Gillingham will be prepared for a battle as they take on league leaders Bromley this Saturday.
The visitors from South London are on a terrific run, 10 unbeaten and winning eight of those, to propel themselves to the top of League 2.
Gills manager Gareth Ainsworth was there in person at Hayes Lane on Tuesday night to watch them draw 2-2 with Crewe. Andy Woodman’s side head into the weekend six points clear at the top.
“Well done Bromley,” said the Gills boss. “They’re right up there at the top of the league for a reason. They’ve done brilliantly this season.
“I bet not a lot of people saw that coming. Woody has done a brilliant job.
“I went to watch them the other night and they’re very strong, very good, very physical, but they’ve got some good players as well.
“People will say, ‘Oh, they’re good at what they do.’ I used to have that at Wycombe but they’ve got some good players, and we’ve got to match it.
“They’ve got some good individuals. Obviously, Michael Cheek scores a lot of goals for them. We know that. He’s scored a lot of goals over the years.
“They’re a real threat from crosses, from set-pieces, but it’s the way they get in the attacking positions that we’ve got to deal with as well. Lots to contend with and I’m looking forward to it because obviously it’s [a team from] just down the road.”
League 2 table;
The Gills were top of the table the last time the teams met. Ainsworth’s side came from two goals down that day to draw 2-2, equalising with a 98th-minute penalty from Max Clark.
While the Gills have faltered, Bromley gathered momentum and are now the team to beat.
Ainsworth said: “They kept a majority of the squad together for that period as well, which helps.
“I’ve always said, if you lose your best players that can hurt you, but they’ve kept everyone fit. You’ve got to give them credit.
“Andy’s done a fantastic job. His staff as well for looking after the players and keeping a consistent outfit week in, week out.
“They deserve to be where they are. It’s about us now trying to get a good scalp against top of the league and that’s what we’re going to try and do on Saturday.”
The Gills head into the match after back-to-back wins over the bottom two, beating Newport County and Harrogate in successive weekend.
Gillingham’s midweek trip Cheltenham was rained off but that gave Ainsworth a chance to watch the weekend visitors at close quarters.
Ainsworth said: “I’ll make the boys aware that this is a decent team coming to town and we’ve got to be at our best.
“But I believe, at our best, we can beat any team in this league, whether it’s Bromley or Harrogate at the bottom. We treat them all with the same respect.
“Nobody expected Bromley to be where they are. They’ve got a very good manager. They’re well supported. They’re very proud of their stadium and the way they’ve done it, the way they’ve come into the league and not bought their way in. They’ve done it the right way.
“I think that they’re a great example to a lot of clubs of what can be done. But having said that, this football club’s one of the larger ones in League 2 and we want to get out of League 2.
“We want to be a League 1 club at least. I want to do that sooner rather than later. Let’s see what happens on Saturday.”
The Gills have 20 games left to climb back into the promotion mix. They start the weekend eight points off the top seven ahead of a busy run of games. They visit fifth-placed Notts County on Tuesday night.
Gillingham could give debuts to new signings Cameron Antwi and Ronan Hale this Saturday.
