Gills v Newcastle

[gillsfan1066]

Woooo hhhooo almost sold out stadium and were going to stink up the place, Gillingham 1, Newcastle 5, Football Gods I hope I am wrong. Thank God for the K man, without him we would be looking like real F'Ing idiots this season, OH we do, lol.

[fan_of_mulligan]

Whatever happens tomorrow Gillingham have won just by getting a home tie against Newcastle United, a home tie and a sell out capacity crowd will see Gillingham make £250,000 in ticket revenue and then there is food, drink, programme and shirt sells and the feel good factor that goes with playing against a Premier League Side at home.

I also think that a good performance and even a narrow defeat tomorrow could well inspire our league performances, I think our 2 - 1 defeat to Aston Villa in The Third Round of The FA Cup inspired Gills league form and we went on a decent run after the narrow lose to a Aston Villa Side who were challenging for Champions League Football at the time, we also went up through the playoffs in the 2008 / 2009 season and The Villa game really was the turning point that season.

If Newcastle United win then most of the pundits will say they should win given the size of there squad and the quality of players they have at there disposal, but there is defiantly a shock on the cards and if we can cause a upset and somehow progress through into the third round of The League Cup, then I hope we can replicate our league performances after our win against Yeovil Town because we picked up four points against Yeovil Town and Swindon Town and if a win against Newcastle means we pick up four points from our next two league games, then we would gladly take that.

[fan_of_mulligan]

I think Gillingham will line up like this tonight.......................

----------------------------Bywater-----------------------------------
Hoyte--------------Legge---------------Egan-------------------Hause
-------------------A.Morris----------Hessenthaler---------------------
McGlashan-------------------Dack----------------------------Dickenson
----------------------------Kedwell------------------------------------

Subs: G.Morris (GK), Fish, Davies, Pritchard, Norris, German, McDonald

It's the same eighteen we named against Barnsley on Tuesday Night and the only selection problems I see for Peter Taylor are these 1. Does Matt Fish or Gavin Hoyte start at right back ? and 2. Should Cody McDonald start at the expense of Bradley Dack and we name a 4.4.2 formation ?

I much rather see Cody McDonald start against Crewe Alexandra which is probably the more important game as far as our league season goes, another thirty minute cameo appearance from the bench would be the way to use Cody McDonald for the time being until he is fully fit, also I think we need the additional protection of a fifth midfielder in midfield, once Cody came on against Barnsley they just had more space to run into, but the same-time we had to go for it to try and get ourselves back into the match so Peter Taylor was in a lose / lose scenario there.

Hopefully McGlashan and Dickenson can give Newcastle's defence much to be worry about with there pace, these two should be told to push high and stay high so they are in support of Danny Kedwell, one of the problems we had on Saturday was that we were so deep that there was no outlet to pass the ball to.

An upset would be fantastic, but if we give Newcastle a game and lose narrowly and went for it then I would be pleased with our performance against a strong Premier League Side (although that depends on the team Newcastle Name Tonight), a win would be unbelievable - COME ON THE GILLS!!!!!!

[Kent_UckyFriedGills]

Not too long until the game now,luckily the rain is meant to clear this evening.I would like to see us go for it as it is a one off cup game and we have nothing to lose.Newcastle really should be beating us comfortably,but anything can happen in the Cups.Taylor may want us to keep it tight and look to hit them on the counter,but I think most fans would prefer to see us go out throwing everything at Newcastle if we do lose.Against a side like Newcastle I fear sitting back would invite Newcastle on to us which could see us losing heavily anyway.I am going to enjoy the game no matter what as it is quite rare for us to play a Premier League side in this Competition.I am expecting a defeat,but there is always that hope in Cup competitions.

I think we will start with both Kedwell and Cody upfront,and we will start McGlashan,Dack,Hessenthaler,and A.Morris.

[Rimshot]

Agreed KFG, we can't rely on the defence anyway so let's give it a go !!

[gillsfan1066]

Famous last words ,"we can't rely on the defense", oh well only losing 0-1 to a Premier League side by an OG is a good showing I suppose. Seems we didn't get many looks at their goal , shame we could not raise our game the same as MKD appears to have done theirs.
Just read the first report on the game, seems words like dire, boring,clueless were the words used for both teams , Gillinghams 3-5-2 formation not doing anything for 80 minutes before PT woke up from his nap on the bench and realized there was a game going on and made a few changes.

[Rimshot]

Looking on the bright side we are the divisions leading scorers...of own goals.

[Kent_UckyFriedGills]

I thought we battled well as a Team,and we made it hard for Newcastle.It was a shame we never really had a right go at them,but you can see why Taylor would have been cautious because of the Quality Newcastle have.Newcastle had a lot of the ball,but they didn`t really threaten much.Their goal came from a poor header from Pritchard which went towards our own goal,and I think Obertan`s shot went in off Egan.Own goals are our achilles heel this season.Cody had a penalty shout turned down in the first 20 minutes,and Fish hit a good strike which curled not too far over the bar.Newcastle didn`t have many chances in the second half,Coloccini had a shot which was easily saved by Bywater,and Haidara`s powerful shot hit the bar.

