Gillingham manager Mark Bonner’s in the middle of a close season revamp but not everything needed changing.
Bonner – who had made four new signings since arriving – was pleased to see he had a ready-made goalkeeping department and a coach who he’s excited to work with.
Bonner is delighted to have goalkeeper coach Deren Ibrahim onboard, grinning from ear to ear at the mention of his name while being interviewed.
“Del Boy is a top man,” said Bonner.
“I know Deren a little bit from before and he has done a brilliant job here.
“He is an excellent character and personality around the place.
“He is someone I am really excited to work with.”
Ibrahim will work with Morris, Turner and first-year pro Taite Holtam and Bonner has said he wants his goalkeeping department to work closely with the outfield players.
He said: “We have good goalkeepers and good goalkeeping coach.
“There is the goalkeeper union, which is a thing, they stick together and they can be a bit mad sometimes but they can also be too often isolated from the team.
“It’s really important that they are a huge part of it and how we integrate the coaching of that and the players within it is a big thing. It is a strong department and we want to keep on improving.”
The Gills boss was glad to see contract negotiations with experienced keeper Glenn Morris were already progressing before he arrived. The 40-year-old will compete with Jake Turner for the no.1 shirt again next season.
Morris put pen to paper on a new deal last month and Bonner fully endorsing the decision to keep the player at the club.
He said: “Those conversations had happened before me but I was absolutely in support of them, that was already fairly far down the line before I joined.
He said: “Those (contract) conversations had happened before me but I was absolutely in support of them, that was already fairly far down the line before I joined.
“I rang Glenn early on to introduce myself and say, ‘let’s hope we can get this sorted’.
“What is not to like about him? He has unbelievable experience, we know he can be excellent for Jake and his development as well. We know he can be really competitive with Jake to fight for places in the team.
“Those two will have a lovely battle to keep pushing each other, which I love.
“Everyone tells me ‘top trainer, top professional’. I know people who worked with him (Morris) at Southend when I was at the club (as an academy coach) and saw him from a distance there. I think his career numbers almost speak for themselves.
“An excellent pro, excellent experience, really committed and someone I know I will be able to lean on and will really help me and the other goalies in the team. He gives us that balance of competition and cover that we need.”
