NEW Gillingham manager Mark Stimson says he is proud to have been given the opportunity to manage the club.

Stimson signed a three and a half year contract on Thursday to end the long running manager saga at Priestfield.

He takes charge of the Gills for the first time for the trip to League 1 high-fliers Swansea on Friday night.

"It took its time coming but it is certainly worth it," said Stimson. "I can’t wait now for the Swansea game, to get involved with the players and hopefully get some points on the board.

"Hopefully, I can come in with some new ideas and get them up to the top end of the table."

Stimson, who met the squad for the first time after training on Thursday, is confident he can make the step up from non-league football to League 1.

He has enjoyed success with Conference clubs Grays and Stevenage, having won the FA Trophy three times, but is untried in the Football League.

"My own confidence is very high," he said. "I am someone who doesn’t like losing, but I try to take positives out of defeats.

"There will be ups and downs along the way, like there is in every football club, and we will just deal with those in a professional way."

The former Newcastle and Portsmouth defender admitted he had feared that he may have missed out on the chance of taking over the managerial reins at Priestfield.

He said: "You do get to the point when you think is someone else going to be named because there are a lot of good managers out there without jobs at the moment.

"You put on the teletext in the morning and wonder 'have Gillingham announced somebody and have I missed that opportunity?'

"I was going to bed with my fingers crossed, but I am here now and can’t wait to get started."

Stimson will assess the current squad before deciding on bringing in new players.

He said: "Looking at the current squad on paper it is very strong, but at the moment they are not producing what they should be."

He also did not rule out the possibility of his number two at Stevenage Scott Barrett, the ex-Gills goalkeeper, following him to Priestfield. However, Barrett is still currently under contract with the Blue Square Premier club.

FOR INDEPTH COVERAGE OF MARK STIMSON'S APPOINTMENT SEE MONDAY'S MEDWAY MESSENGER