Martin Allen isn't ignoring the club's youth players Picture: Barry Goodwin

by Luke Cawdell

Gills boss Martin Allen remains in the market for another addition to his squad.

But he insists some of the club’s young homegrown talent are also on his radar.

Allen said: “Part of my job is to recruit players to help us get over that line and also (on Thursday) I had a couple of hours with our young players.

“I love that Bradley Dack has come through our system along with Callum Davies.

“Josh Hare (pictured below), Charlie Webster and Sam Muggleton have been on the bench for us this season and we’ve got Jake Hessenthaler out on loan playing proper men’s football.

“Devante McKain is playing week in, week out, one division below the Conference at Maidenhead and I have got my eye on all of them.

“I am not ignoring them and all of the senior staff here look out for them.

“We’ve got a programme for them right through May, which they have to take part in, so that they are ready for pre-season which starts on June 26.

“Can some of those boys come up and play? Are some of them ready? It’s not just on the outside where we are looking, we are also looking on the inside.”

Allen said on Thursday there “may be one” new addition before the loan market closes.

“As a manager you want to bring in as many as you can but I don’t think (chairman) Mr Scally would be happy with that,” he said.

“We can’t afford that many, maybe there will be one. But these players here have just won at home and drawn away and they are doing it. It is tough and testing mentally but they are doing a fantastic job.

“They have kept their courage, kept their nerve and maintained a great team spirit.”