Gills take a point back to Kent following 0-0 draw with Harrogate.
Gillingham were held to a goalless draw on their first visit to the EnviroVent Stadium on Saturday afternoon
Aiden O'Brien had a great chance in the opening minute of the game with his left footed strike missing the target, with Glenn Morris alert at the other end a couple of times in the second half to preserve the Gills clean sheet and ensure the visitors left with a point.
Neil Harris made two changes to the team that were beaten by Bradford in midweek, with Timothee Dieng returning to the starting XI, while Stuart O’Keefe named on the bench. Tom Nichols started in attack, with Dom Jefferies missing out.
Aiden O’Brien had a great opportunity in the opening minute. Cheye Alexander’s cross into the box bounced in the direction of O’Brien, who did well to chest it down before flicking it over a defender. It gave him the space to shoot, but his effort cleared the crossbar, leaving Mark Oxley untroubled.
Gills continued their bright start to the game as David Tutonda’s cross forced Oxley into action. Oli Hawkins did brilliantly to hold the ball up before playing it to O’Brien. Tutonda made a bursting run towards the penalty area, as O’Brien played it in for him. The left-back got to the ball on the byline before playing towards the six-yard box. Oxley could only get a hand onto it as he palmed it into a dangerous position, but the hosts cleared their lines.
Harrogate had a huge chance to open the scoring in the 12th minute. Glenn Morris and Luke Armstrong competed for a cross into the box, which the Harrogate forward got the better of. The ball fell to Jack Muldoon, who directed it goalward. Fortunately, Alexander and Max Ehmer were on the line to deal with it.
Kazeem Olaigbe came close moments later. He made his way towards the penalty area while fending off a couple of tackles. He got around 20 yards from the goal before directing a low-driven shot across the goal. It left Morris at full stretch but went wide of the post.
In the 29th minute, Levi Sutton forced Morris into a save. The Harrogate midfielder made his way into the box as he got around Dieng before getting a shot away. He tried to curl it around Morris, who had closed down the angle. The Gills keeper got down to make the save before quickly jumping onto the loose ball.
HALF-TIME: Harrogate Town 0-0 Gillingham
In the 55th minute, Morris denied Muldoon. His effort from around 20 yards was saved by the Gills keeper, who could not keep a hold of it. He would then try to claim the ball before pressure came from Armstrong. It appeared Morris had the ball in two hands before there was another swipe at the ball, which sent it loose. Gills eventually cleared it out of play as a couple of players were frustrated with the referee for not awarding a foul.
Danny Grant had a chance in the 68th minute, as a free-kick towards the penalty area was headed down in his direction. The attacker got his half-volley on target, but it was a routine save for Morris, who got down to make the save.
Four minutes later, Tutonda almost scored a sensational goal. The ball bounced perfectly for the left-back to strike a half-volley goalward. His effort was a central one, which appeared to be dipping in at the final seconds. It forced Oxley to backpedal as he got a fingertip on the ball to send it over the crossbar for a corner, which came to nothing.
Olaigbe came close from a Harrogate corner soon after. The ball went short to the winger, who made his way into the penalty area before trying to beat Morris at his near post. The Gills keeper did well to stand tall and deny the effort.
Olaigbe continued to cause the Gills problems as he went on a mazy run towards the penalty box. He did brilliantly, shaking off a couple of challenges before playing it through to Armstrong, who lacked power on his shot as Morris got down to make the stop.
In the first minute of stoppage time, George Thomson had a great chance to score. A ball into the penalty area fell perfectly for the Harrogate man to strike a low-driven effort towards the near post. However, Morris did well to get down and push it behind for a corner.
FULL-TIME: Harrogate Town 0-0 Gillingham
Harrogate Town: Oxley, Sims, O’Connor, Eastman, Foulds, Olaigbe Falkingham, Sutton (Thomson 87’), Grant (Pattison 75’), Muldoom, Armstrong
Unused Substitutes: Giles, Mattock, Burrell, Folarin, Daly
Gillingham: Morris, Alexander, Ehmer, Masterson, Tutonda, Williams (MacDonald 69’), Dieng, Lapslie, O’Brien, Nichols, Hawkins
Unused Substitutes: Turner, Wright, O’Keefe, Coleman, Abrahams
Attendance: 2610 (600)
Referee: Andy Haines