Gillingham striker Tom Eaves wasn't supposed to take match-winning penalty against Fleetwood

By: Matthew Panting mpanting@thekmgroup.co.uk

Published: 07:42, 29 January 2018

Tom Eaves fired Gillingham to victory on Saturday – even though he wasn’t meant to take the match-winning penalty.

Eaves blasted home his 12th goal of the season in stoppage time to sink Fleetwood 2-1 at Priestfield but boss Steve Lovell revealed he wasn’t the designated spot-kick taker.

“We’ve had a discussion about this,” said Lovell. “If he’d missed it then we’d readdress it, but he took it well – it was a great penalty.

Tom Eaves holds his nerve to give Gills a dramatic win over Fleetwood Picture: Andy Jones

“Mark Byrne has missed two although he tucked (a rebound) in, but that doesn’t count. Luke O’Neill fancies himself at doing it but that’s in training and it’s different (in a game).

“But Tom picked the ball up and put it on the spot – that’s good enough for me.

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“I used to take them all the time. (Strikers) are used to sticking the ball in the back of the net, that’s what they love to do. I don’t like defenders doing it, they just defend don’t they?

“I was a bit nervous about Tom because he’s taken a couple in the past and they haven’t been the best.

“But when you’ve got your goal scorer in form, how can you take it off him? Fair play to him, he tucked it away brilliantly.”

Eaves is claiming the first Gillingham goal as well, although it looked like Paddy Madden nodded the ball into his own net from Luke O’Neill’s near-post corner.

“If I was Tom then I would claim it,” said Lovell. “He’s the nearest one.

“It did come off the defender. I think but it might have to go to one of those panels. I’m going to give it to Eavesy anyway!”

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The victory means Gills are now closer to the play-off places than the relegation zone for the first time this season. But despite moving to within seven points of sixth-placed Rotherham, Lovell’s only target is mid-table safety.

“That’s what I’m aiming for,” he stated. “It’s always been my aim.

“We’re getting closer to it. The sooner we get to that then you can ask that question and it might be a different answer. At the moment it’s getting to 50-51 points – that is our aim.

“If someone had said when we took over and we had seven points that by the end of January we’d be 10th and have 40 points then I might have had a little chuckle.

“But with the group of players we’ve got and the effort that’s going in, it is where we deserve to be.”