More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
Centre-back Max Ehmer concedes Gillingham’s players are letting down boss Neil Harris.
As manager, Harris is taking the brunt of the criticism from fans, with the goal-shy Gills presently facing a second successive relegation.
But Ehmer said: “I don’t think you can question the gaffer with where he’s been as a player and manager.
“Last year, with how far we were adrift, to only go down on goal difference - when there were times like Sunderland away where we conceded a last-minute goal [in a 1-0 loss]. If we kept a clean sheet there, we’d have stayed up.
“For some reason, as of now, it’s not working but that’s not down to him. That’s down to the 11 players that go on the pitch or the 14 or 16 - if you include the substitutes that come on.
“We have to repay that trust he puts into us and the amount of work he puts into us as well.”
There were at least encouraging signs in a goalless first period on Saturday before Gillingham lost their way in their home League 2 defeat to Salford, going down 3-0.
Ehmer said: “Going back to the first half, that’s exactly what a Neil Harris team looks like. Then second half, I don’t know who’s team that looks like - that’s just not his!
“For what reason we can’t sustain that for 90 minutes? I don’t know.
"That’s something we need to figure out very quickly and almost repay him for because he puts everything and more into training, and the videos he provides.
“There’s nothing on that side of things that we’re lacking. It’s just when matchday comes - we always have a spell in the game, whatever that is - but we just can’t maintain that for 90 minutes.”
The Gills remain second-bottom and 30-year-old Ehmer accepts they are fighting to maintain the club's Football League status. If they do go down, it'll be a third relegation in a row for Ehmer.
“The table doesn’t lie,” he said.
“We know we have more than enough quality in the dressing room to stay well clear of that but performances and results aren’t matching that at the moment. So that’s something we need to address.”
Overall, they have netted only six league goals in 20 fixtures this term and have failed to hit the target in their last six league outings - the first time that's happened since 1961.
Asked if he had ever been involved in a goalless streak like it before, Ehmer replied: “No I haven’t, to be fair.
“It’s tough. It’s, obviously, not a nice situation to be in. But it’s something we as a group are talking about and know we need to change quickly. There’s no getting away from that.
“The gaffer puts on drills daily and weekly to do with the final third and goals go flying in but, when matchday comes, nothing breaks. There’s an element of luck involved and also desire and decision-making.
“I’m not questioning the desire but we just don’t seem to be in the right places when these things drop down.”
And Ehmer says the squad at present is short on confidence.
“I’m not sure about belief but, in terms of confidence, yeah, I think the group is short on confidence,” he said.
“The gaffer does his utmost to instil confidence into us. But there’s only so much he and the staff, like Livers [assistant David Livermore], can do.
“It comes down to us on the pitch, making sure that we perform. For 45 minutes on Saturday, we did but, second half, we didn’t.
“That’s sort of been the story of the season so far. The consistent levels just haven’t been there and that’s why we find ourselves where we do.”
Harris hasn’t questioned his players’ work-rate but this season has questioned the leadership and attacking quality in the group.
“I think, first and foremost, if the quality is not there, you always have to work harder,” Ehmer said.
“This is not me getting onto the strikers or the boys in the final third. I just think, in the first half, we had great opportunities and we didn't capitalise on them. But that comes from all of us.
“We have plenty of set-pieces that me and Wrighty [Will Wright] and the rest of us go up for so it also falls down on us. Like we’ve said many times, the decision-making in the final third needs to be better - from everyone.”
But he denied suggestions a lack of goals was making it harder for them to keep clean sheets.
He said: “I think we as defenders have to stay switched on - no matter what the score is.
“Obviously it would have been nice to go 1-0 or 2-0 up with how we performed [in the first half against Salford] but that wasn’t the case.
“Our job as defenders is to keep a clean sheet, regardless of the result. We didn’t do that on Saturday so, obviously, we are very disappointed.”
Gillingham will hope for a response in an FA Cup Second-Round replay this Thursday against National League Dagenham, 7.15pm kick-off, amid a busy festive schedule where they’ll also face Premier League Wolves in the Carabao Cup and try to improve their league fortunes.
Ehmer said: “We, obviously, won’t look too far ahead. We have the FA Cup Second-Round replay so it’s a chance to take a break away from the league.
“It’s not a cup final as such but, if you are losing 1-0, you can afford to lose 3-0 because you are out of the cup. So as much as we are short on confidence, we’ll go into that game with confidence.
“The gaffer will set us up and, with the way we performed away [last month in a 1-1 draw], it’s a game we are looking forward to.”
There’s an unusual schedule to the week, with Gills’ game against Salford having started at lunchtime, a slightly earlier kick-off time for their FA Cup encounter and their weekend encounter against play-off occupants Bradford a 1pm kick-off this Sunday.
But when asked if that affected preparations this week, Ehmer replied: “No, not really. We have a schedule that we are sticking by.
“It’s a slightly longer break and then it’s almost like a Saturday-Tuesday in terms of the Thursday-Sunday.
“So not really, to be honest. We’ll just make sure that we are prepared for both games.”
