Gillingham manager Gareth Ainsworth got “the best compliment ever” after the 1-0 win over Walsall on Saturday.
The Gills picked up a point at Accrington Stanley last weekend and won all three on Saturday thanks to Bradley Dack’s goal against Walsall.
Report: Gillingham 1 Walsall 0
Ainsworth had made a change at the break, taking off crowd favourite Joe Gbode in place of big striker Josh Andrews, and the switch helped make a difference.
The Gills boss said: “Somebody just said to me, ‘You look horrible to play against’. That’s the biggest compliment a manager could ever have.
“I don’t want to be nice to play against, I want to be horrible to play against.
“I want people to come here and go, ‘We hate coming to Priestfield’. Not only is it miles away, it’s also horrible to go there. The fans are right on your back. They’re right with the team. They don’t let you have an inch. Their energy is great’. That’s what I want.
“That is superb and we found a way to win today. We really did.
“I got quoted once for saying ‘Possession can do one’ and I stand by that. It can.
“Wins is what I’m all about. Ironically, we probably had a lot of possession first half. Didn’t really make it count and less second half, and we go and win the game. It’s a crazy game this is. It really is.
“I watched the Southampton game just before, it was on my screen in my office. For all the great play they had, it’s just two breakaway goals at the end there (to beat Wrexham 2-1).
“This game, you’ve got to understand it. You’ve got to understand the dynamics and how it can change on a knife edge.
“The boys were great. I can’t ask any more than I got from them and from my staff, they were great. They challenged me on Friday. (Assistant) Dobbo, (coach) Pete Gill, great football staff.
“They’re challenging me every day on decisions and team selections and it’s really healthy. I think we came up with a good formula.
“It’s two (league) games. We’ve got four points. We haven’t cracked anything by any means. It will, at some stage, not go right. But at the moment, it’s a nice feeling.”
Commenting on his half-time switch, he said: “I thought that the ball needed to stick up top a little bit more.
“No disrespect to anyone, Joe Gbode was the one sacrifice, but he’s been superb for me. What a player I’ve got in him.
“I thought that putting a big man on to battle a little bit more and stick, we didn’t really get the balls around the corner to the forwards that I wanted and down the sides.
“Walsall sat very deep against us, so I thought, ‘if they’re going to sit deep, let’s put a big man on and cause them some problems deep’, and I thought Josh (Andrews) was very good second half.
“He gives a presence, and we end up getting up the pitch, not as great football as the first half, more pragmatic, but we end up getting a long throw, which ends in a goal and we’ll take however it comes.
“It was only going to be Bradley wasn’t it? On the first home game, after his commitment to the club in the summer (signing a new deal).
“Believe me, he’s come here, not for any reason but that he loves this club, Gillingham, and he’s invested in what we’re trying to do.
“He’s a leader in that dressing room, and he’s bringing on some of the young boys.
“I was proud of the group, they’ve given everything on a hot day.
“We had a way we wanted to set up, we had a way we wanted to play and I think first half, we did it to an extent, and then we didn’t really hurt them too much and then I made that change at half-time.”
Walsall had won their opening game 2-1 against Swindon but found chances hard to create against the Gills.
Ainsworth said: “Wow, they really, really locked it out. There were two chances, I think, in the whole game for Walsall.
“One in the first half, where he’s put it over the bar, and that will be looked at, believe me.
“Then the second half, they’ve had to put their big centre-half Aden Flint, up front. He wins a flick on, and there’s a chase, and I think Sam Gale’s pace really helped us there, got us out of jail, because he’s the quickest thing I’ve ever seen.
“He’s like the road-runner when he gets back there, and he really put in a challenge that put the boy off, which could have been probably a moment that we regret, but apart from that, I thought we saw it out really well.
“Some solid performances, some real energy. I’m really, really proud of these boys. They’ve given me everything, and they deserve all the credit.
“They’ve got the win and not just the 11 that started, not just the 11 that finished. Jonny Williams, Nelson Khumbeni, and Jake Turner on the bench, all so behind the boys. The injured boys just behind the bench.
“You felt it and that’s the identity I want to bring back here. The fans were brilliant, thank you. You got us over the line.
“I asked for a little bit from them on 92 minutes, and they responded really well, and I think they helped get us home.”
