Manager Gareth Ainsworth has called on his Gillingham side to get back to winning ways when Grimsby Town come to Priestfield on Saturday afternoon.

The 1-1 home draw with Port Vale on Tuesday night saw The Gills drop to 7th place in League Two, just inside the play-off places.

After an indifferent start to the season that has seen Gillingham blow hot and cold, fans have questioned whether their side have what it finally takes to get promoted under Ainsworth.

Having seen his side take the lead through a Ronan Hale penalty, Ainsworth watched on as they had to settle for a point against a battling Vale side that worked The Gills hard and now the boss is calling for more quality this weekend.

“The league is so open this year; it really is. We have to respect Grimsby. Andy Cook is up front there; they have [Kieran] Green in midfield, and they have some serious legs in the team that we have to contend with.”

“David [Artell] has flipped and flopped with formation and team selection, just trying to find a formula to win games. They have had a few tough results, but it has no bearing on how Grimsby will be. This is very much the same team that finished in the play-offs last year, and were in and around everything.”

“We have to be hugely respectful, as we always will be. Don’t take anything for granted and concentrate on what we are going to do with our own performance.”

Meanwhile, there has been positive news about the possible return of central defender Liam Gordon who was injured in the opening game of the season.

Ainsworth said of other players coming back from injury: “Will Goodwin will be back very soon. He has been out on the grass again. He had a recurrence of an injury, and we can’t have that again. It is really important. The plus factors are that Armani [Little] got through 90 the other night, and Conor McManus, playing a good amount, again. But he hasn’t played 90 minutes for about a month…”

“It is a big thing playing 90 minutes. The amount of injuries that are picked up in those last ten minutes when people are tired and stretching for things. You just can’t take the risk, especially with what I have already got.”

The Gills manager also gave an update on the progress of midfielder Eli King:

“He is seeing a surgeon this week, so we will have a look at where that will go. Knees are complicated things, especially after one cruciate on the knee that he has had. We will have to tread carefully on that one. I will probably speak to the medical team and Eli and see what we can release about that coming up.”

With the squad that Ainsworth has available and he will be hoping Bradley Dack will be able to feature this weekend, Gillingham will be hoping for three much needed points as they look to climb back into the top three.