Stephen Clemence takes his Gills side to Newport knowing a win could propel the club back into the play-off places.
The Gills make the trip to South Wales this Saturday, as Stephen Clemence looks to claim victory against an in-form Newport County.
After conceding a last-minute equaliser against Swindon last Tuesday evening, Gillingham come into Matchday 32 level on points with Notts County, who currently occupy seventh spot in the league table.
Newport County v Gillingham
Rodney Parade
Sky Bet League Two
Saturday February 17
Kick-Off, 3pm
Team News:
The Gills will continue to be without the services of Dom Jefferies in midfield for the trip to Newport. Robbie Stockdale confirmed during his pre-match press conference that the player is receiving specialist treatment on his thigh injury to aid his recovery. He will remain side-lined for the next few weeks at the least.
Shad Ogie will be assessed ahead of kick-off having been substituted through injury during last Tuesday’s match against Swindon. The player took a heavy knock to the groin whilst making a heroic, goal preventing tackle, but thankfully did not sustain any serious injury.
Josh Andrews has been taking part in full training and edges closer to recovering his fitness and making his Gills debut. This weekend’s clash with the Exiles will come too soon for the player, however.
Stephen Clemence will otherwise have no new injury concerns for the trip to Rodney Parade. Jorge Hurtado is pushing for a start, as is George Lapslie.
As for Newport, they will assess central defender Ryan Delaney and midfielder Aaron Wildig after knee and ankle injuries respectively.
Manager Comments:
Robbie Stockdale: “We’ve said it before, League Two is ridiculously difficult this year. It’s the hardest I can ever remember it. When you look at the teams who came down from the league above, the teams that got promoted from the National League, the results every weekend show that anybody can beat anybody. You have to be right at it in every single match.
“Newport County are a really difficult team.
"They play a similar formation to the one we’ve been playing, whether we tweak ours slightly is something we’ll do our work on. They’ve had a really good run of form recently, in the cup and in the league.
“We need to concentrate on us, try and be the best version of ourselves that we can possibly be, and I think if we do that then we’ll get enough results to be where we want to be at the end of the season.”
Graham Coughlan: “They are a good team with a lot of nous and experience. It will be a tough one against a play-off hopeful and it's an opportunity for us to put a marker down and show we can compete with these big clubs.”
Previous Meeting:
Newport County came to Priestfield back in October 2023, in the reverse fixture of the current Sky Bet League Two campaign.
Two penalties awarded to the visitors on the day were enough to give the Exiles the away victory, both despatched confidently by Omar Bogle. The Gills fought back throughout the second half but were ultimately unable to break through a resolute Newport defence and spark a comeback.
Head-to-Head:
Newport County – 4
Draw – 1
Gillingham – 0
The Gills have faced Newport County (in its current form) on a total of four occasions since the 2019/20 campaign.
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 previous three league fixtures in Sky Bet League Two have ultimately ended in defeat to this weekend’s opponents.
Ticket Information:
Tickets for the match can be purchased on the day, via the Away Kiosk next to the Away turnstile at Rodney Parade – Open from 1:30pm.
Ticket prices can be seen here.
Odds:
Newport County Win – 17/10
Draw – 11/5
Gillingham Win – 6/4
Special Bet: Jorge Hurtado to score at any time – 3/1.
Match Officials:
Referee – Ollie Yates
Assistants – Samuel Fudge & Stuart Kane
Fourth Official – Mark Derrien
Sat Nav: NP19 0UU