We took off Kedwell,and McDonald for the last 25+ minutes which was a bit surprising,but thoughts will have been turning to Crewe on Saturday.To be fair German and Norris both played well when they came on.German ran at Newcastle,and Norris had a great shot tipped over by Krul.I would have liked to have seen McGlashan come on for the last 20 minutes as he would have caused them a lot of problems.Overall it was not the most exciting game,and the atmosphere was not as loud as I expected,but we battled well and done ourselves proud only losing by a mistake of our own.When you look at Newcastle`s squad,when they finally click they will score quite a few goals.

It was a good Team performance,and for me Dack,and Hessenthaler were our two best players.

[Garawa]

It wasn't dire or boring as far as I am concerned, I thought it was a good game! Newcastle allowed us to have the ball but in truth they knew that they had the class to control the match and I'm not sure we should be too shocked about that! After all, the game was summed up impeccably by two instances of the game no one will remember nor will be reported on.......Danny Kedwell (largely a non-league player during his time before coming to the Gills) twice found himself on the edge of the box trying to find space against Colocinni!! The gulf in class was massive (far bigger than at stadium:MK with Utd's fringe players and Dons more experienced players). Newcastle played a pretty strong team with internationals in the side and for the game to only be separated by our own goal wasn't bad.

We had threatening attacks, had Krul not just about palmed over Norris's shot we would be far happier! Did we attack? Yes. With vigour? No. Did United allow us to? No. Were we outclassed? No. I think that's as expected quite frankly and we are not going to be on a par with MK Dons, Preston or Peterboro this season.

[gillsfan1066]

Garawa , I am convinced your on Scally's payroll, congratulations, me and your Mum are happy you have done so well for yourself to become one of Mr. Scallys "Men" , Dirams not difficult to exchange in Gillingham I guess ??
No offence intended but Jesus, (sorry Lord) I swear there is NO ONE in this world that wants them to succeed more than me, but just except the fact were rubbish , it will save you 50 years of heartache like some of us on here have suffered.
We had TWO shots on goal all game,TWO shots, I am not very good at maths but even I know that it is one every 45 minutes, MKD scored more than that against a team that fielded FIVE players who played in the recent WORLD CUP.
I guess by now I should have excepted that after all these years I need to be happy just to have GFC still in existence, whether its in the 3rd, 4th or Blue Square League, or Kent Pub League, thank you Mr.Scally, thank you Sir.

[Garawa]

No offence taken. I have watched us play rubbish in plenty of games, I know when we play rubbish and Newcastle wasn't one of those times! With the greatest respect, you are looking at a match totally from a viewpoint of figures. We actually had 3 shots at goal but both sides had 2 key chances and their goal would NEVER have gone in had Egan not deflected it as they had no player close to the ball. So in that respect, 2 decent chances each means we matched a Premiership side full of internationals. It was also pretty much a first team unlike Man Utd who fielded a few debutants and 6 players who never got a league match.....a bit different!

I am happy to admit when we played rubbish, by all accounts the game before sounded just that but I won't accept that from Tuesday night especially when it is being judged on bare facts. We only need 1 shot at goal to win a game.

[fan_of_mulligan]

My Thoughts on Gillingham V Newcastle United on Tuesday Night....................

I think we did precisely what we need to do on Tuesday night and I think Peter Taylor's tactics defensively were spot on because the last thing we wanted to see was Newcastle United going 2 - 3 goals up and the tie effectively being over inside the first forty five minutes, the tie was a live from the first minute until the last and the match remained competitive for ninety plus minutes as well.

I think we should be proud of Gillingham's performance because the effort, commitment, determination and at times quality were there for all to see and we restricted Newcastle United to very few attempts on goal, Newcastle United dominated possession, they created a lot of goal-scoring opportunities, but how many saves did Stephen Bywater had to do ???, there were 3 - 4 solid stops, but nothing you would say was a full stretch save or one that needed to be finger-tipped away from goal.

Gillingham made it difficult for Newcastle United with Leon Legge, John Egan and Callum Davies in the centre of defence, Matt Fish and Kortney Hause as full backs and Jake Hessenthaler and Josh Pritchard protecting the three centre backs, this meant that Newcastle United found it difficult down the centre, but they over-loaded the full back positions and had a lot of joy and success down both flanks.

So disappointing that John Egan conceded the own goal though and the ball appeared to hit him on the shoulder and there was nothing Stephen Bywater or John Egan could of done about that, but Matt Fish nearly scored an incredible curling effort that just floated over Tim Krul's crossbar, second half and Newcastle had plenty of chances to kill the game with a second goal and Massadio Haïdara hit one shot from 30 yards that crashed against the top of the crossbar and there was nothing Stephen Bywater could of done about that, good thing the ball hit the bar because the tie was still alive.

