Gills concede twice in the second half as Wigan take all three points from ME7.
Gills conceded twice in the second half to suffer defeat at the hands of table-topping Wigan at MEMS Priestfield Stadium.
Max Power broke the deadlock in the 64th minute. James McClean swung a ball towards the back post and Power was on hand to head home unchallenged from a tight angle.
Will Keane doubled the visitors lead with less than ten minutes to go, as he flicked Tendayi Darikwa’s cross into the bottom corner.
Steve Evans named an unchanged starting XI from the side that defeated Cambridge in midweek. Jack Tucker and Stuart O’Keefe both returned to the squad, having missed the game at the Abbey Stadium.
Callum Lang had the first chance of the game in the 18th minute. He won a free-kick right on the edge of the box, having been tripped, and stepped up to take the set-piece himself. Lang tried a low-drilled effort, but it proved to be a comfortable save for Jamie Cumming.
In the 22nd minute, Danny Lloyd’s free-kick caused a moment of panic for Ben Amos. Lloyd tried curling the ball towards the penalty spot, but the wind carried it towards the goal. It forced Amos to quickly react and back-track onto his line before pushing it over the bar.
John Akinde came close moments later as he broke behind the Wigan defence. However, following an excellent first touch, his prod at goal was saved by the legs of Amos.
Cumming was called into action seconds before the half-time whistle sounded. A cross from the right hand side took a deflection off David Tutonda, but the Chelsea loanee reacted brilliantly to save it, keeping the score level.
HALF-TIME: Gillingham 0-0 Wigan Athletic
Akinde had the first chance of the second half, and it was created courtesy of a brilliant cross from Tutonda. He curled the ball towards the penalty spot, and Akinde managed to get his head onto it. He headed it downwards with power, but Amos saved it.
In the 56th minute, Lang came close for the visitors. A free-kick into the box was cleared as far as the Wigan forward who tried his luck from 20 yards, but it went wide of the post.
Max Power headed Wigan in front in the 64th minute. A cross was played towards the back post by James McClean, and Power came round the back to head home from a difficult angle.
Oliver almost found an instant response, but his volley was bravely blocked by the sliding Jack Whatmough.
Will Keane came close to doubling Wigan’s lead twice in a matter of seconds. A low cross towards the front post was flicked towards the goal by the forward, but Cumming was equal to it. The second was from a cross towards the centre of the area, but Keane headed over the bar.
Keane finally found the back of the net with just eight minutes to go. Gavin Massey started the move before playing it to Tendayi Darikwa. The Wigan captain fired the ball across the six-yard box for Keane to flick it into the far corner.
Gerald Sithole, a second-half substitute, almost found an instant response for Gillingham. He did well to run down the line before crossing into the box. However, it ended up going towards the goal. It looked set to hit the back of the net until Amos came across to claw it off the line.
Robbie McKenzie was next to force Amos into action. A corner into the box saw McKenzie rise highest to head at goal, but the Wigan keeper did well to keep it out of the net.
FULL-TIME: Gillingham 0-2 Wigan Athletic
Gillingham: Cumming, McKenzie, Bennett, Ehmer, Tutonda, Adshead, Dempsey, MacDonald, Lloyd, Akinde (Sithole 74’), Oliver
Unused Substitutes: Chapman, Tucker, O’Keefe, Lee, Reeves, Kelman
Wigan Athletic: Amos, Watts, Whatmough, Darikwa, Naylor, Cousins, Power, Lang (Edwards 88’), Keane, McClean (Massey 77’), Wyke
Unused Substitutes: Tickle, Pearce, Jones, Tilt, Humphrys
Referee: Neil Hair
Attendance: 4503