new seat, I was looking to move seats halfway through last season and because Gillingham had no home matches in pre-season, there was no opportunity to take to my seat in a pre-season friendly, so this match against Burton Albion was not only the opening home game of the season, but the first opportunity I have got to watch Gillingham from a higher vantage point, and with just how much rain we had the day before (On Friday) I thought we were going to have bad weather conditions on match-day, But the weather has improved favourably over the past eight hours.

I then sent the following tweet on Twitter,,,, Ten Minutes To Kick Off - COME ON THE GILLS!!!!!! as we are approaching kick off, Interestingly, Looking at Burton Albion’s Match-Day Squad, Nigel Clough has only named six substitutes, So Burton Albion must have quite a few players injured on the sidelines, and also, looking at the back of the match-day programme, Burton Albion have only got twenty players listed, So Nigel Clough is going to have to use the loan and free agent market to look to strengthen his squad by the time August 31st comes around.

Both teams came out on to the pitch and lined up in-front of The Medway Stand, and the atmosphere raised in volume inside Priestfield Stadium, Gillingham Wearing Black And White, While Burton Albion were wearing there Yellow and Black Home Kit, Referee Lee Probert didn’t switch ends, meaning that Gillingham will be kicking towards The Brian Moore Stand and Burton Albion will be kicking towards The Rainham End, and both teams will be kicking towards the ends where there supporters are situated in during the second half, Hopefully, Gillingham can build on that fantastic win against Accrington Stanley with a win against Burton Albion - COME ON THE GILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FIRST HALF:

And the first noteworthy moment of the match is a half chance for The Gills, Tomas Holy manages to pick out Mark Byrne with a pass out-wide down the right side of the pitch, and Mark Byrne plays a first time pass down the line for Brandon Hanlan to chase after, and Ben Turner just about manages to pass the ball back to Stephen Bywater, And from here, Stephen Bywater kicks the ball long down-field and Billy Bingham wins the initial aerial challenge and Billy Bingham headers the ball into Burton Albion’s Half Of The Pitch, And Kyle McFadzean headers the ball out-wide to Josh Brayford, who tries to pick out Liam Boyce with a long ball down-field and Gabriel Zakuani wins the initial aerial challenge, however, the second ball drops to Joe Sbarra, who tries to pass the ball short to Lucas Adkins, But Josh Parker is on to the loose ball, and Josh Parker’s pass out-wide to the right wing is poor, and Damien McCrory is on to the loose ball, and his pass down the line towards Marvin Sordell is over-hit.

And from here, Max Ehmer’s long ball down-field is won in the air by Damien McCrory and the second ball drops to Ben Fox, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Ben Fox takes a few touches in possession of the ball, and Ben Fox’s attempted pass through to Marvin Sordell is cut out by Dean Parrett at the expense of conceding a throw on, and from here, Damien McCrory throws the ball square to Liam Boyce, who tries to tee up Scott Fraser with a first time effort, but Billy Bingham was in the right place at the right time to intercept the ball, and Regan Charles-Cook gets the ball forward to Brandon Hanlan, However, Ben Fox manages to intercept the ball before passing the ball back to Ben Turner, who passes the ball back to Stephen Bywater, and Stephen Bywater kicks the ball long down-field, and there was Gabriel Zakuani to header the ball clear at the expense of winning a throw on.

In The Third Minute Of The Match, Mark Byrne clips the ball down the line for Brandon Hanlan to chase, and Brandon Hanlan gets to the loose ball first, and Brandon Hanlan initially shields the ball from Damien McCrory before eventually managing to take on The Burton Albion Left Back, and Brandon Hanlan’s low cross is blocked by Scott Fraser at the expense of conceding a throw on, and from the resulting throw on, Luke O’Neill throws the ball square to Dean Parrett, who takes a few touches in possession of the ball, and Dean Parrett passes the ball out-wide to Mark Byrne, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Mark Byrne whips in an dangerous low in-swinging cross towards the near post and Kyle McFadzean has to put the ball out of play at full stretch at the expense of conceding a corner kick, and the atmosphere raises in volume inside Priestfield Stadium, and from the resulting corner kick, Billy Bingham whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross and Stephen Bywater punches the ball partially clear and Scott Fraser gets the ball further away from goal, however, Bradley Garmston is on to the loose ball, and Bradley Garmston takes a few touches before whipping in an dangerous in-swinging cross and Kyle McFadzean manages to header the ball clear and the chance has gone for The Gills.

Four Minutes Into The Match, And Gillingham win themselves another corner kick, Tomas Holy kicks the ball long down-field and Damien McCrory wins the initial aerial challenge and Marvin Sordell is on to the second ball, however, Marvin Sordell losses out to Luke O’Neill, Mark Byrne and Billy Bingham as all three Gillingham Players surround The Burton Albion Winger / Striker, and Billy Bingham now has possession of the ball, and Billy Bingham passes the ball short to Luke O’Neill, who clips a long ball down the line for Regan Charles-Cook to chase, and Regan Charles-Cook forces Ben Turner to knock the ball out of play for another corner kick, and the atmosphere raises in volume inside Priestfield Stadium, and from the resulting corner kick, Billy Bingham whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross and Stephen Bywater gathers the ball with some difficulty.

Six Minutes Into The Match, And Burton Albion are causing Gillingham Problems Defensively, John Brayford has possession of the ball for Burton Albion on the halfway line, and John Brayford passes the ball out-wide to Lucas Akins, who passes the ball back to John Brayford, and John Brayford takes a touch to control the ball before clipping the ball over the top of Bradley Garmston for Lucas Akins to run on to, and Lucas Akins gets to the loose ball first, cuts inside, and clips in an dangerous in-swinging cross and Max Ehmer does brilliantly to header the ball clear and Bradley Garmston gets to the loose ball first and clears the ball forward to Brandon Hanlan, and Brandon Hanlan manages to retain possession of the ball before passing the ball out-wide to Luke O’Neill, and Luke O’Neill clips a long ball down the line and Josh Parker manages to keep the ball in play and stop the ball going out of play for a goal-kick, and Josh Parker manages to win a throw on for The Gills.

Seven Minutes Into The Match, And Burton Albion are asking questions of Gillingham Defensively, Mark Byrne wins an aerial challenge up against Liam Boyce in Gillingham’s Half Of The Pitch, However, The Second Ball Drops Kindly To Joe Sbarra, who takes a touch to control the ball and Joe Sbarra plays a short pass forward to Liam Boyce, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Liam Boyce lays the ball off to Joe Sbarra, who plays a first time pass out-wide to Marvin Sordell, and Marvin Sordell takes a touch to control the ball, and Marvin Sordell whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross which Tomas Holy was able to gather with ease - that front four of Liam Boyce, Joe Sbarra, Marvin Sordell and Lucas Akins are going to cause Gillingham a lot of problems throughout the match.

Regan Charles-Cook is then flagged for offside from Luke O’Neill’s long ball over the top, and Brandon Hanlan is also penalised for his challenge on Kyle McFadzean and Burton Albion are awarded a defensive free kick, again, Gillingham are looking for the long ball over the top and this time it was Billy Bingham playing a long ball down-field, and a minute later, Marvin Sordell cannot control Damien McCrory’s long clipped pass down the line, However, Ten Minutes Into The Match, And Burton Albion had a half chance to open the scoring, Scott Fraser has possession of the ball and passes the ball out-wide to John Brayford down the right side of the pitch, and John Brayford takes a touch to control the ball before threading the ball down the line towards Liam Boyce, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Liam Boyce is being closely marked by Gabriel Zakuani, and Liam Boyce turns back on himself and whips in an dangerous cross / shot which almost picks out Marvin Sordell, and the ball goes out of play for A Gillingham Goal-Kick.

Twelve Minutes Into The Match, and both teams are just starting to open up a bit more, John Brayford plays a long ball down the line and Max Ehmer wins the initial aerial challenge and Billy Bingham gets to the second ball first and kicks the ball long down-field and Brandon Hanlan and Kyle McFadzean are both chasing the loose ball and Kyle McFadzean has to kick the ball clear under some pressure and Billy Bingham brings the ball under control and evades the challenge from Ben Fox, and Billy Bingham takes another touch in possession of the ball before whipping in an high and hanging cross and Stephen Bywater was able to gather the ball with ease, and from here, Stephen Bywater kicks a long ball down-field and Bradley Garmston headers the ball clear at the expense of conceding a throw on.

Scott Fraser then almost picks out Marvin Sordell with a threaded through-ball and Luke O’Neill times his challenge to perfection to play the ball back to Tomas Holy, who kicks the ball long down-field and Kyle McFadzean headers the ball out-wide to John Brayford, who passes the ball down the line towards Lucas Akins, and Lucas Akins passes the ball inside to Ben Fox, who almost picks out Joe Sbarra with a long ball down-field, and Gabriel Zakuani comes across and kicks the ball into touch at the expense of conceding a throw on, and from the resulting throw on, Lucas Akins throws the ball back to John Brayford, who takes a touch to control the ball, and John Brayford passes the ball inside to Ben Fox, who passes the ball forward to Lucas Akins, who is being tightly marked by Bradley Garmston, and Lucas Akins runs inside into an more central position on the pitch before teeing up Joe Sbarra on the edge of the penalty area, and Joe Sbarra’s takes a touch to control the ball before firing a low effort towards the bottom left corner of the net, and Tomas Holy has got down quickly to make a routine save, but a save that Tomas Holy had to make nonetheless.

