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Bromley 2 Gillingham 1

Luke Rooney
Luke Rooney

Gills boss Andy Hessenthaler was 'disappointed' as Bromley came from behind to inflict the first defeat of Gillingham's pre-season campaign at Hayes Lane on Saturday afternoon.

Luke Rooney (pictured) gave the visitors the lead in the second half but two goals from former Gills youngster Rory Hill turned the game around, with the winner coming in the final minute of normal time.

Hessenthaler said: We are still very early in pre-season but even though we dominated possession, I was disappointed with the second half.

"We had a young team out there and we worked hard, and that's what it's all about, but we were a bit naive and we got punished.

"In the final third we were just not good enough.

"We played nice stuff in the first half but just did not have enough penetration.

"At the end of the day it's minutes in their legs. The result doesn't really matter because there's nothing on the game."

The winner arrived when the Gills defence was caught napping on the break and Elliot Jones was given time to pull the trigger 18 yards out, only to scuff his shot left to Hill to drive past Daren Hawkes and into the bottom corner.

Rooney had made a lively impression from the bench in the second half and grabbed his second goal in as many games to put the Gills ahead 17 minutes into the period, a move down the left involving Danny Spiller and Dean Rance saw the ball break to Rooney who fired low into the bottom corner past Paul Agu.

However the equaliser arrived a little over 20 minutes from time when Hill escaped marker Rooney from a Rob Hughes free-kick on the right and glanced a header past Hawkes at the near post.

Agu was tested by Matt Fish, Spiller and Dionisis Liosatos during the second half as Gills boss Andy Hessenthaler switched all 11 players at the interval in their second outing of the week.

Danny Kedwell, Charlie Lee and Curtis Weston were all rested while Welling full-back Jack Obersteller and Greek winger Liosatos joined fellow trialists Jack Baldwin and Gregory N’Goyi in the squad.

The first-half had proved largely uneventful, with chances few and far between at either end.

N’Goyi spurned the best chance of the opening half just two minutes in, somehow heading a Danny Jackman free-kick from the right into the ground and over the bar from six yards out.

N’Goyi saw another header from a Jackman set-piece on the other side blocked in the ninth minute and within 60 seconds he’d skied a third header over Agu’s bar.

Bromley's best chance came on the half-hour Marvin Patterson freed Ryan Dolby down the left and Dolby’s low cut back was clipped towards goal by Arron Rhule, only for Obersteller to hack off the line with Ross Flitney beaten.

Dolby spurned an opportunity of his own when he air-kicked at the far post before the break after a low ball across the face of goal was not cleared by the Gills defence.

Gills 1st half: Ross Flitney, Tom Brunt, Jack Obersteller, Jack Payne, Simon King, Garry Richards, Lewis Montrose, Danny Jackman, Dennis Oli, Gregory Ngoyi, Chris Whelpdale.

Gills 2nd half: Daren Hawkes, Matt Fish, Joe Martin, Callum Davies, Dean Rance, Danny Spiller, Alex Brown, Luke Rooney, Stefan Payne, Dionisis Liosatos, Jack Baldwin.

Bromley 1st half: Paul Agu, Ugo Udoji, Marlon Patterson, Harry Harding, Joe Dolan, Reis Boyle, Orlando Smith, Tutu Henriques, Danny Hockton, Arron Rhule, Ryan Dolby.

Bromley 2nd half: Paul Agu, Ugo Udoji, Marlon Patterson, Salifou Ibrahima, Danny Waldren (Peter Wedgeworth 47mins), Ross Hill, Elliot Jones, Tamer Tuna, Rob Hughes, Nick Beasant, Neil Simpson.

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