Gillingham (0) 1 Miller 49
Brighton & Hove Albion (1) 1 El-Abd 5
Att. 7,997
Entrance: Season Ticket
Programme: £3
Mileage: 45/6,955
Match Report
Leyton Orient did it last night, Tranmere Rovers did it recently and now, to stand any chance of avoiding relegation, Gillingham have to do it in the next three games, that is to win a game that nobody really expects them to do.Last night was the must win game of Gillingham’s final fixtures and, despite a valiant effort in a thrilling match, they fell short of the desired result.
An Alan Julian penalty save preserved hope while Chris Dickson showed exactly why he has gone from hero to zero in a pulsating second half.
Following last Saturday’s humiliation at Millwall, Garry Richards, who will miss the rest of the season, was replaced by Josh Gowling, Curtis Weston returned in midfield at the expense of Stuart Lewis and Dennis Oli partnered Rene Howe up front.
A must win match could not have had a worse start for the home side with Brighton taking an early lead. Adam El-Abd firmly met a Elliott Bennett corner to head the visitors into the lead in front of their 1,200-plus supporters. Buoyed by their early success, Brighton went on to dominate the first half as Gillingham struggled to retain a foothold in the game.
Darren Dennehy failed to appear for the second half and Tom Wynter was somewhat surprisingly preferred as replacement rather than Mark Bentley.
Gillingham found an equaliser in the opening minutes of the second half. Adam Miller collected a pass from Howe, ran into the box and fired home from 12 yards providing the home side with the lift they needed.
Brighton, and Glenn Murray in particular, had numerous opportunities to regain the lead but the Seagulls’ sure shot of recent weeks was misfiring badly. Simeon Jackson entered the fray as a 60th minute substitute for Miller, who perhaps was withdrawn on the back of a yellow card.
An opportunity for Gills’ leading scoring presented itself almost immediately. A long ball saw Jackson in the clear but his attempted lob was blocked by keeper Brezovan on the edge of the box.
Twenty minutes remained when Chris Dickson was given his chance to regain the esteem of the home support and a golden opportunity presented itself ten minutes later. A Danny Jackman free kick evaded everybody and fell at the striker’s feet to the left of the goal, but with the whole 12 x 8 to aim it, he rolled the ball onto the far post and the chance was lost.
Dickson further riled the elderly folk in the Gordon Road Stand when he failed to make a run down the line leaving John Nutter with nowhere to go. His attempted clearance was charged down into the path of Murray who was hauled to the ground by Gowling, the central defender receiving a red card for his trouble.
It felt that Gillingham’s season now hinged on the spot kick. Murray, whose profligate shooting had kept the game alive, surely could not miss again. Alan Julian dived left, but as his left hand trailed it was enough to get a vital block on the ball and as the ball was cleared it was mass jubilation all round.In the time added on Julian was twice reading the riot act to Dickson as his languid use of the ball added pressure on the 10 men and it was clear that Gillingham were more than happy to settle for the point they had.
In different circumstances, and perhaps for the neutral it was, this would have been a classic with all the thrills and spills necessary for such an encounter, but for the majority of the home support it would have been agony, ecstasy and finally a realisation that a point might not be enough.
We will know the answer when the big boys have been and gone, but we have to believe that if Leyton Orient and Tranmere can do it, so can we.
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