Gillingham manager Gareth Ainsworth highlighted unacceptable defensive mistakes and missed chances as they slipped to defeat at Fleetwood on Saturday.
Bradley Dack had put the Gills in front during a positive opening half, but just like the week before, when they led 2-0 at the break against Barrow to draw 2-2, the Gills again conceded twice in the second half, this time losing the game 2-1.
Report: Fleetwood 2 Gillingham 1
“The (windy) conditions played a part, but we’ve got to defend better in the second half,” Ainsworth said.
“We lost too many battles in the second half, and we’re just thin on the ground with numbers and bodies and are just trying to get some balls up top to be held up and stick. They weren’t doing that. They were coming straight back at us. The type that (injured strikers) Josh [Andrews] and Sam Vokes would probably thrive off.
“We had enough chances in the first half to go one, two or three up, but if you miss your chances, you’re always prone to getting punished, and Fleetwood punished us second-half. They were quite relentless in what they were doing.”
Dack scored on 14 minutes, and despite the Gills being on top, they were unable to build on that lead; in the end grateful that Fleetwood’s only chance on target of the first half was cleared off the line.
It was a different story after the break as the Gills continued their habit of only managing one decent half in a match.
Ryan Graydon leveled with a free header for Fleetwood and although Dack hit the post with a flicked effort for the Gills, the home side had a penalty saved when Jake Turner denied Ched Evans.
Moments later an Evans cross was tapped home by substitute Zech Medley – the former Arsenal junior who had half a season on loan with the Gills a few years ago.
“The free header in our box again, was unacceptable,” Ainsworth said, of the first goal conceded.
“At the end they’ve scored from a couple of yards out. Bradley’s hit the post second half, but really we weren’t threatening second half again.”
The Gills felt they should have had a penalty in the first half when they were 1-0 up. Sam Gale was taken out in the area by the home keeper.
“How we haven’t had a penalty, I don’t know,” Ainsworth said.
“Sam Gale’s won the header and been punched in the face by the keeper. Heaven knows why we haven’t had a penalty for that. The referee saw it a different way.
“That probably puts the game a little bit further from their grip.
“But fair play to Fleetwood. They’ve come back, they’ve used the conditions, they obviously know their place well.
“They took advantage of some sloppy defending really. There’s a couple of mistakes in the goals that are just not acceptable.”
Missed chances in the opening half frustrated the Gills boss.
He said: “I said to (the players that) when you get your chances in that first half, you have to take them.
“Even though it’s after 20 minutes, 30 minutes. It’s no point taking your chances on 89 minutes. Take them early. Let’s put the game out of sight at times when we’ve got those chances.
“We had a lot of decisions go our way. We had a lot of attacking play. We’ve got to hit the target. We have to work their keeper more and more. We don’t do it enough here and I’m well aware of that. They certainly worked ours.”
At 1-1, when Turner saved the penalty, it could have been a turning point for the Gills but Fleetwood scored what turned out to be their winner soon after.
“It was a brilliant save,” Ainsworth acknowledged.
“I thought that might have been another point on the road. But it wasn’t to me, because, again, we’re so open at second phase of the set-piece.
“We’ll have a look at it. We’ll try and put it right.”