A Minute Later, And In the Fourteenth Minute, Both Teams are looking to try and make the breakthrough, John Brayford has possession of the ball for Burton Albion down the right side of the pitch on the halfway line, and John Brayford passes the ball forward to Joe Sbarra, who flicks the ball around the corner to Lucas Akins, and Lucas Akins threads through a low driven cross first time, and Joe Sbarra gets on to that low cross first, and Joe Sbarra tee’s up Liam Boyce, who see’s his shot on target blocked by Liam Boyce and Billy Bingham is on to the loose ball and gets the ball clear long down-field, and Josh Parker is almost in on goal and there was a mix up between Ben Turner and Stephen Bywater and Burton Albion manage to survive, and we have seen on occasions already that Gillingham can get in and behind Burton Albion’s Defence.

Bradley Garmston is then penalised for conceding a free kick for pulling Lucas Akins back, and from the resulting free kick, Marvin Sordell’s in-swinging cross has gone straight into the back of The Rainham End and Gillingham have been awarded a goal-kick, and once the ball has gone out of play, Damien McCrory is getting some treatment in the centre circle, However, Damien McCrory is unable to continue and Reece Hutchinson comes on in his place, and Burton Albion have already made there first substitute of the match after sixteen minutes, So Burton Albion have gone into this match against Gillingham with six substitutes on the bench, and now one of there first team players has to be substituted because of injury.

And from the resulting goal-kick, Gillingham almost opened the scoring, Tomas Holy kicks the ball long down-field and Ben Turner wins the aerial challenge up against Brandon Hanlan, however, Regan Charles-Cook gets to the second ball ahead of John Brayford, and Regan Charles-Cook’s First Time Effort Towards Goal is saved by Stephen Bywater, however, the ball ricochets back into Regan Charles-Cook’s path and Regan Charles-Cook retains possession of the ball, passes the ball back to Bradley Garmston, who passes the ball inside to Dean Parrett, And Dean Parrett attempts to clip the ball towards the back-stick and Reece Hutchinson headers the ball clear and Liam Boyce is penalised for his challenge on Dean Parrett and Gillingham have been awarded a free kick, and from the resulting free kick, Luke O’Neill clips in an dangerous in-swinging cross which is partially headed clear by Burton Albion and Lucas Adkins manages to pass the ball inside to Scott Fraser, who plays a long ball down-field, But Luke O’Neill manages to get the ball under control and have another touch before playing a long pass down-field for Josh Parker to get on to, and Josh Parker whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross first time which lands on to the roof of the net, and Gillingham came close to opening the scoring in fortuitous circumstances.

And from the resulting goal-kick, Gillingham almost opened the scoring as Stephen Bywater kicks the ball long down-field and Max Ehmer headers the ball down the line towards Mark Byrne, who takes a touch to control the ball and pass the ball back to Luke O’Neill, who kicks a long ball down the line and Regan Charles-Cook has the pace to get to the ball first, then go round the out-side of Kyle McFadzean, and now Regan Charles-Cook is through by the byline and the chance has opened up for The Gills, and Regan Charles-Cook pulls the ball back across the face of goal and Billy Bingham’s First Time Effort is brilliantly blocked by John Brayford, and after twenty minutes, perhaps that was the best goal-scoring opportunity for either side to break the deadlock.

The next noteworthy moment was Burton Albion being awarded a free kick, Luke O’Neill timed his challenge to perfection on Joe Sbarra, However, Dean Parrett was penalised for persistent fouling on Scott Fraser and that is why Burton Albion were awarded the free kick, even though the free kick decision from Lee Probert irritated Gillingham Supporters, and from the resulting free kick, Ben Fox passes the ball forward to Scott Fraser, who passes the ball forward to Joe Sbarra, and although Gabriel Zakuani times his challenge to perfection, Scott Fraser is trying to get to the loose ball, and Gabriel Zakuani’s pass out-wide is intercepted by Lucas Akins, who cuts inside and lifts the ball forward to Joe Sbarra, and Joe Sbarra lays the ball off to Liam Boyce, who manages to pick out Scott Fraser down the right side of Gillingham’s Penalty Area - Gillingham’s Left - and Scott Fraser’s First Time Cross is gathered by Tomas Holy - A Decent Chance for Burton Albion to open the scoring.

And from here, Tomas Holy rolls the ball short to Dean Parrett, who runs forward in possession of the ball in Gillingham’s Final Third all the way up to just inside Burton Albion’s Half, And Dean Parrett tries to pick out Josh Parker with a cross-field pass down the right side of the pitch, But Dean Parrett’s cross-field pass is over-hit and goes out of play for a throw on, Burton Albion are just giving Gillingham more to think about defensively.

Marvin Sordell is then penalised for a foul on Luke O’Neill, but the next goal-scoring opportunity is for the visitor’s, Tomas Holy kicks the ball long down-field and Ben Turner headers the ball clear and Scott Fraser wins the second aerial challenge as the loose ball drops to Lucas Akins, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Lucas Akins passes the ball out-wide to John Brayford, who passes the ball back inside to Lucas Akins, and Lucas Akins losses possession of the ball to Brandon Hanlan, but the ball ricochets into Gillingham’s Half and Max Ehmer has come across and passed the ball out-wide to Bradley Garmston, who kicks the ball down the line and John Brayford wins a throw on for Burton Albion, and it is from here where Burton Albion create a decent goal-scoring opportunity, because John Brayford throws the ball short to Scott Fraser, who passes the ball back to John Brayford, and John Brayford, Lucas Akins and Scott Fraser all move the ball very quickly and Scott Fraser cannot keep possession of the ball as Gillingham clear there lines, however, Gillingham have the ball now as Mark Byrne passes the ball out-wide to Luke O’Neill, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Luke O’Neill and Mark Byrne link up nicely and Luke O’Neill clips a high ball forwards and Ben Turner wins the initial aerial challenge and Lucas Akins and Luke O’Neill both challenge for the second aerial ball, and Luke O’Neill manages to keep the ball in play, and Luke O’Neill and Max Ehmer pass the ball back to Tomas Holy, who kicks the ball long down-field.

The next half chance is for Burton Albion, Kyle McFadzean kicks a long ball down-field and Joe Sbarra headers the ball out-wide to Marvin Sordell, who is one on one with Luke O’Neill, and Marvin Sordell takes a few touches in possession of the ball before whipping in an dangerous low in-swinging cross which ricochets off Luke O’Neill, and Luke O’Neill prevents the ball from going behind for a corner kick, opting to kick the ball out of play at the expense of conceding a throw on, And From The Resulting Throw On, Burton Albion create a fantastic goal-scoring opportunity, Reece Hutchinson throws the ball short to Joe Sbarra, who plays the ball back to Reece Hutchinson, and Reece Hutchinson passes the ball through to Lucas Akins, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Lucas Akins threads the ball through to Reece Hutchinson on the over-lap, and Reece Hutchinson fires in an dangerous low cross first time and Max Ehmer makes the initial block, however, the second ball falls into Lucas Akins path, and Lucas Akins first time shot towards goal is brilliantly blocked by Gabriel Zakauni at the expense of conceding a corner kick - and it is not the first time we have seen Gabriel Zakuani make an out-standing block like that for The Gills.

Unfortunately, From The Resulting Corner Kick, And Burton Albion Managed To Take The Lead, Joe Sbarra fires in an dangerous in-swinging cross and Liam Boyce has headed the ball into the turf and the ball has bounced into the bottom right corner of the net, and despite Tomas Holy’s best efforts, he is unable to prevent Burton Albion from opening the scoring and Gillingham are now 1-0 down after Twenty Five Minutes, And you have to say that the marking was not good enough for The Gills and it is disappointing to concede what was a sloppy goal in all honestly, Burton Albion have been putting on the pressure, But Regan Charles-Cook and Billy Bingham have had efforts blocked or saved and Gillingham have been solid in the first half.

Now this is going to be a stern test, because many Gillingham Supporters will be thinking - HERE WE GO AGAIN - Gillingham are losing another home game and after getting a great win against Accrington Stanley on the opening day of the season as well, But Burton Albion were always going to be much stronger opposition then Accrington Stanley and there are no easy matches in this division, but the last thing we want to see is Gillingham lose there opening home game of The 2018 / 2019 Season.

After Burton Albion had opened the scoring, the visitor’s were awarded a corner kick in controversial circumstances, because Reece Hutchinson plays a long ball down the line and Max Ehmer shields the ball out of play for A Gillingham Goal-Kick, Only For Referee Lee Probert to award a corner kick, much to the irritation of every Gillingham Supporter Inside Priestfield Stadium, And From The Resulting Corner Kick, Joe Sbarra whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross and Gabriel Zakuani and Josh Parker between the two of them manage to get the ball clear and away from danger, 1-0, and Gillingham can still recover from this set-back, 2-0, and The Gills would have a mountain to climb.

