Gills boss Martin Allen felt that Saturday’s win was just reward following a week of hard graft.

Allen had his team training all day last week in preparation for the trip to Crewe - and it paid off.

He said: “The players have put a big contribution in off the field and to put in a performance like that with a clean sheet, it was very similar, I thought, to what it was last year.

“It’s a reward for the hard work the players and the staff have put in. We have trained for five days this week and a couple of afternoons.

“There was team spirit, camaraderie, unity, togetherness and the players played very, very well. The subs also made a big contribution from the side helping and the lads that went on did well.

“The supporters were on the far side and it was nice to be able to do something that makes them happy.”

It was Gillingham’s first win of the season and first away win since February. Understandably there was relief all round.

Allen said: "The players deserve to be happy. We have had it full on. They have worked hard, we’ve got three points and there will be a lot of relief as well.

“I am sure they were very tired, mentally and physically. I haven’t had them in at the training ground everyday to run them five miles. We haven’t been going up and down the hills. It’s just been practising, practising and practising. They should be happy and all their hard work and effort has paid off.

“That performance doesn’t just come from having a laugh, shouting at people and being horrible. That’s coaching and training and work on the training pitch and the players contributed as well.

“We worked out a way of playing, we put it into practice, training sessions, everyone knew what they were doing, we worked on it from early in the week and we worked every day and we will do the same this week.”

Joe Martin’s perfect free-kick, at the start of the second half, was testament to the work done on the training field.

Allen said: “I have had to sit down and watch that Bradford DVD (from last weekend) and we had several good chances, four very good chances in the first half but we never took them. This time we took them.

“Last week I was a bit emotional, upset and disappointed and I spoke about values. A boy today has curled in a free-kick from 25 yards into the top corner and that’s no coincidence. That boy has been practising all week. Not one day, not two days, every day and that’s what happens. It’s amazing.”