D 1-1 vs Gillingham (A) - League Two - Sat 3rd Feb, 3pm

We are appear to be a bit of a bogey team for Gillingham in recent years, hope it continues. 2-1 Walsall win

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Draw

If last Saturdayā€™s selection was anything to go by, our January business means that we have effectively swapped Draper for Faal.

Weā€™ve had a lot worse Januaryā€™s for sure but Iā€™m not sure that this adds up to any improvement and probably equates to a slight deterioration.

1-1

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Gordon?

Sadler chose DJT ahead of him which isnā€™t a huge vote of confidence.

Given DJā€™s absence weā€™ve also effectively swapped DJ on the bench for Gordon on the bench.

Whilst I think we have made some signings that bode well for the future, as hard as weā€™ve tried I think this is another January where weā€™ve made ourselves a bit worse than we were going into into it.

So I think weā€™ll see roughly the same spread of good, bad and indifferent displays and results.

1-1

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Thought faal did ok on Saturday and showed glimpses of his quality and a bit unlucky not to score as the cross that came in was slightly behind him .
Hopefully he will improve as he settles into his new surroundings and team mates .

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That was just one game. I think Gordon is the replacement for Draper and will play in that role as the season progresses. He will not be so effective in front of goal but will provide the energy we need . Faal on the other hand is the equivalent of Matt and I think we will see them alternate with Faal playing more and probably scoring more. DJT and Oteh will provide back up . Anyway that is my best case scenarioā€¦is it worse than before? Not sure I think it depends on how many goals Faal gets.

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Iā€™d expect Gordon to be starting soon. He looked lively when he came on Saturday, his movement is better than the other strikers. We know from experience his finishing isnā€™t the greatest but he is a nuisance.

I reckon Sadler felt he couldnā€™t leave out Douglas after he had scored in his two previous games.

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I get the impression Gillingham really want to go up this season (sacking Harris, stealing Hutton from under Stockports nose), but I also get the impression that Walsall arenā€™t really that fussed and are planning for next season.

So based on that, Gillingham win for me. I think they also play 3 at the back (same as us) so I anticipate a tight game with both sides cancelling each other out, but them using game management/dark arts to get the win. Either 1-0, or 2-1.

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I agree.

Our January business feels like a nod to this season but a focus on next.

As I say above weā€™ve had far worse January windows but if the only real change to the starting eleven is that switch of the front two from Matt/Draper to Faal/Gordon then I canā€™t see how that elevates is from a lower mid table team to the automatic promotion outfit weā€™d need to be to even get close to the play-offs this season.

Iā€™m not complaining. Nailing down players for another year and investing on promising youngsters is good.

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I think that he chose DJT to start as a result of him scoring in his previous two games. He was pretty ineffective on Saturday, whereas Josh played well (imo) when he came on.
I expect Josh to be preferred as a starter over DJT going forward. Same type of player, but more experienced and more involved in the game.

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Posts crossed :smiley:

3-0 Walsall, 3 counter attacking goals, 39% possession

Nail on head, remember around the start of the season everyone was astounded at the Gills spending spree, which has obviously continued into January. Whereas Trivelaā€™s tight Bonser-like grip on funds has given us the usual ā€˜A couple of loans will doā€™ approach.
Like many of us, I think they have already written off this season, 16th or 17th will do.
Perhaps things might be better next seasonā€¦

Donā€™t think we should be holding Gillingham up as some sort of beacon on how to conduct a transfer window. Spent loads of money in 3 windows now for little return. They still cannot score goals (well maybe on Saturday!) and are bobbing along the mid table pack with Harrogate and Accrington etc. If we grab a rare win there and beat Morecambe on Tuesday we go above them.

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1-0 Gillingham thatā€™s first hurdle down

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I think in my years as a supporter weā€™ve played 34 League matches there and won 11. Some draws as well. That seems a decent record to me although I donā€™t know how that compares to our performances against other sides.
I think it is sometimes thought we have a terrible record at Gillingham but we donā€™t, I wonder is it because when we are bad, we are really bad. Some of our defeats have been shockers. :scream: And it is a long way back after a defeat. And we have lost there in the F A Cup twice.
Someone who is more stat-minded can correct me, but I think Priestfield might be one of our happier hunting grounds, in the last 53 years anyhow.

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Interesting comments about playing Gillingham. Iā€™ve never felt enthusiastic about playing them. Other clubs I like playing against such as Bristol Rovers, Scunthorpe and Bury to name a few. There is no rationale for this. Must be something linked to my early experience of watching us at FP against Gillingham but canā€™t think what. Burried in the mists of timeā€¦

I think the Gills are really going to go for this. Their form hasnā€™t been great and theyā€™ll see Walsall as a must win to start a charge up the table. Hope we can take advantage of this by frustrating them and scoring some breakaway goals. 2-0 to us. Flash and DD. UTS.

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I think the earliest reports of Walsall v Gillingham games were written in Latin.

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