[ 23 Apr 16 ] GILLS v Shrewsbury Match Thread

[Garawa]

The Gills have failed to beat Shrewsbury in the last 6 meetings. 3 have ended in draws and 3 in defeats. Overall Shrewsbury edge the wins 22 to 18.

5 of Shrewsbury's 7 away defeats this season came in successive away games. It meant they have only lost 2 of the subsequent 11.

Shrewsbury haven’t won in 7 league games, conceding 16 goals in the process. It took 17 games for the Gills to concede the same amount.

Dating back to May 1997, the last 7 wins for either side (3 for the Gills) had seen the winning side keep a clean sheet. There have been 9 in 11 games in total.

Before today both sides had conceded 30 goals each in the first half but Shrewsbury had conceded double the Gills total of 19 in the second.

Shrewsbury were unbeaten in 6 on the road (managing 3 wins) before succumbing to a 3-1 defeat at Millwall in their last away game.

Despite being 2 points above the drop zone, Shrewsbury have 1 more away point than the Gills who had scored more goals and conceded fewer.

3:02 Kick-Off

3:06
Cody McDonald hits the woodwork.

3:18
GOAL! Gillingham 0-1 Shrewsbury.
Shrewsbury have the 3rd worst win percentage (47.1%) after scoring first, winning 8 out of 17. The Gills have won 13 out of 20 (65.0%).

3:49
GOAL! Gillingham 1-1 Shrewsbury: McDonald

3:50 Half-time: 1-1

4:08
The second half kicks off.

4:18
GOAL! Gillingham 1-2 Shrewsbury.

4:23
GOAL! Gillingham 2-2 Shrewsbury: Hessenthaler

4:44
GOAL! Gillingham 2-3 Shrewsbury.

4:58 FULL-TIME: 2-3

Position: 7th
Attendance: 6,906 (205)
Referee: Lee Swabey

[gillsfan1066]

Forget the bloody facts just get those Gills boys keen to win again, another MUST ,MUST win game this weekend. Guess what I am saying is a grand bloody panjandrum of the bleeding obvious , but come on you GILLS lets win one this week,stop messing around, were almost home and dry.

[Kent_UckyFriedGills]

I keep saying it,but another big game on Saturday.The point at Rochdale was a priceless point,but we need to build on it and get the three 3 points against a struggling Shrewsbury side.It`s kids for a quid so it should be a better crowd than the last two games,a good atmosphere from the start would really help the players.Sheffield Utd are playing Barnsley in the early kick off,so we will know the result before kick off.

[fan_of_mulligan]

I think Gillingham will line up as follows.......................

------------------------------------Nelson---------------------------------------
---------------Oshilaja------------Egan----------------Ehmer-------------------
Jackson--------------A.Morris-----------------Wright-------------------Garmston
-------------------------------------Dack--------------------------------------------
---------------------McDonald-----------------Norris--------------------------------

Subs: G.Morris (GK), El-Abd, McGlashan, B.Dickenson, Hessenthaler, Williams, Donnelly

The only change I can see from the team that started against Rochdale on Tuesday Night is Cody McDonald starting up-front with Bradley Dack lining up in his more natural central attacking midfielder role, the substitutes bench will be given another boost as George Williams is fit enough to be in The Match Day Squad today and having Adam El-Abd back gives us an massive confidence boost, such a shame that The Experienced centre Back isn't fit to start as we have missed him since his forced substitution in The 2-1 defeat against Walsall, and should Adam El-Abd start, then he will need to be substituted late on in the match.

Jermaine McGlashan assisted John Egan's goal for the equaliser against Rochdale and he is very close to starting today, but I suspect that Justin Edinburgh will keep using Jermaine McGlashan as an impact substitute, just in-case Gillingham need to turn a draw into a win, or a defeat into a draw, one thing is for certain, we will know the result of The Sheffield United V Barnsley Game before Gillingham kick off, and if Sheffield United can do us a massive favour and win the derby game at Bramall Lane then that would be fantastic, but that result will only be fantastic if Gillingham do what we have to do today and pick up all three points - COME ON THE GILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Garawa]

SO ANGRY! Crazy decisions by the ref and we have now conceded 7 goals at home from 7 chances. We were good against Walsall until they went 2-0 up with their only real chances, were awful against Port Vale but great after going 2 down but today were superb. All over Shrewsbury, dominated them in every area but let in 3 goals from their only chances of note. Its sooooo frustrating! I guess we have to be critical about marking but that's it, the ref saw to that! Norris was outstanding, I just do not get all the criticism I heard on the way home on Radio Kent and Cody was fantastic too scoring the the goal of the season that won't be as voting is aleady under way! Dream over. Take this form into next season and we will be in trouble from the off.

