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Alex MacDonald was in the manager’s bad books last time Gillingham played Sunderland but he made amends at the Stadium of Light.
MacDonald was sent off for a rash challenge when the Gills played Sunderland at Priestfield with the game goalless. Steve Evans' team ended up losing 2-0.
The midfielder was involved from the off on Saturday - replacing injured Tom O’Connor in the line-up - and he made the most of his chance, scoring one on the volley and only being denied a second with a thunderous effort hitting the bar.
Speaking after the match, Evans commented: “I said to Alex that the last time we played Sunderland I then spent three days hating you! He knew it. It was a tough time for Alex because that’s not him.
“He was good (on Saturday). He has come in, he got the goal and he has worked ever so hard.”
He was unlucky not to get a second after a great strike, with his manager saying: "It was a fantastic strike and we see that from Alex all the time in training. He has power in both feet.
"When I first saw him hit it I thought it was in, but unlucky for us it hits the underside of the bar."
MacDonald was taken off after an hour as the Gills brought on an extra striker in John Akinde.
“We tried to do something different,” Evans said. “That is the reason he came off. He will have sat on the coach home knowing he has played well.”
MacDonald might not have played at all had O’Connor been fit.
The Southampton loanee pulled a groin and although he trained on Friday the medical team assessed him as only being 80% fit. That wasn’t enough for Evans, who said: “Alex wouldn’t have played, he would have been on the bench. Tom just had his best game in a Gills shirt since coming back to us this season, against Crewe, he was stunning, outstanding.
“There is no point having the best medical man around if you don’t take his advice. I told Tommy not to even get stripped because there would have been a temptation to put him on the pitch.”
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