Peter Taylor and Cody McDonald deliver immediate reaction following 3-2 win over Port Vale at MEMS Priestfield Stadium
Gills boss Peter Taylor said he was delighted with the performance of his players in the first 70 minutes against Port Vale on Saturday, but admitted his team need to see out games better as Vale mounted a spirited fightback.Two goals from Bayo Akinfenwa and one for Cody McDonald gave the hosts a commanding 3-0 lead, but Vale set up a tense finish after scoring twice in the last ten minutes through Chris Robertson and substitute Jordan Hugill.
However the home defence stood firm and resisted the inevitable pressure to seal their third straight home victory in a 3-2 win to climb to 11th in the Sky Bet League One table.
After the game Peter said: “I was very pleased, not so much the way we started really early on because I felt we could have passed the ball around a bit more, but after 10 minutes I think we got the confidence to pass it around and I thought we asked a lot of questions and scored three terrific goals.
“For 70 minutes I am extremely happy but for 20 minutes I probably aged too much because we went from doing well to being incredibly negative and nervous and panicked.
“All we spoke about after the game is that it cannot happen, we have to do better than that.
“We were cruising, I think the players were disappointed that the first goal was given to Port Vale as they didn’t think it was clear that the linesman could give that, but we will have to wait and see.
“I said to them that it doesn’t matter, it’s a decision that went against us. That’s what happens and you can’t collapse the way we did because the way they finished they had at least three goals in them so we have to be careful.”
Cody McDonald, who scored his fifth goal in six games, added: “I’m really happy with that one; it has to go down as one of the better team goals we have scored. Nice one touch on the edge of the box and then thankfully I have stuck it in the corner.
“A great cross, a great performance.”
Cody praised both Bradley Dack and Bayo Akinfenwa who both had a big influence on the game with the midfielder setting up both of Akinfenwa’s goals.
He added: “Bradley was brilliant to be fair, that cross for the second goal I think Beckham would have been happy with that one. He has whipped it in a treat and he’s been superb in training and he deserved his start and has come up with the goods.
“That’s his bread and butter [Akinfenwa] – he is so powerful and if Dacky keeps putting in balls like that he will score every week that’s for sure because he knows how to stick those away and defenders can’t deal with him when he’s in that mood.
“Not only his two goals but off the ball he was superb and I was happy when he got the standing ovation because he deserved it.”