Gills Manager looking forward to top of the table clash at Banks's Stadium
Gills boss Justin Edinburgh said he and his team are determined to maintain their gap at the top of Sky Bet League One when they take on Walsall this weekend.
It’s a top of the table clash at Banks’s Stadium with Dean Smith’s men two points behind Gillingham in the table, and Justin paid tribute to his opposite number on the job he has done.
He added: “I’m sure no-one would have expected ourselves, Walsall or Burton to be in the top three going into the last weekend of October but we are certainly there on merit.
“Dean has done a fantastic job at Walsall and has got some continuity there. The players have been together for a while now and that’s something we look at and try to model ourselves on and get some consistency with a young group, build together and try to get some success.
“It’s a nice lead to have, we want to maintain that and we don’t want to give up that top position. We are proud of what we are achieving and where we are but we know how hard we have to work, we’ve had two really good performances on the road of late and we’ll look to make that a hat-trick.”
Centre-back Harry Lennon is eligible to play at the weekend but his loan deal from Charlton then expires. However the Manager revealed he is in talks to extend that deal.
He added: “We are in dialogue with Charlton so we are hopeful that will be extended. “Cody isn’t quite 100% which leaves us a bit short but we’ve spoken to the Chairman and are looking into the market but it needs to be the right personnel that come into the group because the dynamics and chemistry are good.
“It’s been a real stop/start to the campaign for him and he’s been getting a bit frustrated but we are hopeful we can tick him along and get him back to full fitness because when he is he will be a top player and in the second half to seasons he comes strong.”
Skipper Doug Loft is close to full fitness too after an Achilles problem, Justin said he may not be able to complete a full game but will utilise the midfielder as much as possible.
He said: “I’m not sure if we can get 90 minutes, he’s playing without injury and that’s something he did throughout the last campaign but that shows the character of the player and perhaps put the team first and not himself.
“He’s all clear now, we’ll have to be careful and cautious but when you have someone of his calibre at your disposal you want to use it as long as possible.”