With Gillingham back in pre-season training, boss Gareth Ainsworth has been talking about summer recruitment and the changes internally at the club and his hopes for the new season, and we also got a surprising admission about last season as well.

We met the Gills boss in one of the executive boxes at MEMS Priestfield, with the pitch looking very impressive in the July sunshine as Ainsworth told us, “The break went very quickly; the sun was good but we’re back now and ready to go again!

“We finished last season with a win (over Shrewsbury Town), but it’s been documented that we released a lot of players after that game and I want to get much more of my stamp on this team – that has been the key in the summer and I have to say that everyone has worked incredibly hard in recruitment and what we are trying to do!

“I think it has been a little but slow at times; as always, the expectations of some players is crazy at times and you have to wait and “spin plates” and negotiate but think that we have done that really well as we have got most of our targets that we set out to get and I dare say that there will still be a couple more coming in before the first game against Walsall!”

“Really happy with what we have achieved – with sixteen going out altogether but with four of the youngsters signed – it’s been an interesting summer with lots of work behind the scenes with the people working so hard I thank them a lot.”

Looking at the signings, Ainsworth said, “I was Wycombe skipper when Kadeem Harris came through – I think Dobbo (Richard Dobson) has known him even longer, he’s someone we have looked at for a while.

“When he went to Salford last year, we watched his progress and when he was in the team I thought he was dynamite and I thought he was Salford’s best player in the play-off final – he was their most attacking threat and I think that’s what you’re going to see… I like pace, I like players who can take people on and get at people, and Kadeem definitely fits that mold.

“He has matured a hell of a lot down the years… Known him for so long that I can’t believe he’s got three children and just got married – he’s a long way away from that seventeen/eighteen-year-old I was skippering at Wycombe around 2010! It’s a fifteen-year-old relationship and we have finally got him in the right building!” the Gills boss added with a huge grin.

“I know that we have let three forwards go, but I do still consider Ronan (Hale) as a new signing, but I do think that we have supplemented the forwards really well – I think Will (Goodwin) is a big powerful aerially dominant runner I believe in him and I believe he will have a hell of a season and get some goals.” 

“There were a lot of clubs in the league who looked at long term loan players too and we are a long way down that option too and we’re really happy with the way that that is proceeding too!”

“I’m happy too with the pre-season schedule,” Ainsworth went on. “We start at Dover next week, testing is ongoing – I want a fitter stronger squad; I believe in the squad I’ve got I really do – there will be two or three – maybe four, depending on departures – additions to this squad now.

“We are shaping into something exciting and I think there will be many teams in League Two who will look at our squad and say “I’d take that now!” and I am taking that now and am very happy with it!”

“We’ve worked hard to sign players who won’t get injured but we are still carrying the likes of Omar (Beckles), Bradley (Dack) and Garath (McLeary) – the over thirties who you have to protect look after and get some reinforcements in, and pre-season is big for everyone especially for some of the youngsters to show me what they can do!”

On his own health issues last season, Ainsworth told us, “I’m feeling fine now! I did have a couple of complications after my surgery that people don’t know about, and we didn’t talk about last year because I didn’t want people thinking we were using excuses, coming out.

“I am absolutely one hundred percent fine, I was never ill but there were just one of two things that needed sorting after surgery which probably played a part in things, but I’m not going for excuses.

“We all weren’t good enough last year, and we are going to make sure we are this year and my health will not be an issue at all – I am fighting fit wanting to join in and train as I always did, but it’s just the legs now and nothing else stopping me!”