Gillingham 1 Walsall 1

Match 40/16/1348 - Tuesday, 18th October 2016 - League One

Gillingham (1) 1 McDonald 24
Walsall (0) 1 Moussa 58
Attendance: 5,391

Entrance: Season Ticket
Programme: £3
Mileage: 58/3,349

Match Report

Ninety-four minutes of my life that are not going to be given back; 94 minutes of frustration and boredom. I think I clock-watched each one of those minutes, watching Gillingham is just not a entertaining experience right now and there was nothing in this performance that suggested it is going to change any time soon. I've wasted too much time on this game, please excuse me on this occasion if the post is short and to the point, I don't want to waste anymore time on this game.

Some of the decisions Justin Edinburgh made from team selection to substitutions defied logic and at the final whistle when faced with, what was probably inappropriate, abuse he then stupidly engaged the perpetrator. It all suggests a man under severe pressure.

Walsall arrived, on a night when the autumn chill was just beginning to bite, without a win on the road, having scored just twice in six games. Despite that less than impressive record, Edinburgh opted to go with a lone striker, Cody McDonald, who ran his nuts off for 94 minutes, leaving three further strikers on the bench and that is where they stayed.

McDonald was the one shining light on a dark evening. How he was overlooked for the man-of-the-match award was about as mystifying as Edinburgh's decisions and Gillingham's failings.

A wonderful bit of wing play from Scott Wagstaff culminated with him standing up the perfect cross for McDonald to head in from close range after 24 minutes. This presented the perfect opportunity for Gillingham to impose themselves on the game and lift a quiet Priestfield. But no, they retreated, offered Walsall a way back into the game which they would ultimately take.

A half-time substitution through injury led to the attack-minded Wagstaff being replaced by the defensive-minded Mark Byrne and the 30 yards of wasteland between McDonald and his nearest team mate seemed to grow bigger with the passing of every mind-numbing minute.

With so many blue shirts parked in their own half it is still a mystery as to why Erhun Oztumer, a player I much admired in his non-league days at Dulwich Hamlet, was allowed the time and space to unload a 25 yard shot that Jonathan Bond couldn't hold with the quickest to react to the rebound being Franck Moussa who had an easy touch-in.

I spoke to an older guy in the last couple of days, who on being informed that I was a Gillingham supporter, he told me that he had been a regular at Priestfield since 1957. These days he doesn't go so much and after his last visit, the home defeat by Oldham, he said he probably would not go again.

This coming Saturday offers the visit of Charlton Athletic. Hopefully, a large travelling contingent will lift the atmosphere that has been almost funereal. I'm not necessarily advocating that Edinburgh should lose his position, but something needs to change and quickly, otherwise I, despite my season ticket, might be among those turning their backs on the club. It's not about a winning team, it's about enjoying an afternoon at football and at this moment in time, that is not what I am doing.