GILLINGHAM manager Andy Hessenthaler was full of praise for Patrick Agyemang after the young striker scored the only goal on his home debut against Bradford City on Saturday.

The 23-year-old forward showed the Priestfield fans his talents after 16 minutes when he sprinted past the last defender before finding the top corner to seal three vital points for the home side.

Hessenthaler said: "His pace is absolutely frightening and sometimes he has no right to get to the football. He is always going to create chances.

"I felt a bit sorry for the defender because when Pat gets a chance one-on-one with a defender, I back him to get past people.

"You could see from his celebration how much it meant to him. It meant a lot to us.

"We have got him on a long contract and I'm looking for big things from him.

"Obviously it's going to take him a bit of time to settle in but he's got a goal a very good goal and I'm pleased we have got him."

Despite Agyemang's wonder strike and a red card for Bradford goalkeeper Alan Combe on half-time, Gillingham struggled to come to terms with the windy conditions in a poor game.

However, Hessenthaler insisted it was important to pick up the win and move up to 16th in the table seven points above the drop zone.

He said: "The performance was average but we set out before the game to get the three points. Sometimes it doesn't matter how you get them as long as you get them.

"Conditions dictated a lot. The wind was a big factor but we had enough chances to kill the game off.

"In the second half we had to be careful not to get frustrated. When they went down to 10 men everybody thought that we would score another but it didn't work out that way.

"It's a good result for us and we need to push on now. We have a tough game against Burnley next week.

"We owe them one because of the FA Cup so, hopefully, this can give us confidence going into that game."