Charlie Lee wants to earn a new contract at Priestfield by helping Gillingham to League 1 survival.

Lee marked his return from injury with a goal in Gills’ 2-1 defeat at Bristol City on Saturday, a result that leaves Peter Taylor’s side only three points clear of the bottom four.

The midfielder nearly left at the start of the season but is determined to prove his worth in Gills’ relegation battle and extend his stay.

Lee said: “You’re always playing for your future, even when you’ve got extra years on your contract.

“Managers make judgements on you and if you’re not in the squad, it doesn’t matter how long you’ve got left on your contract.

“I’m fighting for a new contract, so I’ve got to do everything I can. Coming on and getting a goal is just a little bit of what I can do and hopefully I can keep improving on that.”

Lee admits standards have dropped in Gills’ three-match losing run but is confident they will survive in League 1.

We’ve had a good spell and just let our standards drop in the last three games.'

He added: “We’ve had a good spell and just let our standards drop in the last three games.

“We are close to it (bottom four) so we’ve got to keep fighting. But we know if we play the way we can, we can pick up plenty of points and be safe.

“You can’t ever think you’re going to be in a relegation fight and be relegated.

Lee believes Gillingham’s strikers are key to ensuring survival, with Danny Kedwell ready to join the fight after recovering from a hernia operation.

Cody McDonald and Adebayo Akinfenwa have been Taylor’s preferred strikeforce in Kedwell’s absence, while Joe Pigott has extended his loan from Charlton.

Lee said: “The teams that stay up are the ones that score goals. We’ve got a lethal strikeforce and confident we can get results.”