[Rimshot]

Couldn't disagree more. Our defending was atrocious, Nelson at fault with their first and to lose to such a really poor side I'm afraid we got what we deserved. Nothing. You're right about one thing though ,it's div 1 again next season , bring on Accrington Stanley.

[gillsfan1066]

Time to send Edinburgh and Lovell down the road, what a couple of ****ing losers these guys are, where the hell is Martin Allen when you need him, lol ?? Gillingham you are pathetic, and here I am getting upset, lol,lol.
What a waste of time me getting high blood pressure , I have just got in from a great day of hitting the little white ball around a field,(shot an 80, not bad for the start of the season) came home looked at the Gills score laughed, cried...........what the hell , so woman go get me a beer, PLEASE HONEY) lol, ( great new IPA from Anchor Steam , San Francisco's oldest brewery,founded in 1849 during the gold rush) they have been doing this for the last 50 years ( not Anchor Steam, The Gills ), since I have been a fan, so why I am bothering to let my blood boil I don't know ??
Come on Leicester City , lets go ,snatch the title away from all the rich bitches of the Premier Division, come on Norwich lets see you escape the drop, and come on Blackpool lets avoid the epic tumble of all times, and COME ON DOVER , DOVER, DOVER, LETS GO DOVER, we will see you in the First Division in 2019, at last a REAL DERBY GAME for Gillingham, (what ever hapened to Maidstone "" ) we will still be there waiting for you , don't worry were not going anywhere, in fact we might come down at the end of next season just to play you in the 4th division, next year.
I could cry but I have only had three or four, woman, WOMAN get that bloody beer quick, I need to get drunk, very drunk, real quick, lol.

[Rimshot]

We have just folded under pressure during the run-in to the playoffs . From being table toppers we now look like no hopers, home defeats on the bounce to poor sides says it all.

[Garawa]

That was one of the best game's I've seen us play since September. We are in wretched run but I cannot think of anything Nelson had to do other than pick the ball out 3 times. Same vs Port Vale where 2 stupidly hopefully punts up field saw 2 goals. Walsall were very good but even their 2 goals were a bit of a sucker punch a minute after changing formation at 0-0 in the second half!!! The luck is really against us and we haven't deserved to lose these games but not taking all our chances and poor marking has cost us. I don't recall every chance being converted by the opposition in 2-3 games.....not at our level and if Shrewsbury are so clinical how the heck are they battling relegation?!

As for the ref. One instance still wrangles me now! Aaron Morris is surrounded by 3 players tugging at him [no foul]. He then slightly tugs one back [foul] whilst being stamped at by a Shrewsbury player [no foul let alone red card]. They take the free kick and a slight brush of shirts gives them a foul [yellow card]. Its obscene! After chants of W, W, W (you know how it goes) he suddenly gave fouls our way but quickly went back to normal in the second half. We get whacked off the ball (including a very hard elbow/shoulder barge on Hessy to ensure a through ball went for a GK) and its not a foul yet they get ones for slight brush. Seeing that they conceded 23 fouls (the most this season) it shows how dirty they were yet we still dominated them. They were timewasting after scoring with another 4 goals yet to be scored!

Lee Swabey the referee did not want to give anything our way. Earlier this season he was involved in the Gills V Scunthorpe game where he sent off Josh Wright. Comments form Kent Online read:

Wright’s dismissal came with 10 minutes left and it was harsh. Referee Lee Swabey had already incensed the Gills with several controversial decisions, but his red card for the midfielder surprised most inside Priestfield, with a challenge that deserved a yellow at best.

Someone must look at these collectively surely?

