Kevin Maher was in the thick of the action against Oldham on Saturday and despite the wind, rain and a physical battle he was thrilled to be back in the starting eleven.

The Gillingham midfielder said: "It’s nice to get out there, get dirty and get involved. It was nice to get a 1-0 win.

"There were a few tackles flying around but it was those kind of conditions. It was so swirly and bobbly, the ball gets away from you at times and it can lead to a few tackles going in.

"That’s the way it goes and there probably aren’t as many games like that these days. It was nice to be involved as I enjoy those games."

It was Maher’s first start for the Gills since the 4-1 defeat at Southampton on October 3.

He spent a season in League 1 with Oldham last year, playing 32 times for the Lancastrians.

"Winning against your old team is always nice and it’s two weeks in a row so that’s particularly pleasing," he said, having made a substitute appearance in the FA Cup victory over Southend last week.

"It was a hard game to get into because there was no real flow but we grinded out a result.

"The conditions were terrible and it was really hard to get the ball down and play.

"With the position we’re in it was vital we picked up the points.

"The way we played showed how we can be resilient and at times you have to be. If we take that into our away games then there is no reason why we can’t get a result at Bristol Rovers on Saturday."