Sam Gale admitted scoring his first Gillingham goal in front of The Rainham End was a dream come true.
Gale hooked the ball home from close range as the Gills made it three home wins out of three by defeating Crewe 1-0 on Saturday.
It was a first senior goal for Gale and he couldn’t have scripted it any better.
“I dreamed of scoring at The Rainham End,” said Gale. “Beggars can’t be choosers, but to score there is just unbelievable. The roar of it.
“The other end’s great, but it’s either away fans or no one in there. To have been met by thousands of fans as I’m going towards them, them singing my name, the roar of us getting closer to three points and then eventually three points. Yeah, it’s amazing.
“I’ve planned loads of celebrations in my head over the years. I’ve never really scored many goals.
“I usually think I’m going to play it cool but then just the emotion takes over. It’s straight away just head towards the fans, I can’t really believe my luck.
“I don’t score many, so I would have taken it wherever it came. But to score the winner at The Rainham End, it’s such a big game against a team that’s unbeaten and not just unbeaten, they’ve won every game. I can’t put that feeling into words right now.”
Gale also dedicated the goal to his family after his nan passed away last Monday.
It was also fitting that he got his first Gills goal against Crewe.
“I was thinking in the second half, I missed a big chance against Crewe last season at The Rainham End at home,” said Gale.
“That game ended 0-0 and I was thinking if I get a chance, hopefully I’ll put it away.
“Luckily that one was a bit easier than the one I had last season.
“That goal’s for my family. We’ve had a really tough week but my whole family were at the ground and that meant a lot to all of us.”
Gillingham have now beaten Chesterfield and Crewe at Priestfield in their last two games. Even Walsall, who they beat earlier this month, are in the top seven of the table.
They’re good signs but Gale isn’t going to get carried away.
“It says that we’re a good side and that we’re able to do different variations of football, really, and play different ways,” he reflected.
“Chesterfield was a bit more of an open game. They kept the ball on the deck, so it gave opportunities for transitions and we really hurt them, I think.
“With Crewe, especially first half, they were really good and we had to hold on for a little bit and kind of dig in. We did that and we showed that we can be a strong team, out of possession, and still carry a threat.
“Even though first half I thought Crewe was a better side, I thought we still carried a big threat and we’re showing we’re adaptable.
“It’s a long season and is great to still be unbeaten in the league and 100 per cent at home. We’ve just got to keep ticking over and take it game by game.”