Twenty Eight Minutes Into The Match, And Max Ehmer is penalised for his challenge on Scott Fraser and Burton Albion are awarded a free kick in an central position on the pitch within shooting territory here, and from the resulting free kick, Scott Fraser clips a high and hanging ball towards the back-stick and Scott Fraser’s cross is over-hit and goes out of play for A Gillingham Goal-Kick, And once the ball has gone out of play, Dean Parrett has gone down on to the deck requiring treatment and there is a stoppage in play while Dean Parrett is receiving treatment, and when Dean Parrett got back to his feat, I thought he was OK to continue playing, however, Steve Lovell wasn’t taking any risks and Gillingham are preparing a substitution while The Gills are down to ten men, and once the ball goes out of play again, Tom Eaves has come on for The Gills in what is a very positive substitution from Gillingham Manager Steve Lovell, Because Steve Lovell could have brought on Navid Nasseri or Bradley Stevenson, but opted to bring on Tom Eaves to provide Gillingham with a bit more fire-power.

And Tom Eaves’ first contribution to the match is to be penalised for a foul on Kyle McFadzean, and from the resulting free kick, Max Ehmer manages to shield the ball from Joe Sbarra and win Gillingham a throw on and it’s just about keeping the score-line at 1-0 and seeing what Gillingham can do when we grow into the match and get a consistent spell of creating goal-scoring opportunities, But Gillingham do a lot better then that, a lot better, because Gillingham manage to equalise in The Thirty Fourth Minute Of The Match, Initially, there was defending to do for The Gills and Luke O’Neill shields the ball and kicks the ball against Reece Hutchinson and the ball deflects off The Burton Albion Left Back and goes out of play for A Gillingham Throw On, However, The Throw On was awarded to Burton Albion, and Scott Fraser throws the ball short to Ben Fox, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Ben Fox plays a one / two with Scott Fraser and Ben Fox shields the ball from Josh Parker, But Brandon Hanlan manages to intercept the ball before going on a driving run forward down the right side of the pitch and Brandon Hanlan continue’s his run forward leaving Burton Albion Defenders for dead, and Brandon Hanlan has the awareness and the ability to pick out Tom Eaves with a perfectly weighted pass and Tom Eaves has accurately placed the ball past Stephen Bywater with a neat first time finish to score the all important equaliser for The Gills.

And that goal was desperately needed for The Gills, not only because it was the equaliser but Burton Albion could of potentially doubled there lead and this goal brings Gillingham back into the match and just gives the supporters a boost as well, because first half goals at Priestfield Stadium were few and far between last season, also, you have got to say that Steve Lovell has made an inspirational substitution there because Tom Eaves has only been on the pitch for a few minutes before he scored that equaliser, Tom Eaves scored eighteen goals for Gillingham Last Season and he is off and running this season with his first goal in Gillingham’s First Home League Game Of The Season.

And once played resumes, John Brayford plays the ball down the line towards Lucas Akins, who passes the ball forward to Ben Fox, and Ben Fox plays the ball back to Lucas Akins, who’s first touch was heavy and that allowed Max Ehmer and Regan Charles-Cook between the two of them to kick the ball long down-field and Kyle McFadzean headers the ball down the line and Ben Fox takes a touch to control the ball before playing the ball back to Scott Fraser, and Scott Fraser clips a long ball down the line towards Liam Boyce, and Gabriel Zakuani is in the right place at the right time to clear the ball out of play at the expense of conceding a throw on.

Thirty Six Minutes Into The Match, And Gillingham are on the defensive, From The Resulting Throw On, John Brayford throws the ball square to Liam Boyce inside Gillingham’s Penalty Area and Gabriel Zakuani gets to the loose ball first and basically kicks the ball into Row Z, And From The Second Throw On, John Brayford throws the ball back to Kyle McFadzean, who passes the ball inside to Ben Fox, and Ben Fox is tackled by Gabriel Zakuani, But Ben Fox still has the ball, and Ben Fox passes the ball short to Joe Sbarra, and Joe Sbarra passes the ball out-wide to Lucas Akins, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Lucas Akins looks to take on Luke O’Neill and Lucas Akins fires in an dangerous low cross which Max Ehmer was able to clear and divert away from goal and Josh Parker has possession of the ball for The Gills and there is a chance of a breakaway, and Josh Parker takes too long in possession of the ball and the counter attack breaks down, this was especially annoying because Tom Eaves and Brandon Hanlan were in good positions to get on the end of a decent pass.

Thirty Eight Minutes Into The Match, And Lucas Akins is penalised for a foul on Luke O’Neill, and that free kick just gives Gillingham a breather because Burton Albion are looking to re-take the lead, and in the same minute, Brandon Hanlan is flagged for offside from Mark Byrne’s Pass, and once again, Gillingham are causing Burton Albion plenty of problems defensively with the long pass over the top, and Regan Charles-Cook and Brandon Hanlan have the pace to get on to these long passes, pace was something that Gillingham really did lack in there squad last season, and we’re seeing the benefits of that pace when Brandon Hanlan and Regan Charles-Cook are both stretching Burton Albion’s Defence.

And In the Thirty Ninth Minute, Gillingham had the chance to go in-front, Gabriel Zakuani wins the aerial challenge up against Liam Boyce and Gabriel Zakuani headers the ball towards Regan Charles-Cook, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Regan Charles-Cook runs forward in possession of the ball into Burton Albion’s Half Of The Pitch, And Regan Charles-Cook passes the ball square to Josh Parker in an central area on the pitch, and Josh Parker takes a touch before running forward in possession of the ball, and Josh Parker drags his shot well wide of Stephen Bywater’s Right Hand Post by some considerable distance, and the chance had gone for The Gills.

And In The Fortieth Minute Of The Match, Burton Albion are looking to re-take the lead, Stephen Bywater kicks the ball long down-field and Mark Byrne wins the aerial challenge on the halfway line and John Brayford now has possession of the ball for Burton Albion, and John Brayford plays the ball out-wide to Lucas Akins, who see’s his first time pass charged down, at the expense of conceding a throw on, and from the resulting throw, John Brayford throws the ball short to Lucas Akins, who passes the ball square to Ben Fox, and Ben Fox passes the ball out-wide to Reece Hutchinson, who takes a few touches in possession of the ball before passing the ball back to Ben Turner, who passes the ball out-wide to Reece Hutchinson, and Reece Hutchinson passes the ball down the line towards Scott Fraser, who lays the ball off to Marvin Sordell, and Marvin Sordell passes the ball down the line towards Scott Fraser, And Scott Fraser plays the ball inside to Marvin Sordell, and Marvin Sordell runs down the line and stands the ball up towards the back-stick and Bradley Garmston takes no chances and headers the ball out of play at the expense of conceding a corner kick.

And From The Resulting Corner Kick, Lucas Akins clips a high and hanging ball to the back-stick and Ben Turner wins the aerial challenge up against Gabriel Zakuani and Kyle McFadzean’s over-head kick clears Gillingham’s Crossbar by some considerable distance and once the ball has gone out of play for a goal-kick, Ben Turner is currently down injured and requires treatment and there is another stoppage in play, Ben Turner was able to get back on to his feat and he is OK to continue playing for Burton Albion, Both Gillingham and Burton Albion have made one substitution each duo to injuries, and with Burton Albion only having six players named on the substitutes bench, they do not want to see another senior first team player ruled out because of injury.

Once play resumed, Tomas Holy kicks the ball out-wide to Luke O’Neill, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Luke O’Neill’s high and hanging ball into the heart of Burton Albion’s Penalty Area was gathered with ease by Stephen Bywater, and from here, Stephen Bywater rolls the ball out-wide to John Brayford, who takes a touch to control the ball, and John Brayford kicks a long ball down-field and Gabriel Zakuani wins the initial aerial challenge, but the second ball drops to Scott Fraser, who manages to retain possession of the ball before passing the ball out-wide to Lucas Akins, who plays a neat one / two with Joe Sbarra, and Lucas Akins plays the ball through to Scott Fraser, who passes the ball back to Joe Sbarra, and Joe Sbarra passes the ball through to Lucas Akins, who is looking to tee himself up into an shooting position, But Lucas Akins lays the ball off to Ben Fox, who whips in an early in-swinging cross, and Tomas Holy was able to gather the ball with ease.

And the next noteworthy moment was a terrible mix up at the back for The Gills, Scott Fraser picks out Lucas Akins with a cross-field pass, and Lucas Akins brings the ball under control before looking to thread the ball through to Liam Boyce, and Tomas Holy calls for Gabriel Zakuani to leave the ball and Tomas Holy just about was able to gather the ball, this could have been a costly error which would of been completely unavoidable, thankfully, Tomas Holy was able to gather the ball, but even so, this was almost a dreadful error from Tomas Holy.

Gillingham are looking to turn this match on it’s head before the end of the first half, Regan Charles-Cook has possession of the ball for Gillingham, And Regan Charles-Cook lays the ball off to Mark Byrne, who squares to Billy Bingham, and Billy Bingham plays the ball back to Gabriel Zakuani, who squares the ball to Max Ehmer, and because Max Ehmer was under pressure from Liam Boyce, Max Ehmer passes the ball back to Tomas Holy, who kicks the ball long down-field and Tom Eaves losses out to Kyle McFadzean in the air, but the second ball drops to Billy Bingham, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Billy Bingham passes the ball out-wide to Bradley Garmston, who uses his pace to go past John Brayford, and Bradley Garmston’s low cross towards the near post is routinely saved by Stephen Bywater.

