Another three points in the bag, and in typical
I was joined today by “Mrs Doug” for her first trip to Priestfield in a couple of seasons. The team is almost unrecognisable from the last time she saw them. We got our first look at new signings Brent Sancho, Moses Ashikodi, and the purveyor of “scruffy chic” fashion, Steve Claridge.
Marcus Browning gets a nice round of applause on his return to Priestfield.
FIRST HALF
The Gills start at the gallop. The lively Matt Jarvis was causing the Bournemouth defenders all sorts of trouble. Ronnie is encouraged when Jarvis takes on their back line and gets a shot away. “That’s what he should do more!” says our Number Two.
Mid-way through the half there is a break down the left, left flank by Jarvis. The linesman flags that the ball has gone for a throw in, but the referee plays advantage. The Bournemouth bench are furious at this as Steve Claridge is through on goal, and somehow misses leaving our bench with their heads in their hands.
Ronnie starts giving the linesman a hard time after a decision doesn’t go our way. With Ronnie it’s always the same. Huge amount of shouting then a big smile to diffuse the situation.
We get a free kick. Flynn, with a deflection via Marcus Browning, buries it in the net. Cheers Marcus! The bench are up. Ronnie slapping Neale on the head Benny Hill style.
SECOND HALF
Formation change in the second half. We go like for like with Bournemouth 3-5-2 with Jackman moving up on the left flank.
Jarvis continues to terrorise the Bournemouth defence. He breaks through the middle with one man to beat and just as he goes past is brought down. Bafflingly, the ref produces a yellow. The bench are up and on their feet, incensed….. all apart from Neale. Cool as a cucumber he carries on drawing out tactics for Danny Spiller who is waiting to come on.
As the half progresses, nerves are starting to jangle. There is a scramble in the Bournemouth goalmouth resembling pinball rather than football. How the ball doesn’t end up in the net no-one can fathom. The move ends with Jarvis shooting straight at the goalkeeper. Ronnie looks to the bench.
“How many fookin’ chances do we need? Must have had 45 by now!!”
Steve Claridge comes off for Moses Ashikodi. He’s done well for 85 minutes. Moses starts sluggishly and doesn’t get in Neale’s good books from the outset. He’s caught offside just over the halfway line. Cooper berates him. He shouts back that he wasn’t offside. Both Ronnie and Neale point out with colourful language that he most certainly was.
Three minutes of injury time is signalled. Moses is shouted at again for not closing down their defenders as they start laying siege to the Gillingham goal. A near miss makes Neale turns to Ronnie.
“I’m going to have a heart attack at this rate!”
Luckily for him, cardiac arrest is averted as the ref blows for full time.
Shout of the day: "Come on Gillingham…!”
Now this might sound like a strange one, but there was a gentleman near me who kept pronouncing Gillingham with a hard “G” as in the place in Dorset.