Conor Masterson can sense a familiar feeling at Gillingham after a third straight win.
The Gills took off this time last year as they climbed off the foot of League 2 to eventually finish comfortably safe. They’re revving up again from a much sounder footing with a weekend win over Accrington leaving them on the verge of the play-off places.
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“It feels exactly like last year,” said the 25-year-old defender. “We can feel that momentum building now.
“Every game we are getting more and more confident, each game we go into we are feeling like we are going to win, it is nice to feel like that.
“We just have to keep the momentum going.
“We were speaking in the changing room after (the Accrington win) about a big game now at home against Forest Green (this coming Saturday) and then MK Dons away (the following weekend). Those games are ones we really think we can win so we just have to keep going. The two games coming up are massive for us.
“We are really enjoying our football, it has clicked now and the formation has helped us a lot, we just seem to have more of the ball and we are creating way more chances and hurting teams and that’s good.
“We all believe in ourselves and the group that we have, there are a lot of top quality players and we just have to keep going.
“We’ll keep our feet on the ground now, focus on training this week and big game at home against Forest Green.”
Gillingham were transformed last January from relegation fodder into a team that few in the Football League could match for point accumulation.
It’s been a rocky first half of the season for the Gills and they remain in transition under head coach Stephen Clemence. Three wins on the spin has got them back to within a point of the top seven.
The Gills won a league game for the first time this season from behind on Saturday.
“I think that was massive for the group,” said the defender.
“We have been working hard over the last few weeks and I think everyone can see it, it is really starting to click, the camaraderie in the group, we are all just buzzing and because of the camaraderie we are a tight knit group and that showed on the pitch.”
Masterson’s goal came from a corner, after Oli Hawkins had guided Connor Mahoney’s flag-kick into his path for a simple finish.
It’s three goal now for Masterson and he was thrilled to have finished another set-piece move and thrilled for those who take so much time putting the plans into place.
He said: “It is brilliant, we do work on them a lot and it worked (on Saturday) and we were all buzzing. Deren (Ibrahim, the goalkeeper coach) was buzzing in the (changing room), handshakes from him for everybody, he was very happy.
“We hadn’t scored a set piece in a while, my last goal (the winner against Wimbledon) was from a set-piece, it’s been a few games so it’s great for all of us.
“Deren does great for us, he is always on at us on a Friday before the game with details and it’s paid off. He’s a good guy as well and it really helps.
“Set-pieces are massive, they scored their first from one and we scored our first from one, it is massive in this league definitely, every league it is, you just have to be switched on.
“Oli Hawkins did really well, thanks to him, he headed it back across and I was in the right spot again and nodded it home so I am happy.”
