Gareth Ainsworth believes Gillingham’s 1-1 draw against Fleetwood Town was a fair outcome.
Shaun Rooney’s late header cancelled out Seb Palmer-Houlden’s goal at the MEMS Priestfield Stadium. Ainsworth acknowledged that Fleetwood created enough chances to warrant a goal in the League Two clash.
Turner’s Performance a Bright Spot
Jake Turner continued in goal and impressed his manager with some important saves throughout the match.
Ainsworth said that Turner had a super game. He felt that Turner’s performance deserved the clean sheet. Ainsworth highlighted a save in the first half and a free-kick save in the second half as top class.
Injury Update for the Gills
Gillingham entered the game with several players unavailable due to injury. Ainsworth provided updates on Omar Beckles, Cameron Antwi and Armani Little.
Omar Beckles picked up a muscle injury against Barrow, as did Bradley Dack and Armani Little. Garath McCleary is recovering from one, Cameron Antwi had a contact injury, and Conor Masterson is still recovering from one. Ainsworth said there are some really big players out at the moment, and it makes a difference.
Cameron Antwi will be out for definitely a couple of games. He limped off after 25 minutes on his full debut after a tough tackle.
Looking Ahead to MK Dons
Gillingham face MK Dons at ME7 on Tuesday night. Ainsworth anticipates another difficult fixture.
That is going to be a really tough game. They have spent a lot of money bringing in some top-quality players who are well above this level. If we get something out of that game, then that will be a real positive as well. I am hoping that there are one or two back from the injury room, but we will see where we are, ready to go again.
- Shad Ogie and Jonny Williams are returning to the matchday squad
- Ainsworth said Shad Ogie and Jonny Williams have conducted themselves excellently, even though they have not been in the squad for a while
- There has been no fallout
Ainsworth said that he thought that in the second-half, they dealt with Fleetwood a lot better. He asked them for a bit more passing at half-time, and they did it. Still not perfectly, but we have drawn a game at home. This happens in League Two, and that is probably a fair result, and Fleetwood will be happy with a point.