GILLINGHAM might be unbeaten this season but manager Andy Hessenthaler is disappointed - although the imminent return of Marlon King should bring a smile to his face.

Hessenthaler, who was unavailable because of a hamstring strain for Saturday’s 0-0 draw against Derby, believes his side should be further up the Nationwide Division 1 table than their current 13th place.

The Gills boss, who was 38 on Sunday, said: “We were the better side without really hurting them. It would have been nice to get all three points as an early birthday present instead of feeling like we had thrown two points away.

“However, I took lots of positives out of the game. We have not been beaten yet this season and it shows how far we have come that the Derby fans and their players were absolutely delighted to get a point here.”

Hessenthaler, who looked on bewildered from the sidelines as his side failed to show any cutting edge, said: “It was a little frustrating watching us go forward at times, but considering the number of players we had out injured, those who came in have done well.”

As the Gills injury list lengthens, one man who looks set to make a much-anticipated return is striker King. He looks set to be given a run-out for the reserves on Wednesday against Brentford after a lengthy cruciate knee ligament injury lay-off.

Hessenthaler could have done with King on Saturday as he was left ruing his side’s inability to finish off play in the final third.

He added: “The saddest thing was that there was no end product to all our good build-up play."