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Gillingham chairman Paul Scally has reignited his feud with outspoken Leeds counterpart Ken Bates ahead of Saturday's big League 1 clash at Elland Road.
Leeds sealed Gillingham’s relegation to League 2 at the end of the 2007/08 season and Mr Bates used the occasion to openly criticise Mr Scally (pictured) in his programme notes before the game, after the Gills chairman voted in favour of the South Yorkshire club’s 15-point deduction.
An overwhelming majority of chairmen, including Mr Scally, voted to uphold the penalty handed out by the Football League at a specially convened meeting in London. Leeds were handed the points deduction after failing to comply with the League’s policy for clubs entering administration.
The points deduction eventually denied Leeds a promotion spot.
Mr Bates believed that the opportunity for his side to send the Gills into League 2 was "poetic justice" and Mr Scally hasn’t forgotten the occasion.
Mr Scally believes that Mr Bates was rude and he claimed that Mr Bates refused to talk to him in the boardroom. Mr Scally was also subjected to a torrent of abuse by the home fans throughout the game.
Mr Scally, who is planning to attend the game on Saturday, said: "He had some issues but he wouldn’t come over and have them out with me. I’m not bothered about the fans because they will latch onto whatever they are fed and they were fed a lot of rubbish.
"Most fans know that their problems lay with their own board and the chairman, and not the Football League.
"I was already resigned to relegation and I wasn’t even particularly disturbed at that because relegation enabled us to re-group. Ken Bates rambles on and says things he shouldn’t."
Mr Bates said: "Scally is short for scallywag which has been my nickname for him (for) a long while now. He’s probably forgotten the time he asked for my advice about a proposed move to a new site to emulate Chelsea Village that would have seen a name change to Medway United."