There was pain and joy for some of Gillingham’s players who ended their seasons out on loan.
Gills’ goalkeeper Jake Turner and striker Marcus Wyllie both suffered relegation on the final day of the regular National League season.
The pair were in the Dagenham team which could only draw 1-1 at Solihull Moors in their final game, a result that left them in the final relegation spot in the division.
Turner, 26, has been on loan with the Daggers since the end of March, and he made six starts, keeping three clean sheets, but despite the team enjoying a 6-1 win on Saturday, the Bank Holiday Monday draw wasn’t enough to keep them up.
Wyllie played the final few minutes of that final game, making it 10 games without a goal, albeit seven of those appearances were from the substitutes’ bench.
He moved to the Gills last summer from non-league Enfield, but his only goal came in a 3-1 EFL Trophy defeat against Crystal Palace under-21s.
Turner and Wyllie were playing in the same team as ex-Gills midfield pair Jake Hessenthaler and Josh Rees.
There was better news for Gillingham’s young centre-half Logan Dobbs, as he tasted play-off promotion with Burgess Hill.
Gillingham have a habit of producing quality centre-halves and Dobbs could be the next off the production line, enjoying a fine loan spell at the Hillians, playing in the same team as former Priestfield midfield-man Chris Whelpdale.
Dobbs, 18, was their player-of-the-match in the promotion play-off final at Sittingbourne, which they won on penalties, to claim a place in the Isthmian Premier Division.
Youth striker Harry Bridle had loans at Herne Bay and Sheppey United this season but finished his season at Isthmian Premier side Whitehawk. The goals dried up after a blistering start where he scored 10 in seven appearances.
Gillingham’s youth goalkeeper Carter Sullivan helped his loan team Larkfield & New Hythe pick up some silverware this season, winning the Kent Senior Trophy final against Wembley-bound Whitstable Town.
Young right-back Harry Webster enjoyed a loan spell at Chatham Town, impressing during his time at the Bauvill Stadium and playing in their Velocity Cup final against Billericay. He was rewarded with a trip to Port Vale for Gillingham’s final game of the League 2 season, as an unused substitute.
Webster made his Football League debut for the Gills earlier this season.
