Aldershot Town 1 Gillingham 1
Leon Legge enjoys his goal for the
Gills at Aldershot. Picture: Barry
Goodwin
by Luke Cawdell
Gillingham had to settle for a point at Aldershot after fighting
back from going a goal down.
Craig Reid fired the hosts ahead early
in the second half but Leon Legge levelled the scores with 15
minutes left.
Despite the draw the Gills remain top
of League 2 as second-placed Port Vale lost at Oxford.
Gills boss Martin Allen made two
changes to his starting 11, with Myles Weston missing out
through injury and Danny Kedwell coming off the bench to replace
Adam Birchall. Matt Fish was back from a brief stint out
injured.
Gillingham, backed by 981 visiting
fans, arrived at the EBB Stadium boasting a run of nine league
games without a loss away from Priestfield and clean sheets in the
last five.
Good early pressure from Allen’s side
saw Adam Barrett head an effort wide and Deon Burton drilled a shot
into the side-netting.
But Aldershot – boosted by the recent
arrival of new manager Andy Scott - came close themselves, with
Stuart Nelson making a save from Danny Rose and Oliver Risser
smashing an effort narrowly wide.
Just before the break Kedwell saw a
shot deflected over the bar but an even half ended
without a goal, just like it had in Gillingham’s previous three
away outings.
Aldershot were bright from the restart
and moments after Legge was forced into making a timely challenge
to deny Danny Hylton, the hosts went ahead. Reid’s shot on the turn
from the edge of the box found the top corner in the third minute
of the second half.
It was the first time the Gills had
conceded on their travels in more than eight hours of
football.
Substitutes Bradley Dack and Antonio
German came on for the Gills as they looked for a way through a
stubborn Aldershot defence.
Reid came close again midway through
the half but saw a low shot blocked by Nelson, as Aldershot went in
search of a second to kill the game off.
But the Gills were on level
terms when Dack set Whelpdale free down the right and his
cross was headed home by Legge with 75 minutes played. And just a
minute later Whelpdale again swung in a cross but this time keeper
Jamie Young pulled off a great point-blank save to deny
Kedwell.
Both teams pressed for a winner late
on, with Young saving Steven Gregory’s injury-time strike, but the
points were eventually shared.
Aldershot: Young, Herd, Tonkin,
Hylton, Vincenti (Goulding 82mins), Risser, Forbes, Reid, Bradley,
Cadogan, Rose. Subs not used: A Morris, Lancashire, Mekki, Stanley,
Hall, G Morris.
Gillingham: Nelson, Fish, Martin,
Legge, Barrett, Gregory, Robinson, Lee (Dack 58mins), Whelpdale,
Burton (German 67mins), Kedwell Subs not used: Forecast, Davies,
Richardson, Birchall, Williams.
Attendance: 3,267.
02/03/13
- Click here for more news from across the county...