Gillingham bowed out of the Carabao Cup but not before coming agonisingly close to spoiling Premier League new boys Luton Town’s Kenilworth Road home coming.
With the visitors pushing for an equaliser after Tom Nichols’ first goal of the season had reduced the deficit to a single goal with just two minutes left, deep into stoppage time sub-Jonny Williams arrowed a shot towards the Luton goal.
With respect to the keepers in League Two, ninety percent would have got nowhere near the drive, but here Williams was shooting at Dutch international keeper Tim Krul who used every inch of his six foot frame to somehow manage to tip the ball around the post to secure progress for the home side – progress that at half time had looked fairly straight forward.
Neil Harris was true to his word and made a similar number of changes to the First Round’s triumph against Southampton, but within two minutes the Gills were behind as Jacob Morris beat Glenn Morris with a low drive – indeed the Gills keeper had already pulled off a great save to deny Alfie Doughty in the opening seconds as Luton roared out of the blocks in the first game played at Kenilworth Road since the modernisations that followed their dramatic promotion to the top flight back in May!
Luton doubled the lead before the break with a wonderful goal from Doughty. He received a short free kick before unleashing a vicious curling shot into the top corner that Morris had no chance of getting near let alone stopping!
The Gills looked down and out at the break, but how many games have changed when a side 2-0 down get the next goal in a game and this was no different. Macauley Bonne found Jayden Clarke who cut inside a defender before drilling the ball past Krul.
The League Two side now had the advantage and Ashley Nadesan was superbly denied by Krul’s block with his legs as he sprinted through whilst from the corner, Bonne will have been disappointed to blaze the ball over!
Luton thought they’d settled their nerves at the half’s midway point as Connor Woodrow curled the Hatters’ third to give them back the two-goal cushion.
But the Gills just wouldn’t go away and deservedly pulled a second goal back on eighty-eight minutes when Nichols got his first goal of the season, magnificently steering Cheye Alexander’s fine cross beyond a despairing Krul and into the net.
The Gills piled forward and after the keeper had missed his punch, Jonny Williams let fly and somehow Krul just managed to get his fingertips to the ball to divert it wide of his goal as Luton just about hung on.
Make no mistake, the Gills gave the Hatters an almighty scare with a display that their magnificent travelling support needed after the weekend’s collapse to Colchester United and ahead of the weekend’s tough trip to Grimsby Town.
LUTON TOWN – Krul, Andersen, Lockyer (Burke H/T), Bell, Doughty, Mpanzu, Berry (Barkley 60), Giles (Kabore 60), Ogbene (Nakamba 69), Woodrow, Brown (Adebayo 81).
Subs not used – Shea, Morris, Chong, Johnson.
Goals: Brown (2), Doughty (28), Woodrow (66).
Booked: Berry (34).
GILLINGHAM – Morris, Alexander, Masterson, Ehmer, Ogie, Clark (Malone 72), Dieng (Shaun Williams 73), McKenzie, Clarke (Sithole 87), Nadesan (Jonny Williams 73), Bonne (Nichols 72).
Subs not used – Turner, Orji, Chambers, Gbode.
Goals: Clarke (55), Nichols (88).
Booked: Dieng (43).
Referee – Mr Jeremy Simpson
Attendance: 9468
Picture supplied by Gillingham Football Club.