Striker Adebayo Akinfenwa insists Gillingham’s first game of the season will be a whole new story.

The Gills lost 3-0 at The Skrill Premier side Woking last Saturday but Akinfenwa said: “You can’t ever replicate that first game in pre-season. Next week is going to be a whole different bite.

“What you do is take the positives from it, get the minutes out on the pitch and get your heart-rate up.

“It’s disappointing as you always want to win. Winning is a habit. We didn’t win but we will go again on Monday and prepare for Colchester.

“The gaffer doesn’t like losing and we are the same. You can’t replicate a league game in a pre-season game. We didn’t set out to lose but we did.”

Akinfenwa played for the last half-hour, after replacing Antonio German, joining fellow strikers Cody McDonald and Danny Kedwell in a three-pronged attack.

“It was good to get out there,” said the 31-year-old frontman. “You need game time and you need minutes, to get your legs moving. We are a bit disappointed with the result but I guess it’s a learning curve.

“We are going into the season positive. We have a nice vibe going and Monday is when it really starts.”