Gillingham manager Gareth Ainsworth will be leaning on his senior players next season to play a vital role within the squad.
Ainsworth believes he’s got some strong leaders within the squad, including Jonny Williams and Bradley Dack, and they’ll play a vital role in helping nurture some up-and-coming players while assisting others as they settle into life at Priestfield.
Newcomer Seb Palmer-Houlden will be welcomed into the group later this week when the players report back for testing. There could be another new face in the forward department with former Wycombe striker Sam Vokes, 35, linked with a move to the Gills.
Vokes played international football for Wales – alongside Jonny Williams – and made Premier League appearances for both Wolves and Burnley. His last season at Wycombe ended with a broken arm, which ruled him out of their League 1 play-off matches. A knee injury had limited him to a handful of appearances before that.
Ainsworth, speaking of his current senior players, said: “I know the characters in the group that we’ve got and they’ll make him (Seb) feel welcome. He’ll already feel like he’s met most of them with the messages that go on WhatsApp.
“Something that we’re big fans of, me and (assistant manager) Dobbo, is almost the mentorship from some of these older players, but when you’ve got Bradley Dack, Jonny Williams and Max Clark in your squad, these will take players under their wing.
“They’ve done it so far for me and I’m asking this season that we can go one step further with this mentorship and leadership roles that some of the players can do from within the dressing room. Glenn Morris does it naturally because he’s an older player.
“We’ve got a young squad, we’ve got some real legs in the team, which is great. The likes of Seb and then you’re looking at Euan (Williams) and Sam Gale and Shadrach (Ogie), some real good youth in the side.
“I just need that little bit of guidance and mentorship and we’ve got that in the team as well so it’s just putting it all together.
“It’s not just telling them what to do on the pitch, it’s just settling in the dressing room.
“I encourage the boys to talk about their families, friends and histories, that’s what you want to talk about and to be friends and real mates off the pitch, and then on the pitch they run just that little bit harder for their mate. I’ve been through that, I know that, so we’ll be doing that this season.”
The Gills are expected to be active in the transfer market right up until the window closes on September 1 – with outgoings also likely – but Ainsworth was hoping to get a good lot of business done before they get back together.
There’s room for more recruits in the defensive department. Centre-half Conor Masterson was offered a new deal at the end of the season but has been getting interest from League 1 and over in Ireland – according to reports. He remains a good option and could still settle for staying with the Gills. There’s space for a couple of additions in that area.
The Gills have recently been linked to Wrexham’s 29-year-old defender Will Boyle, a player who is in need of regular football after a frustrating 2024/25 campaign which saw him play just a handful of games due to injury and selection.
Scottish-based defender George Stanger had been linked after his contract with Ayr United expired but he’s staying north of the border after joining Kilmarnock.
The Gills took Hull City centre-back Andy Smith on loan in the second half of last season and he made quite an impression.
Smith, 23, played 13 games for the Gills but picked up an injury in early April, starting the first two games when Ainsworth took charge before sitting it out fot the rest of the campaign.