Bradley Dack mis-kicked the ball in a decent crossing position, but he also got in-between full back and centre back and his cross / shot was disappointing to be honest, Bradley Dack need to either cross or shoot and it was a bit between the two to be honest - but Bradley Dack was superb with his willingness to play a pass, keep possession of the ball and his tracking back (usually the weaker part of Dack's game) was excellent against Newcastle United.

Luke Norris forced Tim Krul to make a fantastic stop, but there were chances few and far between throughout the entire match and if there is one disappointment, is that we did not go for it in the final thirty minutes and bring on Jermaine McGlashan or Brennan Dickenson, if Danny Kedwell and Cody McDonald could not play the full ninety minutes then one should of started as sub and the other comes on past the hour mark.

We did our part of the first hour by staying in the game and making the match competitive last night, but for the final thirty we should of gone for it, McGlashan and Dickenson's pace would of caused Newcastle United problems, but we seemed reluctant to open up and still wary of Newcastle United's flair players and quick players, the effort, commitment, hard work, application and determination were all there, the belief, the attacking intent and quality at times was lacking and Danny Kedwell and Cody McDonald lacked the service and support that they both require. (particularly from wide positions).

We probably did show Newcastle United a lot of respect and we gave them a lot of time and space on the ball, and for the first hour you did not mind this as our tactics were to stay in the game, make the match competitive and make sure that Newcastle United don't score 2 - 3 past us, had we got thrashed by Newcastle United then our group of players would of been demoralized, but a narrow defeat against a top ten Premier League Side with half there starting eleven playing at Priestfield Stadium is encouraging, and hopefully we can take some confidence and belief into our next 4 - 5 matches.

The atmosphere at times was superb (especially when everyone clapped in the 17th minute for The Two Newcastle United Supporters John and Liam and our thoughts go out to friends and family of John and Liam at this difficult time) and the attendance was 10,204 because all four stands were cram packed and the applause for that the two Newcastle United Supporters got around the stadium is probably the loudest we have heard anything like that inside Priestfield Stadium for years, songs were sung, chants were made, clapping could be heard and that atmosphere just won't be there on Saturday Afternoon against Crewe Alexandra and the players will have to get used to that.

The win against Yeovil Town in The First Round Of The League Cup, gave us the opportunity to play Newcastle United at home in The Second Round of The Capital One Cup and the enthusiasm, excitement and anticipation of this match had been building as soon as the draw was made for The Second Round, hopefully, food, drink, merchandise and programme sales were a big success and hopefully some of the fans who went a long to there first game on Tuesday Night come back and continue to do so, because the only way Gillingham will grow and compete in League One is if we start to see attendances climb to 6,000 - 7,000 week in, week out.

You also got to take into consideration that Matt Fish, Callum Davies, John Egan, Kortney Hause, Josh Pritchard, Jake Hessenthaler, Bradley Dack, Aaron Morris, Luke Norris and Antonio German are all 24 or under, we had a very young and inexperienced side playing and that was more so the case when Luke Norris and Antonio German came on because only Leon Legge and Stephen Bywater were 24 or older, that just tells you the level we're at, look Gills have signed some quality youngsters with potential and ability, but Peter Taylor also said that the proven experienced players in League One are beyond our wage structure.

Hopefully some of the money gained from The Newcastle United Match can go into signing an experienced centre back with leadership and communication qualities who can play in League One, and if we have to use all of resources available to make that one and only signing then that is what I would do, Leon Legge is a do-er then a talker, he leads by example with defensive headers and clearances, but he isn't a talkative defender and we need someone who can lead the back-line and help guide the likes of Kortney Hause and John Egan.

Great turn-out, I am proud of Gillingham's performance, we kept the match competitive and we kept the cup tie a live, the only thing we really needed to do was go for it in the final thirty minutes, and as Stephen said after the game, if only we lost 2 - 1 and not 1 - 0 because then the roof would of come off Priestfield Stadium for a moment.

You also got to give Alan Pardew some praise because Tim Krul, Daryl Janmaat, Fabricio Coloccini, Emmanuel Rivière and Moussa Sissoko all started for Newcastle United at Villa Park and those five started against Gillingham at Priestfield Stadium, Yoan Gouffran, Siem de Jong and Rémy Cabella also played for Newcastle United so Alan Pardew was taking Gillingham and The League Cup Seriously (probably because the pressure was on Alan Pardew's shoulders to get a win after one point from the first two matches).

To think that Tim Krul was saving a penalty for The Netherlands in A Penalty Shoot-Out win against Costa Rica and 6 - 7 weeks later he was playing for Newcastle United at Priestfield Stadium in The Second Round of The League Cup, that in itself is quite a mesmerizing moment.