Gillingham (0) 3 Kedwell 74, 90 (2 pens), Rooney 86
Plymouth Argyle (0) 0
Att. 5,053
Entrance: Season Ticket
Programme: £3.00
Mileage: 45/683
Match Report
When Paul Scally walked into the old Social Club in the summer of 1995 and told the assembled supporters that he had bought the club out of administration for the princely sum of a quid he etched himself into the history of Gillingham Football Club as its saviour, or so we thought at the time.
In the 16 years that have followed, the Chairman’s popularity has risen and fallen and risen again on a ride resembling that of Blackpool’s Big Dipper. We’ve had the glory years including promotions, Wembley visits, big cup ties and we’ve had the gory years, relegations and debt crises. At present, in my humble opinion, the chairman’s credibility is in positive territory following the investment in new players during the summer and an encouraging start to the new season.
During his tenure, Mr Scally has made a few enemies along the way but in the beginning he was a hero, the man who saved our club, the same cannot be said of the duo at the forefront of a controversial takeover bid at today’s visitors, Plymouth Argyle. Peter Ridsdale, the chairman that led Leeds United to the brink of bankruptcy and Kevin Heaney, the owner of successful non-league club, Truro City are the men at the centre of a bid that has found little favour with the Devon club’s fan base. As the owner of Truro City, Heaney is not allowed to be involved in the actual running of Plymouth Argyle, but should he purchase of the club, he would then sell the footballing side to Ridsdale for £1, but retain the ownership of the stadium and the surrounding land, presumably for development.
And from that brief summary, you should be able to see the similarities between Gillingham’s plight in 1995 and that of Argyle in 2011. There is the purchase for a pound, the ownership of the ground being transferred away from the Football Club and distrust among the fans. Mr Scally has ridden the storm on which Ridsdale and Heaney are endeavouring to embark.
On the field, Plymouth have suffered successive relegations from their Championship status of two years ago, last season’s demise the result of a 10 point penalty for entering administration and players and staff’s morale would have been low following news that their August wages were to be deferred, having not been paid in full since the turn of the year. Add in a 30 year drought with regards to successful visits to Gillingham and it would be understandable if the 315 diehard Pilgrims gathered at the Town End were not exactly blessed with optimism.
In a scrappy first half it was the referee who took centre stage and Charlie Lee the centre of much of the action. The bustling midfielder took a couple of heavy challenges that should have been met with cautions and missed the golden opportunity of the first period when he poked wide after surging into the box.
The early period of the second half was a contest between Matt Lawrence’s head and the charmed life of the Plymouth goal. In the 51st minute, a header from a Danny Spiller corner crashed against the bar and 15 minutes later he steered another header wide from substitute Luke Rooney’s cross.
Gillingham finally took the lead on 74 minutes in a curious manner. Lee crossed and the ball appeared to strike the hand of central defender Danny Gibson before Curtis Weston drove the ball high into the Plymouth net. In the first instance it appeared that the referee had given the goal but his attention was drawn to the linesman who was signalling for a penalty kick. After a long consultation, the goal was chalked off, a penalty awarded and Gibson was shown the red card.
Danny Kedwell was entrusted with the spot kick and he is obviously an old-fashioned penalty taker, putting his foot firmly through the ball to drive past the keeper for his first goal for the club. Kedwell’s celebration indicated the frustration of his wait to open his account. He has been unanimously praised for his energy and work ethic in his role as the lone striker, but the goals on which strikers are judged had refused to come.
Luke Rooney was putting in one of his little cameo performances causing plenty of concern for the visiting defence as well as that irritating bit of petulance that earned him a caution for shirt tugging before scoring with a splendid shot in the last five minutes. Kedwell flicked on for the striker to cut in from the left and score with a rising shot that cannoned in off the underside of the crossbar. His celebration outdid Kedwell’s as he sprinted with Usain Bolt qualities to the halfway line taking the acclaim of the Medway Stand.
Into time added and Plymouth’s day of woe was complete when Lee was brought down inside the box by Simon Walton to allow Kedwell the opportunity to confirm his prowess from 12 yards with another well struck penalty into the bottom right hand corner.
Gillingham’s encouraging start became its best since 1995 and they sit in third place on equal points with the two clubs above them. But for Plymouth, the result is almost immaterial. Their supporters face the prospect that their club might cease to be in the not-too-distant future. I’ve heard the sentence trotted out many times regarding Paul Scally’s takeover of Gillingham: “He may not have been everybody’s cup of tea, but he was the only cup on the table.” Faced with the spectre of Peter Ridsdale, it seems the majority of Argyle supporters would rather go thirsty.
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