Gillingham FC Caretaker Coach Steve Lovell delivers his verdict following the 2-0 win over Sheffield United at Priestfield
Steve Lovell praised Gillingham’s second half display as two late goals helped defeat Sheffield United 2-0 at MEMS Priestfield Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Jermaine McGlashan came off the bench to score the opener before Cody McDonald struck a second right at the death to guarantee all three points.
United had the better chances in the first half, but Lovell said the players took on board the instructions given at half time and implemented them perfectly.
He said: “You always enjoy it when you win the game; obviously during the game there are things you’re not happy with and you get frustrated but the main thing was getting it over to the players what the problems were that we had in the first half.
“In the second half they took it on and did a really good job. They got the ball down, got the second balls and pushed up from the back.
“We played it in midfield which allowed us to get our fill backs on, they didn’t enough of the ball in the first half because they were going too long.
“The boys don’t give up and since we’ve come in they needed that desire, there is no doubt they’ve got ability but it’s no good if you’re not going to work hard, roll your sleeves up and win your tackles and win your headers.
“We did that, we matched them and the little bit of quality we had in the end was the difference in the game.”
Steve, who was announced as the club’s new First Team Coach earlier in the day following the appointment of Justin Edinburgh, touched on the impact of McGlashan and said any ball played into his path will cause problems for the opposition.
He said: “One ball is just as effective, especially if you have someone of Jermaine’s pace and it was a good finish. Sometimes he is labelled as an impact player but he has started a few games for us recently and has still done well.
“Obviously he would have disappointed to be left out of today but we explained it to him, he understood and he got us the most important first goal.”
As for Cody, the striker fired home with just seconds left to put the game beyond doubt and Lovell praised the forward for his work rate.
He added: “Cody can do that, he has scored some great goals this year and he keeps going. The good forwards may only get one chance but they stick it away. He had a great volley against the bar and then he goes through and finishes brilliantly, but that’s Cody all over.
“He’s a brilliant professional and deserves his goal.”