There are no fresh injury or suspension concerns for Keith Millen as his Gills team go in search of a second successive win.
The Gills welcome Newport County to Priestfield this Saturday, as Keith Millen’s side look to back up their midweek win on the road.
Connor Mahoney scored the only goal in Swindon midweek to put the team back amongst the League Two Play-Off places.
Gillingham v Newport County
Sky Bet League Two
Priestfield Stadium
Saturday 28th October
Kick-Off: 15:00
Team News:
Oli Hawkins and Ashley Nadesan continue to recover from long-term heel and ankle injuries respectively, ruling them out of consideration for the visit of Newport this weekend. Keith Millen has commented that both are moving in the right direction, however.
Tim Dieng could potentially make his long-awaited return to the squad, having suffered a knee injury away to Grimsby back in early September, ruling the midfielder out for several weeks. The player has been training with the squad, but this fixture might come too soon for him.
George Lapslie is fully fit and set to feature in some capacity, whilst both Shaun Williams and Robbie McKenzie remain doubts and will continue to be assessed ahead of the weekend, both having struggled to recover from ongoing injuries.
As for Newport, Josh Seberry is set for a few months on the sidelines after breaking his leg against Notts County on Tuesday.
The visitors come into the game with several concerns including James Clarke (groin), Kyle Jameson (hip) and Adam Lewis (quad), midfielder Harry Charsley (ankle) and strikers Offrande Zanzala (knee) and Seb Palmer-Houlden (hamstring).
Manager Comments:
Keith Millen: “I’m hoping that the result on Tuesday gives us a good base and a bit more confidence as a team heading into the weekend. We’ve had two strong performances against, I think, two of the best footballing sides in the league.
“Newport are a different team, who will cause us different kinds of problems. I’ve watched two or three of their games back already and we have to be tactically prepared for them.
“They haven’t been on a great run of form but that’s always dangerous.
"They’ll be looking to get a result and turn that form around, it’s our job to make sure it isn’t against us.
“They’ll be determined, strong and aggressive, everything you’d expect from a Graham Coughlan side.”
Graham Coughlan: "They need to roll their sleeves up and they need to fight, they need to find a little bit of self-pride.
"I backed them all day long, 100%, and I wouldn't let anybody say anything bad about them or come down on top of them or have a go at them.
"I'm telling my players I'm in a corner now and I need their backing and I need their help.
"I want to see how many of them are willing to back me the way I've backed them all season."
Previous Meeting:
The final home game of Gills 2022/23 League Two campaign saw this weekend’s visitors pick up a 2-1 win at Priestfield, with goals from Cameron Norman and Omar Bogle. Tom Nichols got on to the scoresheet from the spot for the Gills.
The reverse fixture ended 2-0 to Newport County.
Head-to-Head:
Gillingham – 0
Draw – 1
Newport County – 2
The Gills have faced Newport County (in its current form) on a total of three occasions since the 2019/20 season.
The first encounter came in the League Cup during the 2019/20 campaign, the game ending in a draw with Newport progressing after winning 4-1 in the resulting penalty shootout. Our two fixtures in last season’s Sky Bet League Two campaign ended in victory for this weekend’s visitors.
Ticket Information:
Tickets are available online up until kick-off and from the Redfern Avenue ticket window from 9am.
Use the below link to select your seats.
Please be aware this is our dedicated remembrance fixture and, with that being the case, we would kindly ask all fans to enter the stadium a couple of minutes earlier than normal due to a period of silence being observed before kick-off.
BUY TICKETS | GILLS V NEWPORT
Match Officials:
Referee – Tom Reeves
Assistants – Chris Wade & Declan O’Shea
Fourth Official – Andy Bennet
Odds:
Gillingham Win – 10/11
Draw – 5/2
Newport County – 14/5
Special Bet: George Lapslie to score and Gillingham to win – 4/1
Sat Nav: ME7 2PE