[Kent_UckyFriedGills]

Another gutting & hurtful result.We knew Barnsley drew 0-0 before our game,& we had a positive start with Cody`s header hitting the bar,and another effort well saved by their keeper.Then they scored out of nothing to silence us.Palace winger Kaikai hit a great strike past Nelson,I felt we could have closed him down more,also Nelson could have got more on it.We kept going though and Egan`s free kick was well saved,but just on half-time we won a free kick about 20 yards out.The ball was teed up for Cody who rifled it past their keeper.An unstoppable strike,and so deserved for Cody who deserved two before that went in.We came out in the second half brightly & looked likely to score,but again poor defending from a corner meant a free header for their player to score.The response was good as Hessenthaler`s low strike levelled it up.I thought we would go on & win but late on they scored on the counter attack after Egan was clearly fouled in their box moments before.You could see that goal killed our confidence as we ran the ball out & didn`t really create another chance.

A mention for the ref Lee Swabey who I thought was up there as one of the worst ref`s we have had at Priestfield.From the first whistle he let time wasting happen,especially with their goalkeeper.Cynical fouls,and constant holding of players.Also Norris was clearly elbowed in the head at one stage.As usual the goalkeeper was finally booked in the last 3 minutes,why don`t they book them early to cut it out? As bad as the ref was our defending was still poor.Since El-Abd has been out of the Team,we have struggled to defend & miss his experience.We didn`t deserve to lose the game on chances,but if you can`t defend you probably need 4 goals a game.

MOTM- If Cody didn`t run out of puff in the second half I would have given it to him,but I felt Dack never gave up & was a man possessed trying to do everyone`s work.Enjoy him for the last couple of games.Norris did all the hard graft which can go unnoticed,he could have easily have been given the award too.

[Rimshot]

Agreed the ref was truly appalling but he was NOT the reason we lost. We can't defend even the simplest counter-attack, in my view this is primarily down to lack of 'bite' in midfield. We seem quite content to concede the middle of the pitch and this allows the oppo to play long diagonal passes with plenty of time to find a target.
Add to that Nelson's sorry attempt on the first goal.
If that's the best we've played since September I'm glad I don't make the round trip from Buckinghamshire more often.

[lidbid46]

Did anyone else think that the clash at the end when one of their players was hurt was a penalty? I swear Dack was taken out by two defenders; one high and the other low and I actually thought he was going to be the one who was hurt. As it was the last kick of the game it seemed to be glossed over but from block two in the Rainham End it looked like a penalty to me.

[Goalmouth]

I agree with you Lid, but I was a long way away. You certainly couldn't call the referee a 'Homer' and having seen Nelson told by the referee in the first half at Sheffield Utd to get a move on, I was astounded the ref on Saturday only added on two minutes at the end of the first half considering how long it took Shrewsbury's 'keeper to take free kicks. I'm not saying we're averse to a bit of time wasting, but the referees always seem to add on plenty of time when we're winning or drawing away from home.

[Garawa]

We all know time wasting happens in most games and do it ourselves but not after 20 minutes with another 4 goals yet to be scored! 2 minutes does then seem very odd. I too thought it was a foul on Dack but didn't have a clue what was happening so didn't think of it. I didn't even hear the final whistle which I'm positive never came at the time and looking at the live text of the match, the last "action" was a yellow card for Akpa-Akpro so there is no mention of a foul either way. Seems like it gave the ref the ideal chance to end the game and not give something our way!

Rimshot, ONE of the best performances not the best. I felt we played well, attacked well and created chances and the stats bear out the fact. Most shots on target in a game this season (9), most for a player in any one game (Cody x 4), most fouls won (23), most fouled player in a match for several seasons (Norris x 8), highest home percentage (60.0%) and 16 shots to 7. Had it ended 3-2 to us and we would be saying what a great game it was.

[Kent_UckyFriedGills]

Did anyone else think that the clash at the end when one of their players was hurt was a penalty? I swear Dack was taken out by two defenders; one high and the other low and I actually thought he was going to be the one who was hurt. As it was the last kick of the game it seemed to be glossed over but from block two in the Rainham End it looked like a penalty to me.

I did,I waited for a good 10 minutes to see who it was.Luckily their player was ok.