And just as we’re about to approach half time, Gillingham had the chance to take the lead, Regan Charles-Cook manages to block and clear Scott Fraser’s Attempted Cross and Tom Eaves manages to get the ball under control before clipping a long ball down the line and Brandon Hanlan has the strength to shrug Kyle McFadzean off the ball, skip past Ben Turner’s Attempted Challenge and Brandon Hanlan has smashed the ball against the top of the crossbar and Stephen Bywater was completely beaten and Brandon Hanlan was so unlucky not to put Gillingham in-front with that effort on goal, and the final noteworthy moment of the first half was Tom Eaves being flagged for offside from Regan Charles-Cook’s long ball down-field, and after three minutes of stoppage time, Referee Lee Probert blows his whistle for half time and both teams go in at the break with the score-line level at 1-1.

HALF TIME: GILLINGHAM 1 - 1 BURTON ALBION

I then sent the following tweets at half time, ONE: HALF TIME: GILLINGHAM 1-1 BURTON ALBION - I am not sure what how Burton Albion opened the scoring, the goal went in slow motion, great run & pass from Hanlan to set up Eaves for the equaliser and Hanlan was unlucky not to score when his effort on goal crashed against the crossbar, AND TWO: Hopefully Dean Parrett has been substituted because of precautionary measures, Because if Parrett is out injured on the sidelines for a lengthy period of time, then he will be a massive loss for The Gills.

Burton Albion’s Front Four Of Marvin Sordell, Lucas Akins, Liam Boyce and Joe Sbarra are causing Gillingham plenty of problems defensively, But Burton Albion have scored from a set play and it was a disappointing goal to concede as Liam Boyce was given a free header inside Gillingham’s Penalty Area, and this set-back could have seen a continuation of Gillingham’s Poor Home Record Last Season, But Tom Eaves scoring the equaliser so soon after coming on as a substitute has given Gillingham a confidence boost and Brandon Hanlan was so unlucky not to put Gillingham in-front in first half stoppage time.

One Gillingham Supporter had spotted Sean Clare At Priestfield Stadium, and I responded with the following tweet, That will get the rumour mill going, I thought Sean Clare signed for Swansea City??? - I cannot see Sean Clare re-signing for Gillingham Football Club, but can you imagine Sean Clare in this team and with the way Gillingham are currently playing with plenty of pace, I cannot see Sean Clare coming back to The Gills, But If Dean Parrett’s Injury is a serious one, then we could well see Steve Lovell looking to sign another midfielder, just to add some additional depth to the squad.

One of the pleasing aspects of the first half was the atmosphere around Priestfield Stadium, especially when Burton Albion opened the scoring, because it would have been so easy for the crowd to get on the players backs and we hear the chants of frustration, but the supporters stuck with the team, with many supporters recognising that Gillingham had generally put in a decent performance against A Burton Albion Side who were relegated from The Championship Last Season, and that does need to be taken into consideration, Burton Albion were A Championship Club Last Season and Gillingham have put in a decent performance so far, and we have got back on to level terms, that doesn’t necessarily mean that Gillingham will win this match with ease, But 1-1 is better then being 1-0 down at half time.

As for any tactical changes, I think with Tom Eaves coming on for Dean Parrett, I think Steve Lovell will wait as long as possible before making his second substitution of the game, and much will depend on how the game goes throughout the second half, and Gillingham do have to travel to Millwall In the Second Round Of The League Cup On Tuesday Night, So does Steve Lovell take off one or two key players who will start against Millwall On Tuesday Night At The New Den, And also, there might be 1-2 players who are tiring who do need to be substituted, So the likes of Billy Bingham and Bradley Garmston, who missed a lot of football last season, they may well be substituted to ensure that they are available for selection for the next few weeks, Both teams were out of the tunnel for the start of The Second Half, Let’s Hope That Gillingham can kick on from here and pick up three valuable points - COME ON THE GILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SECOND HALF:

And the first noteworthy moment of the second half was Gillingham winning a throw on as Luke O’Neill wins a throw on off Lucas Akins, And In the Forty Sixth Minute Of The Match, Gillingham managed to win themselves a free kick, Tomas Holy passes the ball short to Max Ehmer, who takes a touch to control the ball before kicking the ball long down-field and Ben Turner partially headers the ball clear, however, Luke O’Neill is on to the second ball, and Luke O’Neill takes a touch to control the ball before playing the ball through to Tom Eaves, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Tom Eaves losses out to Ben Turner, But Billy Bingham manages to get to the second ball first and Ben Fox is penalised for his challenge on Billy Bingham, and Gillingham have been awarded a free kick within shooting territory here in an central position on the pitch, and from the resulting free kick, Luke O’Neill and Bradley Garmston are both standing over the loose ball, and Bradley Garmston whips the ball low towards the bottom left corner of the net and Stephen Bywater dives low to his right to parry the ball wide and away from goal and Lucas Akins kicks the ball against Brandon Hanlan, and the ball ricochets out of play for A Burton Albion Goal-Kick.

Gillingham then win a throw on in The Forty Eighth Minute, Because Max Ehmer’s Long Ball Over The Top Almost Picks Out Tom Eaves and Kyle McFadzean comes across and kicks the ball into touch at the expense of conceding a throw on, and from the resulting throw, Mark Byrne lines himself up for a long throw, But Mark Byrne throws the ball short to Luke O’Neill, who takes a touch to control the ball, But Luke O’Neill’s cross was disappointing and hits the back of The Rainham End, Gillingham have made a better start to the second half then Burton Albion, But the visitor’s are going to get opportunities to score, so whenever Gillingham are on top, we need to take the goal-scoring opportunities that come our way.

And From The Resulting Goal-Kick, Stephen Bywater kicks the ball long down-field and Mark Byrne wins the aerial challenge to header the ball back into Burton Albion’s Half Of The Pitch, And Tom Eaves cannot retain possession of the ball, as Ben Fox intercepts the ball and Kyle McFadzean passes the ball out-wide to Reece Hutchinson, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Reece Hutchinson passes the ball out-wide to Marvin Sordell, who passes the ball back to Reece Hutchinson, and Reece Hutchinson plays a one / two with Scott Fraser, and Reece Hutchinson tries to pick Marvin Sordell out with a pass, But Billy Bingham intercepts the ball and plays the ball out-wide to Luke O’Neill, who plays the ball back to Regan Charles-Cook, and Regan Charles-Cook does well to retain possession of the ball, but his pass to Luke O’Neill is intercepted, and Max Ehmer is on to the loose ball first and passes the ball long down-field and Josh Parker and Kyle McFadzean both miss the loose ball, and the ball falls kindly into Brandon Hanlan’s path, who is bundled over to the deck by Kyle McFadzean, and Gillingham have been awarded a free kick within shooting territory here.

And From The Resulting Free Kick, Gillingham Take The Lead, Luke O’Neill and Bradley Garmston are both standing over the loose ball, and this time, Bradley Garmston leaves the free kick for Luke O’Neill, who curls the ball over the wall and picks out the top right corner of the net and Stephen Bywater barely moved because that was an sensational free kick from a player who truly has been out-standing for Gillingham Football Club for the past year or so, and that free kick from Luke O’Neill has given Gillingham the lead in The Fiftieth Minute Of The Match, There is still a long time to go, But Gillingham are winning 2-1 and The Gills have put themselves in a position where we could potentially pick up six points out of six from the opening two league games of the season.

And the atmosphere inside Priestfield Stadium just lifted completely after that stunning free kick from Luke O’Neill, But Burton Albion were looking to respond quickly, as they had a throw on down the right side of the pitch in Gillingham’s Final Third - Gillingham’s Left - And John Brayford throws the ball short to Lucas Akins and although Bradley Garmston wins the initial challenge, Scott Fraser wins the aerial challenge up against Regan Charles-Cook and Gabriel Zakuani headers the ball clear and Kyle McFadzean gets to the loose ball first and passes the ball down the line and Bradley Garmston takes no chances and kicks the ball out of play at the expense of conceding a throw on, and from the resulting throw on, Burton Albion were looking to get themselves back on to level terms, John Brayford throws the ball short to Joe Sbarra, who plays the ball out-wide to John Brayford, and John Brayford manages to pick out Liam Boyce with an accurate pass towards the edge of Gillingham’s Penalty Area, and Liam Boyce plays the ball out-wide to Lucas Akins who see’s his first cross blocked by Max Ehmer, and Lucas Akins wins a corner kick off Luke O’Neill.

And From The Resulting Corner Kick, Scott Fraser whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross which is headed clear by Bradley Garmston at the near post, and Scott Fraser is on to the loose ball and Scott Fraser whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross towards the far post and Marvin Sordell was unmarked and he could not direct his header on target, however, The Linesman Down The Medway Stand Side Of The Pitch had his flag raised for offside, and A Minute Later, Gillingham had a half chance to extend the lead further in there favour, Gabriel Zakuani passes the ball back to Tomas Holy, who passes the ball out-wide to Max Ehmer, and Max Ehmer takes a touch to control the ball before kicking the ball long down-field, and Josh Parker flicks the ball on, and the ball runs all the way through to Stephen Bywater.

But From Here, Burton Albion are looking to score the equaliser as this match is just starting to open up a bit, Stephen Bywater kicks the ball long down-field, and Bradley Garmston headers the ball clear at the expense of conceding a throw on, and it is from the resulting throw on, where Burton Albion created there goal-scoring opportunity, John Brayford throws the ball short to Scott Fraser, who passes the ball out-wide to John Brayford, who see’s his attempted pass cut out and Burton Albion are awarded another throw on, and John Brayford throws the ball back to Ben Turner, who takes a few touches in possession of the ball before passing the ball down the line to Liam Boyce, who manages to retain possession of the ball and lay the ball off to Ben Fox, who evades the challenge from Regan Charles-Cook and passes the ball out-wide to Reece Hutchinson, and Reece Hutchinson takes a touch to control the ball before whipping in an dangerous in-swinging cross which Tomas Holy was able to gather with ease.

