Manager Neil Harris will hope his Gillingham players can raise their levels again for some tougher battles ahead.

The Gills have won their last three at Priestfield - all against bottom-end teams - but the visit of Wimbledon on Saturday and then Bradford on Tuesday night will provide his new-look team with more of a test.

In-form Gillingham have climbed out of the League 2 relegation zone and there looks set to be another decent crowd at Priestfield this Saturday, with the Rainham End virtually sold out. Harris said: “I bumped into some fans in the street on Thursday morning, picking up their tickets and they were buzzing.

“We’re looking forward to it. We’ve had three wins in a row here but the next two will be tougher than the last three (at home) we have had.

“We have to continuously raise our levels. The challenge to the group is to raise our levels again, so whatever side I pick and the formation I choose to play, the lads perform as they have done. We are trying to turn those very good 45 minutes into 60, 70, 80 and 90 minutes one day.”

Wimbledon are the draw specialists of late - their last three in League 2 ending all-square. It’s left them seven points off the play-off places.

Harris said: “I’m probably a little surprised they aren’t higher up the division but they have had a tough run of fixtures and some credible draws against sides at the top. They have some good players, they added well in the last two transfer windows, in the summer and January, it’s another tough challenge for us.

“It’s two sides that are going along nicely. I am sure (Wimbledon manager) Johnnie Jackson would like a couple more of those draws to be turned into victories and I am sure they will be looking for a victory to try and chase that play-off dream.

“For us, we just want to keep the momentum and the feel-good factor going and to keep winning games.”

Harris’ side have played well in fits and starts but the manager knows he’ll have to be patient after making big changes in January.

He said: “There is a lot of work to be done on the training pitch, on the way we want to play and develop our game with and without the ball. I still see a lot about our play that I don’t like that needs developing but also understand that takes time.

“I have been really patient but I don’t want us to stand still. We are building for the future. Short term is ‘yes, get points quickly’ to make sure we stay in this division and then reassess the transfer window in the summer. We have got a lot of players out of contract again and we will add to the group accordingly to build for next season.

“These lads are hungry, they have a desire to win games of football and are enjoying themselves. When you have players who want to compete, with a smile on their face, that is what breeds a winning mentality.”