Gillingham captain Armani Little wants to stay at the club and ‘put things right’ after another disappointing season.
Little was speaking after the 4-1 home defeat to Grimsby Town – a result he admits summed up their campaign. But the skipper’s focus is already on the future.
“I love playing here,” he said. “I love going out there wearing the armband. It’s a real privilege.
“If I’m here next season, hopefully I am, let’s push on.
“I really want to put things right.
“The last two seasons [since signing] haven’t been as we planned and as we wanted them to go.
“I want to push this club forward and achieve something.”
Little’s had a rough campaign, with a couple of suspensions and, as captain, he’s often borne the brunt of fan criticism.
He’s been playing well of late and provided the assist for Garath McCleary’s goal at the weekend.
“I think at times I haven’t been good enough this season,” he admitted.
“But I’m always the hardest person on my performance.
“I always break things down. You ask my missus, I go home on a Saturday and I’m watching a game back.”
Little said there have been discussions over next season, and whether he’ll remain.
The club have promised big changes and the manager said at the weekend that even “change for change’s sake” would need to be done to try and come back fresh for next term.
Little said: “There are 10 or 15 lads that are out of contract here in the summer.
“So, every time they’re going out on that pitch, they’re playing for contracts, whether it’s here or somewhere else, and to keep themselves in the Football League.
“You’re always being watched. Every performance matters.”
Little’s season was looking like ending early after suffering a deep cut to a finger and the medical advice was to stop playing. He was keen to play the final few games.
“It was down to me,” he said. “I wanted to just give it a go and strap it up. It’s only a finger at the end of the day.
“I think some people might just be on the beach, but that’s not my mentality. I wanted to finish the season strong.
“I didn’t need to play in these [final few] games. I was advised not to, but that’s the type of character I am. I wanted to get straight back out there.
“As a footballer, you want to play in every game, no matter what.”
Little was chosen for post-match media duties on Saturday and insisted he was always ready to front up.
Before taking a question on Saturday, he said: “I just want to say before that, regarding interviews, I’m always willing to put myself forward. I never shy away from that.
“I know [the club’s media] pick people for the game, so I just want to put that to bed. I’m willing to do interviews whenever you want me to. I won’t shy away from it.”
It’s been a tough season for the fans, who were expecting a lot better, and the players who have had to face the wrath of the supporters over their poor performances.
Little said: “They [fans have] come in great numbers all season, home and away, and they have backed us, but it’s time for us to maybe forget this season now, and the sooner it’s done, the better.
“We still have two games to go, and we want to go into those games and win, but it’s not a season to remember.”
The Gills take on Barnet this Saturday, a team who still have an outside chance of claiming a play-off place.
Little said: “They’re still in the hunt for the play-offs. We’ve got to go there and ruin that for them, really, and try to get the three points.
“You want to finish strong. I know it means nothing now, but you do want to still win football games, and you still want to be competitive, and you want a say in the league still.
“We owe it to ourselves to go out there and try to win both [of the remaining] games, and I’m sure we’ll come back and do that.”