Lucas Akins is then penalised for his challenge on Mark Byrne, and from the resulting free kick, this match is now getting a bit too open as both teams are looking to score for different reasons’, For Burton Albion, if they score, they score the equaliser, If Gillingham Score, Then Gillingham will be 3-1 up and in a great position to pick up all three points, Tomas Holy’s long ball from the free kick goes straight to Stephen Bywater, who quickly kicks the ball long down-field and Max Ehmer is in the right place at the right time to header the ball back to Tomas Holy, and from here, Tomas Holy rolls the ball out to Bradley Garmston, who takes a few touches in possession of the ball before playing a fantastic pass down the line towards Brandon Hanlan, who has the pace to get to the loose ball first and Ben Turner intercepts the ball and Stephen Bywater kicks the ball clear and away from danger.

Fifty Seven Minutes Into The Match, And Burton Albion are awarded a free kick because Mark Byrne is penalised for his challenge on Joe Sbarra as Scott Fraser was looking to tee up The Burton Albion Attacking Midfielder, and now the visitor’s have been awarded a free kick within an fantastic goal-scoring opportunity here, and from the resulting free kick, Scott Fraser passes the ball short to Marvin Sordell, who tee’s up Scott Fraser, who’s attempted effort on goal clears Gillingham’s Crossbar by some considerable distance, And that was a huge sigh of relief for every Gillingham Supporter Inside Priestfield Stadium.

And From The Resulting Goal-Kick, Gillingham had the chance to extend there lead further and put themselves in an fantastic position to secure all three points, Tomas Holy kicks the ball long down-field and Kyle McFadzean pulls Tom Eaves to the deck and no foul was awarded in Gillingham’s Favour and Ben Fox manages to get the ball under control and pass the ball out-wide to Lucas Akins, who passes the ball forward to Joe Sbarra, and Joe Sbarra lays the ball off to Scott Fraser, and Scott Fraser losses out to Regan Charles-Cook, and Mark Byrne gets to the second ball and passes the ball forward to Josh Parker, who takes a touch to control the ball before squaring the ball to Regan Charles-Cook, who runs forward in possession of the ball for The Gills and Regan Charles-Cook continue’s his run forward before playing through a defence splitting pace to Brandon Hanlan, and Brandon Hanlan goes for goal with a first time low effort which clips the foot of the far left post and Regan Charles-Cook cannot get to the re-bound because Ben Turner makes a crucial block and Ben Fox times his challenge to perfection on Billy Bingham, However, Mark Byrne gets to the loose ball first and clatters into Ben Fox, but play continue’s as Billy Bingham has possession of the ball, and Billy Bingham fires the ball across the face of goal, and Brandon Hanlan and Regan Charles-Cook cannot get a telling connection on the ball, however, the final touch must have come off A Burton Albion Player, Because Gillingham are awarded A Corner Kick.

And From The Resulting Corner Kick, Billy Bingham whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross and the ball drops to Josh Parker, who is being closely marked by Lucas Akins, and Josh Parker tries to work himself into an shooting position and Josh Parker losses out to Kyle McFadzean and Scott Fraser clears the ball away from goal and Burton Albion managed to clear the lines, However, having almost scored at one end of the pitch, Burton Albion almost equalised at the other, Tomas Holy now has possession of the ball for The Gills and Tomas Holy passes the ball short to Luke O’Neill, who kicks a long ball down the line and Ben Turner gets to the loose ball and kicks the ball long down-field and Max Ehmer headers the ball forwards and Ben Fox gets to the second ball and kicks the ball up into the air and Gabriel Zakuani wins the aerial challenge up against Liam Boyce and Ben Fox headers the ball forwards again and Max Ehmer now has possession of the ball for The Gills, and Max Ehmer takes too long to kick the ball long down-field, and Max Ehmer’s clearance is blocked by Liam Boyce, who runs down the byline and goes past Max Ehmer, who is pulling Liam Boyce back at this moment in time, and Liam Boyce stays on his feat and Liam Boyce pulls the ball across the face of goal and Mark Byrne makes an important block to stop Marvin Sordell from getting a shot off on goal and the ball ricochets to Joe Sbarra, who see’s his driven effort towards goal brilliantly blocked by Gabriel Zakuani and without Gabriel Zakuani there Burton Albion would have surely equalised and the ball ricochets to Josh Parker, who manages to retain possession of the ball and pass the ball out-wide to Luke O’Neill, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Luke O’Neill takes a few touches before whipping in an dangerous low cross and Ben Turner manages to get the ball clear and the second ball goes to Billy Bingham, who passes the ball forward to Regan Charles-Cook, and Regan Charles-Cook manages to cut inside into an more central position on the pitch before firing the ball over the crossbar by some considerable distance.

After that shot on goal from Regan Charles-Cook, Max Ehmer goes down to the deck and requires treatment, But play continue’s with Stephen Bywater kicking the ball long down-field and Bradley Garmston headers the ball clear at the expense of conceding a throw on, and once the ball has gone out of play, Max Ehmer can now get the necessary treatment and the stoppage in play allows Steve Lovell to give his players some additional instructions, and after a minute of treatment, Max Ehmer was back on his feat and OK to continue playing, all be it, with a change of shirt with no number on the back.

But once play gets back underway, Burton Albion are looking to get themselves back on level terms, Marvin Sordell takes a touch to control the ball before passing the ball square to Ben Fox, And Ben Fox takes a touch to control the ball before passing the ball forwards to Lucas Akins, and Lucas Akins manages to retain possession of the ball and pass the ball out-wide to John Brayford, who whips in an dangerous low cross first time and Billy Bingham manages to clear the ball away from danger, But Billy Bingham’s Clearance is only a temporary reprieve, Because Burton Albion create a very good goal-scoring opportunity from the resulting throw on, John Brayford throws the ball back to Kyle McFadzean, who plays the ball through to Ben Fox, and Ben Fox flicks the ball through to Lucas Akins, who retains possession of the ball, takes Max Ehmer on by the byline, and Lucas Akins pulls the ball back across the face of goal and Luke O’Neill wins the initial aerial challenge up against Liam Boyce, and the second ball almost drops kindly for Ben Fox, but the ball ricochets back into Liam Boyce’s Path and Mark Byrne slides in and makes a fantastic block, but the ball is still alive with Joe Sbarra, and Joe Sbarra tries to pick out Scott Fraser on the edge of Gillingham’s Penalty Area, But the ball falls kindly to Josh Parker, who takes a touch to control the ball and his pass towards Tom Eaves down The Medway Stand Side Of The Pitch Was Over-Hit and runs out of play for A Throw On - But that was a fantastic sliding tackle from Mark Byrne.

And it is form this throw on where Burton Albion create a decent goal-scoring opportunity, John Brayford throws the ball back to Kyle McFadzean, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Kyle McFadzean kicks the ball long down-field, and although Max Ehmer wins the initial aerial challenge, the second ball falls kindly to Liam Boyce, who plays the ball out-wide to Joe Sbarra, and Joe Sbarra plays the ball through to Scott Fraser who had made a third man run and Scott Fraser is one on one with Tomas Holy and Scott Fraser see’s his first time effort towards goal brilliantly saved by Tomas Holy and the ball ricochets out of play for A Burton Albion Corner Kick, And From The Resulting Corner Kick, Joe Sbarra whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross towards the back-stick and Ben Turner climbs above Gabriel Zakauni to header the ball towards goal and Josh Parker headers the ball off the line and Scott Fraser gets to the second ball first for Burton Albion, And Scott Fraser takes a touch to control the ball before laying the ball off the John Brayford, and John Brayford passes the ball out-wide to Joe Sbarra, who takes a touch to control the ball before whipping in an dangerous in-swinging cross which Luke O’Neill headers clear and Joe Sbarra passes the ball inside to Ben Fox, who takes a few touches in possession of the ball, and Ben Fox passes the ball forwards to Lucas Akins, and Lucas Akins takes a touch to control the ball before laying the ball off to Ben Fox, and Ben Fox runs down the line towards the byline and Ben Fox forces Mark Byrne to kick the ball into touch, at the expense of conceding a corner kick.

And From The Resulting Corner Kick, Joe Sbarra whips in an dangerous low cross towards the edge of Gillingham’s Penalty Area and Billy Bingham just about manages to get to the loose ball ahead of Liam Boyce and kicks the ball clear down the line and out of play for A Burton Albion Throw On, And Burton Albion continue to pile on the pressure from the resulting throw on, as John Brayford throws the ball short to Ben Fox, who passes the ball back out-wide to John Brayford, who passes the ball back to Kyle McFadzean, and Kyle McFadzean takes a touch to control the ball before kicking the ball long down-field and Liam Boyce flicks the ball on to Lucas Akins, who lays the ball off to Liam Boyce, and Liam Boyce allows Lucas Akins to pass the ball out-wide to Joe Sbarra, and Joe Sbarra takes a touch to control the ball before running towards the byline and pulling the ball back across the face of goal and Liam Boyce wins the aerial challenge up against Billy Bingham and Mark Byrne gets the ball clear and Burton Albion still have the ball as John Brayford passes the ball square to Ben Fox, who takes a touch to control the ball before whipping in a high and hanging cross and Max Ehmer was able to header the ball clear and Ben Fox is first to the loose ball and passes the ball out-wide to John Brayford, And John Brayford passes the ball down the line towards Marvin Sordell, and Marvin Sordell tries to pick out Lucas Akins with an dangerous low cross towards the near post and Gabriel Zakuani manages to get the ball clear and away from goal, and Billy Bingham is then penalised for pulling Marvin Sordell to the deck, and Burton Albion have been awarded a free kick.

