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Gillingham host an in-form Salford City side at Priestfield this Saturday.
It’s not an ideal opponent for a Gillingham side reeling from back-to-back defeats against two teams from the lower reaches of the League 2 table.
More: Gills team news as Bonner plans changes
Losses to Harrogate and Bromley have left the Gills sitting 12th and confidence on the slide.
In contrast to Gillingham, Salford have picked up form after a slow start, beating Harrogate in midweek after an FA Cup victory over Cheltenham last Saturday, which has led to a mouthwatering third-round match at Manchester City early in the new year.
Gills boss Mark Bonner is wary of the difference in form for both teams ahead of the clash at Priestfield.
He said: “They're on a really good run at the moment. They've got an athletic team, an experienced manager [in Karl Robinson] and they've got some good options throughout their side.
“It's certainly going to be a challenging game. One, because of the form that they're in, but two, because of the situation we've found ourselves in.”
Bonner’s players have a quick turnaround following Wednesday’s loss to Bromley, and that might not be a bad thing. Prior to that, the Gills had an extended break with a weekend off, and plenty of team meetings.
“Everyone's sick of speaking,” Bonner admitted.
“We've just got to do it. We had two weeks of talking and training. We've just got to deliver. That's the main aim.
“I think no different to everybody else. The run that we're on is really frustrating, with the level that we're playing at.
“If you look deep into some of the statistics of the games (we’ve played recently) to have lost as many that we have is shocking really.
“We should have taken points from games. We should have won games that we haven't and we keep finding ways of losing those games, which is really frustrating.
“We know that we're in a bad position at the moment. We know that we're in a bad run of form at the moment. We know the team's not reflective of what any of us want to see on the football pitch, supporters included, and we know that at the moment it's a really disjointed team as we try and find a solution, get some (players) fit and make the changes that we're going to need to make to build that team.
“At the moment, we're really disjointed. We get dispirited really quickly.
“I think the effort levels at times aren't good enough. I think we look soft sometimes. We look spoilt sometimes. None of those are a really good formula to becoming a top team.
“I think what we're giving the players is good but you wouldn't think it is because the level so far in too many moments has been really poor. Whether that's physical level, engagement in the game or tactical understanding, or just really, really simple, basic technical levels. That makes the game hard.
“A little bit of that may be confidence and all that. But, I'll be honest, I just think that's soft. If you're a winner, you're a winner and you've got to grind it out.
League 2 table
“We're a bit of half a team at the moment. When we get it right, we'll be all right. We've got to get it right quick because no-one enjoys this. No-one wants to come and watch this. No-one enjoys coming into work. It's miserable.
“The second side of that is this league will be open until March or April. We've seen teams that can put runs together.
“We'll have to improve and we'll have to get better and we'll have to make changes and all those things. This season can still be one that we get something out of. It doesn't feel like it, or look like it now, but it can be.
“We've got to get better soon because we don't want to be sat where we are.
“I think the league's really open. I think the league is fairly average. When I say that, it's not a disrespectful comment. I just mean there's not loads of standout teams.
“I think it's so even that the opportunity is there to put runs together and all we keep talking about is a couple of wins and we're back in it.
“We've got to find a better level because we haven't been good enough and we haven't been consistent enough.
We'll have to be those things this weekend because we're playing another good side. If we find our best level, we can win it but if we don't, we'll get beat.”
