Gillingham captain Kyle Dempsey has yet to score his first goal of the season but is still hoping to make double figures.

The midfielder’s goals were important last term as he bagged eight for the club, the third best tally of that season, behind 20-goal man Vadaine Oliver and now-departed winger Jordan Graham.

Dempsey is confident the goals will come.

He said: “I am getting the ball more in the areas I want to receive it and I am carrying the ball more, beating players and that is what I want to do.

“I have been unfortunate a couple of times not to get on the scoresheet.

“Once I get a couple of goals under my belt my main target was to get to 10 and that is what I am going to keep working on. If I can keep working on those areas then the goals will come.”

His breakthrough season at Carlisle United in 2014/15 was the last time he made double figures, playing an attacking midfield role that allowed him to net 11 that campaign.

He struggled for goals at Fleetwood in a more defensive role, netting three times in the league during his three seasons, although ironically one of those was a winner against the Gills at Priestfield in 2017.

A freedom to attack since moving to the Gills has given him more opportunities.

“I know that goal is coming, I can feel it,” he added.

His standout form for Gillingham has alerted other clubs but he’s concentrating on the job in hand, which right now is to get his team up towards the top half of League 1.

He said: “I am one of those players who just concentrates on every single game ahead of me, my main focus is just the next game.

“The contract side just looks after itself, I have been in the game long enough to realise that. You get rewarded with good performances and good form and that is all I have got to concentrate on.

“My main focus is to get us up this league and to get as many points as possible.

“Teams are getting away from us, we can’t allow the gap to be too much. Our main target was to try and get in and around the play-off mark. There are still a lot of games to play but we need the points as soon as possible.

“Our ambition has to be putting three and five-win streaks together because once you start doing that you really do start climbing up the league.”

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