Mark Bonner was pleased with some aspects of his side's performance during the 2-2 draw with Cheltenham Town on Friday night, but conceded it was frustrating not to take all three points.
Gills led the game through Jayden Clarke's seventh goal of the season before the visitors turned the game on its head, leading 2-1 after an hour. George Lapslie came off the bench to equalise, leaving Bonner pleased that his side managed to fight back from a losing position. However, he was disappointed that they could not come away with the win.
Multiple players continued to build their match fitness, including Bradley Dack, who came off the bench and nearly scored the winning goal in the closing moments.
Colchester United are the Football Club's next opponents on Boxing Day, with the Gillingham manager anticipating a difficult fixture against a team in a good run of form.
Immediate thoughts on the game...
I thought that it was a good and entertaining game. We had a real good go and had a lot of chances in the game. I think that we were the more likely to win, with the one right at the end as well. There are parts that we are really pleased with and parts that were disappointing. Overall, I think that the lads are frustrated with what we conceded and also the fact that we haven't taken three points from the game because it's a bit of an opportunity missed for us.
I'm really pleased that we kept a little run going, which I think is key. What we haven't done enough this year is that if we couldn't win, we got beat too often. I'm pleased that we kept the total running and got another result from it. There were times tonight where we looked really good, so it's promising going into a busy spell.
I enjoyed the game. I thought that it was quite eventful. I thought that we could have won it, but I am really happy that we didn't lose it.
The two Gillingham goals...
Our two goals were really good ones. Nev's [Elliott Nevitt] part in both goals was exceptional. Hutts [Remeao Hutton] in the second one, with his ball down the side, Nev's cutback and George Lapslie with a brilliant finish. The first one with Jayden [Clarke], again, off of a Nev strike from a good ball carry, where he has made good distance.
[On the second goal] - Ethan [Coleman] calms the game down and gives it to Hutts. Hutts is really calm and plays an excellent ball in behind, which is something that we needed more of because it plays into Nevs' strengths massively, and he chases down into the corner and finds the cutback brilliantly. Jayden's arriving, but Lappo [George Lapslie] arrives, and it's a great finish.
Players building minutes and fitness...
There are a few in that bracket that are going to keep benefitting after so long out. One or two struggled in the first few games when they're coming back. Aaron Rowe was grinding himself through a few games, and he probably struggled tonight more than he did last week, but that's sometimes what happens, and he has just got to keep getting through those minutes now to build up.
We saw it in Ethan, where he was trying to catch up all the time but is playing brilliantly now. Robbie McKenzie has had periods out, but he's a machine. There are lots of them that are getting themselves up to speed, and hopefully, Dacky [Bradley Dack] can be the same.
Even Elliott Nevitt, as well. His work ethic is great. He's assisted two goals tonight, and that is big for us. The moment will come soon when he gets one himself because he is excellent, and I cannot wait for that. That will be a weight off his shoulders.
With Dacky, there is no real plan. We get led by his body as to what we do. We won't get greedy, and we need to be sensible with a really busy spell.
Looking to Boxing Day against Colchester...
They had a decent point away at Crewe, so they'll be pleased with that. They are always tough games. They should be better off in the league than they are. A lot of their games have been close, or they narrowly lost earlier in the season, where they were the dominant team. I think it will be a tough game, but Boxing Day can be interesting and throw up some strange results as well.
We want to try and make sure that we keep the momentum going that we're building, and that's going to be really key for us. You do get good crowds on Boxing Day, and you want to make sure you put on a good show for them as well.
I was really grateful to the numbers that turned out tonight because it's the Friday night before Christmas, and it's not an easy one for people to get to. I liked the atmosphere, I liked the support they gave the team, and I hope that everyone can enjoy their weekend and the next few days. Those that we see at Colchester I hope that we can go and give another good account of ourselves.