And From The Resulting Free Kick, Marvin Sordell whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross and Tomas Holy was able to punch the ball clear and away from danger and out of play for a throw on, and from the resulting throw on, Reece Hutchinson throws the ball to Joe Sbarra, who losses possession of the ball and the ball deflects out of play for A Gillingham Throw On - Burton Albion are clearly on top at this present moment in time and they are causing Gillingham plenty of problems defensively, and I just wonder if Steve Lovell is looking to freshen things up in midfield with Navid Nasseri and Bradley Stevenson named on the substitutes bench, and depending on the seriousness of Max Ehmer’s Injury, Then Alex Lacey could come on to play alongside Gabriel Zakuani.

Seventy One Minutes Into The Match, And Burton Albion had the chance to equalise, Stephen Bywater has possession of the ball and Stephen Bywater throws the ball out-wide to Ben Turner, who takes a touch to control the ball before kicking the ball long down-field and Gabriel Zakauni wins the initial aerial challenge up against Liam Boyce, but the second ball drops kindly to Scott Fraser, who runs forward in possession of the ball towards the edge of Gillingham’s Penalty Area, and Scott Fraser threads the ball through to Lucas Akins down the left side, and Lucas Akins fires a fiercely driven effort towards goal which is saved by Tomas Holy, and that was another goal-scoring opportunity for the visitor’s.

Seventy Three Minutes Into The Match, And Burton Albion are on the front-foot yet again, Ben Turner passes the gal out-wide to Reece Hutchinson Down The Left Side Of The Pitch In Burton Albion’s Final Third, and Reece Hutchinson takes a touch to control the ball before passing the ball square to Scott Fraser, who kicks the ball long down the line towards Joe Sbarra, and Joe Sbarra gets to the long ball first, and Joe Sbarra whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross which is too long for anyone to get on the end of, and Bradley Garmston passes the ball down the line towards Josh Parker, who takes a touch to control the ball and Josh Parker skips past one challenge before looking to pick out Regan Charles-Cook with a cross-field pass and Ben Turner manages to intercept the ball and pass the ball out-wide to Joe Sbarra, and Luke O’Neill times his challenge to perfection and Regan Charles-Cook is on to the loose ball, and Regan Charles-Cook runs from the right side of the pitch into an more central area, and Regan Charles-Cook continue’s his run before looking to thread the ball through to Josh Parker, But Kyle McFadzean is in the right place at the right time to make the block, And Referee Lee Probert stops play as Scott Fraser is now down on the deck requiring treatment, and this stoppage in play irritated every Gillingham Supporter, because Bradley Garmston was on to the loose ball and it looked likely that Gillingham were going to get an attack going, this stoppage in play also allows Steve Lovell to pass on any instructions to his players and Scott Fraser was OK to continue playing for Burton Albion after getting some treatment.

Once play gets underway again, Gabriel Zakauni clears the ball out of play for A Burton Albion Throw On In Gillingham’s Final Third, And From The Resulting Throw On, John Brayford throws the ball short to Marvin Sordell, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Marvin Sordell whips in a high and hanging cross towards the back-stick which Tomas Holy was able to gather with ease, and from here, Gillingham manage to extend the score-line further into there favour as Tomas Holy kicks the ball long down-field and John Brayford wins the aerial challenge up against Tom Eaves and Brandon Hanlan is on to the loose ball and runs through towards goal, and Brandon Hanlan checks back on himself and squares the ball to Billy Bingham, who passes the ball out-wide to Bradley Garmston, and Bradley Garmston see’s his attempted cross charged down and John Brayford headers the ball clear and Billy Bingham headers the ball forward and John Brayford wins the next aerial challenge and Billy Bingham chests the ball down and runs through towards goal, and Billy Bingham see’s his driven effort on goal blocked and the ball ricochets towards Josh Parker and Ben Fox wins the fifty / fifty challenge and kicks the ball clear and away from goal, however, Gabriel Zakuani passes the ball forwards to Josh Parker, who flicks the ball around the corner towards Brandon Hanlan, who is now through on goal, and Brandon Hanlan see’s his low effort towards goal brilliantly saved by Stephen Bywater and Tom Eaves is first to react to tap in the re-bound to extend Gillingham’s lead to 3-1, and that goal just gives The Gills some much needed breathing space.

Now Burton Albion were on top prior to Gillingham scoring that all important fourth goal of the game, and it looked more then likely that Burton Albion were going to score the equaliser for 2-2 rather then Gillingham putting themselves in a commanding position to pick up all three points, But that goal from Tom Eaves has just eased some of the nervousness around Priestfield Stadium, Brandon Hanlan was very unlucky not to get himself on the score-sheet as Stephen Bywater had made a decent save, but there was Tom Eaves to score the re-bound and Tom Eaves gets his goal in-front of The Rainham End, something we saw Tom Eaves do on many occasions throughout The 2017 / 2018 Season.

After that goal had been scored for The Gills, David Templeton comes on to replace Scott Fraser as Nigel Clough makes Burton Albion’s Second Substitution Of The Game, And With Gillingham Now 3 - 1 up, I was wondering if Steve Lovell was looking to make any changes to freshen the team up and look to protect any players who will be starting for Gillingham in our League Cup First Round Tie Against Millwall At The New Den, Maybe One Of Navid Nasseri or Bradley Stevenson can come on to replace Billy Bingham, Mark Byrne or Regan Charles-Cook, or Liam Nash can come on to replace Brandon Hanlan, who has been superb up-front for The Gills, I think Gillingham are in a position now where Steve Lovell can make a second change where he can rest anyone who he believes will start against Millwall On Tuesday Night.

Seventy Eight Minutes Into The Match, And Gillingham have been awarded a free kick, Mark Byrne kicks the ball up into the air and Brandon Hanlan gets to the loose ball first on the halfway line and Brandon Hanlan manages to shield the ball from Ben Fox and Kyle McFadzean and Kyle McFadzean has gone into the back of Brandon Hanlan with a late and reckless challenge and a challenge which see’s Kyle McFadzean go into Referee Lee Probert’s Notebook, and that booking for Kyle McFadzean is actually the first booking of the entire match, and it is from here where Gillingham could and perhaps should have added there fourth goal of the game which would of completely secured all three points for The Gills.

Bradley Garmston kicks the ball long from left to right and Ben Turner wins the initial aerial challenge and David Templeton runs down the left wing in possession of the ball, and David Templeton passes the ball inside to Ben Fox, and Ben Fox passes the ball out-wide to Reece Hutchinson, who takes a touch to control the ball before kicking the ball long down the line and Max Ehmer headers the ball out-wide to Luke O’Neill, And Luke O’Neill kicks the ball long down-field and Tom Eaves gets to the loose ball ahead of Ben Turner, and Tom Eaves is now through on goal and Tom Eaves squares the ball across the face of goal and Brandon Hanlan see’s his first time effort brilliantly saved by Stephen Bywater and the ball diverts out of play for a corner kick, and maybe it is going to be one of those days where Brandon Hanlan is unable to stick the ball into the back of the net, and Tom Eaves tries to return the favour, as Tom Eaves scored his second goal of the save as Brandon Hanlan saw his shot saved by Stephen Bywater and Tom Eaves scored Gillingham’s Third Goal, But Brandon Hanlan perhaps could have scored Gillingham’s Fourth Goal Of The Game.

And From The Resulting Corner Kick, Luke O’Neill whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross and Stephen Bywater was able to gather the ball with ease, and from here, Stephen Bywater kicks the ball long down-field and Joe Sbarra passes the ball short to Ben Fox, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Ben Fox looks to pick out Lucas Akins with a threaded through-ball, But Regan Charles-Cook has tracked back, got to the ball first and passed the ball out-wide to Luke O’Neill, And Luke O’Neill plays the ball through to Brandon Hanlan, and Brandon Hanlan uses his pace to go past Ben Turner, and Brandon Hanlan’s Driven Effort towards the near post is saved By Stephen Bywater and diverted out of play for another Gillingham Corner Kick, And From The Resulting Corner Kick, Luke O’Neill whips in an high and hanging cross towards the back-stick, and Tom Eaves manages to keep the ball in play before winning a throw on down The Gordon Road Stand Side Of The Pitch.

And once the ball had in-fact gone out of play, Burton Albion made there third and final substitution of the match, as Jake Buxton comes on to replace Kyle McFadzean, who had just been booked earlier for his challenge on Brandon Hanlan, So Nigel Clough perhaps is concerned that Kyle McFadzean is going to get himself sent off, there are no changes from Gillingham as we’re in The Eighty Second Minute Of The Match, and I thought that Steve Lovell would be looking to freshen the team up and making sure to take off anyone who is likely to start against Millwall In The League Cup First Round At The New Den.

