Gillingham‘s Ethan Coleman has said that his team are still targetting a top-three finish in League Two with just 12 games left.
The Kent club beat fellow promotion candidates Wrexham 1-0 at Priestfield, with Timothee Dieng scoring in the second half. Gills are now in 8th place in the fourth division, only out of the play-off spots due to Walsall‘s superior goal difference.
Speaking to the media following their win over the Welsh club, midfielder Ethan Coleman said that Stephen Clemence’s side still have lofty ambitions. Asked about the gap between Gillingham and the top three, he noted [Quotes via Kent Online]: “I don’t think it is [too much to make up]. It has been done before.
“If we go on a good run, which I believe we can, then we can push for it, but the main thing is the play-offs.”
Ahead of play this weekend, Gills sit 10 points behind current 3rd-place side Crewe Alexandra, who welcome Morecambe to Gresty Road. Clemence’s team however face a double header away in Lancashire, travelling to Salford City this weekend before heading to Barrow on Tuesday night.
Coleman also spoke of the need for consistency heading into the final stretch of the season, adding: “The league is quite strange, 16th to seventh is so tight, we just have to do what we do as a team and get points on board.
“We’re really happy with the return against teams at the top end of the league and it was a massive performance for us [on Saturday] and some massive points we’ve picked up.
“Going up against these big teams and getting results like that shows what we can do as a team and it is just about consistency now and doing the same thing away from home.”
Gillingham still have a few games against the top seven clubs to play, including two matches against Barrow, as well as a home match against Crewe and a trip to current table toppers Mansfield Town on the second last day of the season.
Writer’s View
Gillingham will need to be on near impeccable form to get an automatic place in League Two. The ten-point gap is a sizable one, and whilst there have been a few slip-ups from the top sides, it is unlikely to be enough for Stephen Clemence’s side to overtake Wrexham and MK Dons, who are both within touching distance of the current top three.
The Kent club travel north to two tough matches, against a Salford City side that has slightly stalled in their rebirth under Karl Robinson, and then on to Barrow three days later. If an automatic spot is the goal, Gills will need to claim six points in these to have a chance.
Football journalist with The Real EFL since 2023. A 2024 Multimedia Journalism graduate from the University of Salford, Lewis specialises in Salford City FC and EFL coverage.
