For the second time in four days, the SKYBet League Two early season leaders arrived at MEMS Priestfield full of confidence and they left with their tails between their legs beaten and point less. 

On Tuesday it was Chesterfield who were destroyed by four goals to one, but the story was slightly different on Saturday when Crewe Alexandra lost their unbeaten record courtesy of Sam Gale’s last minute first ever Gillingham goal extended Gareth Ainsworth’s unbeaten run to seventeen League games since coming to Priestfield possibly against the run of play. 

In what was a historic day at Fortress Priestfield, referee Abigail Byrne became the first female referee to officiate a game at the stadium on what was Robbie McKenzie’s two hundredth game for Gillingham, it was the visitors who had a terrific first half and after Tuesday’s rampant display going forward, the Gills found themselves on the back foot with Mickey Demetriou crashed an effort against the bar with Glenn Morris beaten as the forward headed a free kick onto the top of the bar. 

Tommi O’Reilly then brought the best out of Morris with a curling effort that “The Cat” saved brilliantly. The leaders did have the ball in the net after Conor Thomas was magnificently denied by Morris and as Demetriou slammed home the rebound, the Assistants flag fluttered high! 

The Gills first chance came on the half hour after Josh Andrews and Romeao Hutton combined with Hutton feeding the ball through for Andrews and his shot flew inches past the post. 

O’Reilly was denied by Morris and Andrews went close again after good interplay between Hutton and Elliott Nevitt before Alex keeper Booth was called into his first real save from Andrews’s drive in the final minute of the half. 

Crewe went so close to taking the lead early in the second period after a rare error from Morris. The keeper mis-judged a long ball forward and allowed Josh March in behind him, but the striker missed an open gaping goal and the chance, thankfully from a Gills perspective, was gone! 

Max Sanders became the second Crewe player to smack the Gills woodwork with a curling effort that left Morris rooted to the spot. Nevitt pulled the best out of Booth with a sharp effort which forced the keeper to do really well, before the frame of the Gills goal was hit again as O’Reilly hit the post with Gale hacking clear but as the game went into the final ten minutes, Crewe were finally pushed back as the Gills sensed that perhaps they could get the points.  

Aaron Rowe crashed a shot inch too high – Hutton’s ball found the Gills substitute whose drive nicked off a defender and missed the goal by a fraction. From the corner Rowe went close again, as a low drive skidded fractionally wide. 

With eighty-nine minutes on the clock, Gale struck as Vokes’ knock down dropped so invitingly, the youngster couldn’t believe it as he blasted Crewe’s unbeaten League start to pieces, and how much it meant to the young defender who had admitted after the Chesterfield win that he had only played to honour his Grandfather who had passed away earlier on Tuesday. 

Say it quietly but it’s now three wins out of three for Ainsworth and his side at Priestfield as they move to within a single point of League Two’s summit. 

Gillingham: Morris, Hutton, Smith, McKenzie, Gale, Cirino (Rowe), Little, Coleman, Dack (Jonny Williams), Andrews (Vokes), Nevitt  

Subs – Turner, Clark, Khumbeni, Wyllie  

Crewe Alexandra: Booth, Billington, Demetriou, Connolly, Hutchinson, Lunt (Tezgel), Thomas (Moult), O’Reilly (Finney), Sanders, Agius (Golding), March  

Subs – Waller, Powell, Thibaut 

Referee – Ms. Byrne 

Image courtesy of Gillingham FC