After that substitution, play resumes and Mark Byrne hurls in an dangerous long throw towards Tom Eaves, who manages to retain possession of the ball, even if it means running out-side of Burton Albion’s Penalty Area, and Tom Eaves lays the ball off to Luke O’Neill, who flicks the ball over the top towards Mark Byrne, and Mark Byrne takes a touch to control the ball before back-healing the ball through to Luke O’Neill on the over-lap, and Luke O’Neill fires the ball across the face of goal and neither Regan Charles-Cook or Josh Parker can get a telling connection on the ball, 4-1 Would basically guarantee all three points for The Gills.

Eighty Three Minutes Into The Match, Burton Albion have the chance to score, Liam Boyce flicks a long pass down-field into Joe Sbarra’s Path, and Joe Sbarra plays the ball through to David Templeton first time, and David Templeton takes a touch to control the ball before running through on goal, and David Templeton skips past Luke O’Neill’s attempted challenge before seeing his shot on goal blocked by Gabriel Zakuani, and Regan Charles-Cook now has possession of the ball for Gillingham, and Regan Charles-Cook passes the ball out-wide to Josh Parker, who takes a touch to control the ball, and Josh Parker runs forward in possession of the ball down the left side of the pitch, and John Brayford manages to chip the ball through to Ben Fox, who is fouled by Josh Parker, and Burton Albion are awarded a free kick, and from the resulting free kick, Gillingham manage to win themselves a corner kick, Stephen Bywater kicks the ball long down-field and Liam Boyce wins the aerial challenge to header the ball out of play for a throw on, and from the resulting throw on, Bradley Garmston throws the ball down the line towards Brandon Hanlan, who brings the ball under control, and Brandon Hanlan runs into an more central position on the pitch before passing the ball out-wide to Regan Charles-Cook, who manages to keep the ball in play and run down the right flank in possession of the ball, and Regan Charles-Cook forces Reece Hutchinson to concede a corner kick, and from the resulting corner kick, Billy Bingham whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross, and Reece Hutchinson can only header the ball out of play at the expense of conceding another corner kick, and from the resulting corner kick, Luke O’Neill passes the ball short to Tom Eaves, who takes a touch to control the ball before clipping the ball back across the face of goal and there was Mark Byrne to header a looping header on to the roof of the net and not the back of the net unfortunately, But Gillingham have created so many goal-scoring opportunities to extend the score-line further in our favour.

Eighty Six Minutes Into The Match, And Gabriel Zakuani clears the ball out of play for a throw on, and from the resulting throw on, Burton Albion have the chance to set up a grand-stand finish, John Brayford hurls in an dangerous long throw and Billy Bingham headers the ball clear and John Brayford plays the ball back inside Gillingham’s Penalty Area first time and Mark Byrne clears the ball away from goal and Gillingham are doing what needs to be done to ensure that Burton Albion cannot get themselves back into this match, Eighty Seven Minutes Into The Match, And Joe Sbarra is penalised for a foul on Brandon Hanlan, and from the resulting free kick, Tomas Holy kicks the ball into touch, playing for yards and looking to pen Burton Albion in there own half.

Luke O’Neill then has to kick the ball into touch at the expense of conceding a throw on, and from the resulting throw on, Burton Albion have the chance to score, John Brayford throws the ball short to Marvin Sordell, who passes the ball through to Lucas Akins, who passes the ball out-wide to John Brayford, who keeps the ball in play, skips past Bradley Garmston’s attempted challenge before whipping in an dangerous in-swinging cross and Max Ehmer headers the ball partially clear and away from danger, and Joe Sbarra is on to the second ball and passes the ball back to Reece Hutchinson, who whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross and Bradley Garmston headers the ball clear and Jake Buxton is on to the loose ball and passes the ball back to Ben Fox, who picks out David Templeton on the left flank, and David Templeton takes a touch to control the ball before taking on Luke O’Neill and passing the ball inside to Lucas Akins, who retains possession of the ball and passes the ball wide to Reece Hutchinson, And Reece Hutchinson whips in an dangerous in-swinging cross and Max Ehmer headers the ball clear and Ben Fox is on to the loose ball and runs forward towards goal before opting to place a low effort into the bottom right corner of the net, and Tomas Holy dives low to his left to make the save.

Gillingham then win a throw on in The Ninetieth Minute, and Bradley Garmston throws the resulting throw on down the line towards Tom Eaves and the ball runs out of play for A Burton Albion Goal-Kick, and as we’re now in stoppage time, Josh Parker is booked for a horrible lunging challenge on John Brayford, and there can be no complaints about the decision to book Josh Parker, And Burton Albion are on the front-foot as Lucas Akins passes the ball through to Liam Boyce, and Gabriel Zakuani times his challenge to perfection and Mark Byrne kicks the ball clear and away from goal, But the pressure has not gone, because Reece Hutchinson wins the fifty / fifty against Regan Charles-Cook, and Joe Sbarra has possession of the ball, and Joe Sbarra now passes the ball out-wide to Liam Boyce and Bradley Garmston tries and fails to shield the ball out for a throw on, and Bradley Garmston concedes a very cheap free kick in an dangerous position on the pitch here, and from the resulting free kick, Marvin Sordell fires in an dangerous low ball towards the near post which Tomas Holy was able to gather with ease, and that save relieves some of the pressure building on to The Gillingham Goal.

Luke O’Neill is then penalised and shown a yellow card for his challenge on David Templeton on the halfway line and Gillingham have just started to pick up a few bookings towards the end of this match, and from the resulting free kick, Jake Buxton kicks the ball long down-field and Gabriel Zakauni headers the ball clear and Regan Charles-Cook kicks the ball long down the line, and from here, Stephen Bywater passes the ball short to Jake Buxton, who again kicks the ball long down-field and Gabriel Zakauni again headers the ball clear, and that was the last noteworthy moment of the match, as Referee Lee Probert blows his whistle for full time, and Gillingham have won against Burton Albion by three goals to one.

FULL TIME: GILLINGHAM 3 - 1 BURTON ALBION

The Players applauded the supporters at the full time whistle, who applauded the players for putting in a massive shift against A Burton Albion Side who were relegated from The Championship Last Season, This Is A Decent Side That Gillingham have beaten in our opening home league game of the season, and also, Gillingham had to win this match from a losing position, going behind to A Liam Boyce Header In The First Half Before Tom Eaves scored the equaliser, And The Second Half Could Have Seen The Score-line End Up As 7 - 4, because it was such an end to end match, and the main thing we can talk about is Gillingham picking up six points out of six from our opening two league games of the season.

I made sure that I had everything on me before heading for the exit, and I got speaking with Lisa, Gary, James and Tom at full time, fantastic performance, excellent win for The Gills and it was brilliant to see Gillingham get that all important win from our opening league game of the season and while Gillingham could have won by a few more goals, it could have been a completely different story and Burton Albion Scored First and they could have gone on to win the game, that’s why Gillingham’s Win Was So Impressive, Because Gillingham managed to win this match from a losing position.

This was also a new experience for me, because I got to watch the opening home league game of the season from my new seat, this is very different to where I previously sat, which was towards the front few rows of The Medway Stand, But I was looking to move towards the back and move higher up, and Lisa had missed her seat in The Rainham End, because the last time Lisa sat there was when Gillingham won 5-2 against Plymouth Argyle, We also spoke about just how experience football is in-terms of cost, and Gillingham Football Club could help supporters out a bit, slash season ticket prices in half on the basis that you get 7,000 Season Ticket Holders Inside Priestfield Stadium, which means more food, drink, match-day programmes and shirts being sold, and it also means an much better atmosphere inside the ground as well.

I then said c ya to James, Lisa, Gary and Tom before catching up with Diane, and Diane mentioned that the win against Burton Albion was welcomed and a bit unexpected because Burton Albion had been relegated from The Championship and they are a good side with good players like Marvin Sordell, Lucas Akins and Liam Boyce and Nigel Clough is an excellent manager, But the score-line in this match could have been anything, while the match ended 3-1 to The Gills, Gillingham V Burton Albion could have seen both teams score another three goals each because this match was very open and end to end, Diane mentioned that she was going to get the coach for Millwall Away On Tuesday Night, But Diane was going to drive to Walsall and stay over in Birmingham and make a weekend of it.

We then met up with Gary after the game and we just had to talk about the performance of one player in particular, and that player was Brandon Hanlan, and all you can say is wow, because Brandon Hanlan assisted Tom Eaves for the opening goal of the game, he then smashed one effort against the top of the crossbar at the end of the first half, Brandon Hanlan won the free kick that Luke O’Neill scored, Brandon Hanlan was played through by Regan Charles-Cook and saw his effort on goal hit the foot of the post and stay out and Hanlan’s shot on goal was saved and Tom Eaves scored the re-bound, and when Tom Eaves tried to return the favour, Brandon Hanlan saw his shot saved by Stephen Bywater, Charlton Athletic’s Loss Is Gillingham’s Gain, Because Steve Lovell has used his connections with Charlton Athletic to sign Regan Charles-Cook and Brandon Hanlan with the lure of offering them first team football, and both players have signed for Gillingham and taken that opportunity with both hands.

And when you look at other academy players Charlton Athletic have released, Harry Lennon has signed for Southend United, understandable, because Chris Powell Is Southend United Manager, But there is serious question marks being asked about Charlton Athletic’s Youth Set-Up and seeing as Steve Lovell probably knows the players in Charlton Athletic’s U18’s to U23’s, Steve Lovell can say to these players, Come To Gillingham, you won’t get massive wages, but we can offer you first team football, and with Brandon Hanlan and Regan Charles-Cook at the football club already, and Steve Lovell will know a few players in the youth set up, then we can entice some promising prospects to Gillingham Football Club.

And youth is perhaps the route we’re going for now, Because Gary and myself spoke about the rumours and speculation regarding Cody McDonald’s Potential Return To Gillingham Football Club, and while the rumours and speculation really do tug on the sentimentality, and we all would love the success story of Cody McDonald coming back to Gillingham Football Club and scoring another twenty goals for Gillingham This Season, Steve Lovell has got Liam Nash, Conor Wilkinson, Brandon Hanlan, Josh Parker, Tom Eaves and Elliott List at his disposal, and if we were going to go into the market for another striker, it may well be the case that Steve Lovell looks to sign an Eighteen Year Old Striker who won’t get game-time now, but could be a player who develops for Gillingham Football Club over time.

And these two paragraphs show that A week really is a long time in football because this is what I mentioned a week ago In My Accrington Stanley Blog - And one of those questions was regarding the transfers and where do you want to strengthen the squad, and quite a few responses was bring in another striker and with Cody McDonald being released by AFC Wimbledon, then the rumours have been in over-drive and Ebbsfleet United have just spent big money to sign Michael Cheek from Dagenham & Redbridge, Billericay Town are in The Conference South and they can offer massive money to sign Cody McDonald, but I do wonder if there still looking to sign Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, and Salford City have got money available, but they have signed Adam Rooney on £4,000 a week from Aberdeen.

For me, It comes down to wages and what can we offer Cody McDonald and what is Cody McDonald willing to sign for, If the deal is affordable and we can get the deal over the line then I would like to see Cody McDonald sign for Gillingham Football Club, I just think that Cody McDonald’s Goal-Scoring Record Of Eighty One Goals In Two Hundred And Twenty Three Appearances proves that we would have a proven goal-scorer and someone with plenty of experience of scoring goals at this level, especially at Gillingham, the experience Cody McDonald can provide to the likes of Elliott List, Brandon Hanlan and Liam Nash would be invaluable, the key response in all of this is the affordability of the deal, if the wages we can offer Cody McDonald are within the clubs wage budget, then we can get this deal done, if not, then someone else will sign Cody.

Steve Lovell was asked in his pre-match press conference about Cody McDonald, and Steve Lovell made it very clear HERE: - https://www.kentonline.co.uk/medway/sport/no-return-of-the-mc-187546/ - That Cody McDonald will not be re-signing for Gillingham Football Club and Steve Lovell is opting to go down the route of developing younger players, because we can offer young players cheaper contracts and they have got re-sale value, I then mentioned to Gary that the transfer market for loan signings and free agents slams shut on The 31st Of August, and Gary did not realise that free agents could not be signed for Gillingham after August, I mentioned one possible area where Gillingham can strengthen the squad, and I think Steve Lovell will be looking to sign A Third Choice Goalkeeper, Just To Give Gillingham an insurance policy should one of Tomas Holy or Tom Hadler are out injured on the sidelines for an extended period of time, If Gillingham were to sign another goalkeeper, then we’re signing someone and telling them that there not going to play, So we’re looking for someone who is unattached and desperate to find themselves a club, or, a young goalkeeper who is willing to be third choice.

Diane decided to head off, and I mentioned that I will see Diane on the coach for Millwall Away, While Me and Gary spoke about that sensational free kick from Luke O’Neill, and that is now a goal and an assist for Luke O’Neill in the first two league games of the season, and you have to say thank you Southend United, Because Luke O’Neill has been an out-standing player for Gillingham Football Club throughout his time here, and you have got to say that Luke O’Neill, Tomas Holy and Tom Eaves are three players that Gillingham need to tie down to contract extensions as quickly as possible, Hopefully, A Run In The League Cup will provide Gillingham with the finances to offer contract extensions.

I then mentioned The NoirCat Prediction League, And I thought that Gillingham would start slowly and I went with a draw and a loss from the first two games, and here we are with Gillingham sitting joint top of League One with six points out of six, But this win against Burton Albion was crucial, because Gillingham only won five league games all season last season, and this season, one win from one was massive, Gary cannot make it for The Sunderland and Coventry City Games, And Sunderland have sold 1,800 tickets, so the attendance for that game will be huge, But Gary will be going to the home game after the Coventry City Game and I will see Gary there.

Gary and myself were also surprised that Gillingham didn’t make there remaining substitutions and Tom Eaves has come on for Gillingham in both matches so far, You would of thought that Navid Nasseri or Bradley Stevenson would come on to freshen things up in midfield or give Liam Nash a runout, But one player who is an fantastic sub to bring on is Barry Fuller, what a player to bring on from the bench if your looking to see a game out, and Barry Fuller’s Experience will prove to be valuable off the pitch for The Gills This Season.

I then sent the following tweets ONE: Last Season, It took Gillingham twelve games to pick up seven points and we didn't score in the first four games of the season , This Season, Gillingham have picked up six points out of six and Eaves, Hanlan, Parker and O'Neill have all got themselves on the score-sheet. AND TWO: Can we just take a moment to talk about Brandon Hanlan Today, Smashes the top of the crossbar with an effort before half time, Assisted Eaves for the equaliser, Hanlan's shot was saved and Eaves scored the rebound, Gillingham have found a hidden gem in Brandon Hanlan, I got a lot of responses for The Brandon Hanlan Tweet.

I then met up with Stephen, Nicky and Tracy In The Factory, and we spoke about that fantastic win against Burton Albion, How Brilliant Brandon Hanlan was for Gillingham, Tom Eaves scoring twice from the substitutes bench, Luke O’Neill’s fantastic free kick, and the atmosphere inside the stadium, because when Gillingham went 1-0 down, we were thinking - HERE WE GO AGAIN - The Atmosphere could have been negative, supporters could have been on the players backs, but we actually saw the supporters stick with the team and I think that was one of the contributing factors for why Gillingham managed to get themselves back on to level terms so quickly, The challenge now is for that atmosphere to continue throughout the rest of the season.

And for our next home game, the atmosphere should take care of itself, Because Gillingham V Sunderland On A Wednesday Night is going to be superb and we’re all looking forward to that game, Stephen wasn’t sure if he could make it, but now he can go to the game, and everyone is excited for that match, Sunderland should take a large away following wherever they go this season, and I am looking forward to the reverse fixture at The Stadium Of Light.

Me and Stephen were talking about The League Cup First Round and who we like to see Gillingham drawn against IF (And That’s A Big IF) If Gillingham can win against Millwall, Crystal Palace, West Ham United, Fulham, Southampton and Newcastle United at home were all mentioned, I think we would like to see Gillingham get a decent cup tie at home, all our League Cup Ties were away from home in 2016 / 2017 and 2017 / 2018, granted, In 2016 / 2017, Gillingham won away against Southend United and Watford before traveling to Tottenham at White Heart Lane and The Gills lost 5-0, But A League Cup Run Would Boost Gillingham’s Finances.

Me and Tracy left at 17.45PM and opted to make a move to Gillingham Train Station, and while walking back, I mentioned that I would be going to Millwall and Walsall, and we are hoping that Gillingham can build on the first two results of the season and pick up results against Millwall and Walsall and get off to a flying start to The 2018 / 2019 Season, The start to this season has already been much better then the start to the previous season where Gillingham didn’t score in the first four competitive matches of The 2017 / 2018 Season, Where as this season, Gillingham have scored five goals, and could have easily scored ten goals in the past two matches.

Tracy needed to queue for her train ticket, So I said C Ya To Tracy before arriving in time to get The 18.15PM Train to Rainham, And I got speaking with Max, And it was a great performance from The Gills Against Burton Albion, Especially recovering from one goal down to win the match 3-1, and it was so so important to get that first home win of the season on the first home game, otherwise, supporters will start to get concerned about our home form again this season, Max mentioned that he watched Brandon Hanlan play a few times for Bromley and he thought that Brandon Hanlan was impressive for The Conference National Side, I did not know a lot about Brandon Hanlan, but he has certainly made the right impression over the last two matches, scoring on his debut against Accrington Stanley, and putting in A Man Of The Match Performance Against Burton Albion.

Once the train arrived, I rang home, and Mum wanted A Small Fish-Cake And A Small Portion Of Chips and I mentioned that I should arrive at Rainham Train Station in five minutes, I then checked my notifications on Twitter, And I got plenty of feed-back from My Tweet praising Brandon Hanlan’s Performance, I do think we have found ourselves a hidden gem in Brandon Hanlan, because that performance from him against Burton Albion was out-standing.

I arrived in Rainham at 18.20PM, And I went to George’s Plaice to buy a small portion of chips and one fish-cake and two jumbo plain sausages and a small portion of chips for £8, and once I got my change back, I then headed towards the car and got a lift back home again, and the lift was needed, as I was carrying My Gillingham Bag, My Gillingham Shirts and the new certificate, and two dinner’s, and I will need to have a look at The A3 Sized Certificate when I get the chance, I was back home at 18.35PM, And all in all, a fantastic way to get our home form up and running, hopefully, Gillingham can continue to build on this impressive start to the season by getting a result against Millwall In The First Round Of The League Cup At The New Den - COME ON THE GILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

#Gillingham #BurtonAlbion #TomEaves #Football

0 notes