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Team news;
Gillingham boss Steve Lovell has, not surprisingly, stuck with the same starting line-up that dominated the first half at Northampton in midweek.
The only change is on the bench, where Lee Martin is replaced by Liam Nash. Martin had only just returned from being out with a calf problem but is believed to be suffering with a foot injury.
The Gills are set to continue with a back three as Ben Nugent keeps his place in the side.
Former Walsall player Franck Moussa is on the bench for the Gills.
Gillingham: Holy, O’Neill, Ogilvie, Nugent, Ehmer, Zakuani, Reilly, Byrne, Hessenthaler, Eaves, Parker. Subs not used: Hadler, Garmston, Wagstaff, Wilkinson, List, Nash, Moussa.
Walsall: L Roberts, Edwards, Leahy, Dobson, Guthrie, Devlin, Chambers, Oztumer, Morris, Bakayoko, Fitzwater. Subs: Gillespie, Cuvelier, Kinsella, Shaibu, Flanagan, K Roberts, Kouhyar.
Preview;
Gillingham are closing in on the top six and will need to maintain their form if they are to achieve the unthinkable.
The Gills were fighting relegation in mid-October but an impressive run since then, under Steve Lovell, has got fans dreaming of a possible play-off challenge.
The likelihood of that happening is still extremely slim, but another win at the weekend would keep it alive.
Opponents Walsall have found some form themselves, beating Doncaster 4-2 in the week, but they have struggled for results away from home.
A draw at Blackpool last weekend ended a run of three straight defeats on their travels. They are without an away win in six, the last coming at AFC Wimbledon on November 25.
More: Safety first insists the Gills boss
Head to head;
Gills wins: 47 Draws: 23 Walsall wins: 43
League form;
Gillingham: W 2-1 Northampton (a), D 1-1 Peterborough (a), L 0-2 Wigan (a), W 2-1 Fleetwood (h), W 3-1 Scunthorpe (a), W 2-1 Rochdale (h).
Walsall: W 4-2 Doncaster (h), D 2-2 Blackpool (a), W 1-0 MK Dons (h), L 1-3 Blackburn (a), L 1-3 Charlton (a), W 1-0 Oxford (h).
Last meeting at Priestfield;
Recent Gills signing Franck Moussa scored Walsall’s equaliser when they last met at Priestfield, in October 2016.
A mistake by loan keeper Jonathan Bond cost Gillingham victory during the midweek meeting.
Gills were leading the midweek match through Cody McDonald’s first-half header and were on top when Bond gifted midfield man Moussa the equaliser just before the hour.
Bond spilled a 20-yard strike from Erhun Oztumer into the path of Moussa, who stabbed home the loose ball.
Gills stats - appearances, goals, discipline and ratings
Last time out;
Northampton Town 1 Gillingham 2
Gillingham’s impressive form on the road continued at Northampton on Tuesday night.
Early goals proved enough for Gills to take the points and move to within six points of the League 1 play-offs.
Josh Parker and Tom Eaves netted the goals for Gillingham after a dominant first half.
Ash Taylor halved the deficit for Northampton 10 minutes after the restart but the Gills hung on to claim the win.
Team news;
Lee Martin is fit again, as is Scott Wagstaff, but boss Steve Lovell found the winning formula at Northampton.
A blistering first half performance laid the foundations for victory.
Both Martin and Wagstaff played a key role in the second half, but Lovell must decide whether to stick or twist.
Defender Alex Lacey (ankle) is still a couple of weeks away from a return.
Man in the middle – Kevin Johnson;
Games: 29 Yellows: 89 Reds: 9
Gillingham haven’t shown good form in Mr Johnson’s previous visits to Priestfield, losing all four.
Johnson was last at Priestfield to referee the home match against Shrewsbury, which the Gills lost 2-1.
Last season he oversaw a 2-1 loss to Oldham, booking five Gillingham players.
And it was also a 2-1 home defeat for the Gills the season before that, against Chesterfield.
A visit in February 2015 ended in a 1-0 loss to Barnsley.
Assistants: Michael Webb and Sam Lewis. Fourth official: Christopher Kidd.
More on the Gills
High praise for Max Ehmer after he clocks up milestone
The Shouting Men with Connor Ogilvie: Togetherness is key
Eaves and Parker - the best yet
Young midfielder impressing at the Cannons
From the opposition;
Walsall boss Jon Whitney has been under pressure for some time.
Right now he’s enjoying a bit of form.
Speaking to the Express & Star, he acknowledged Gills’ impressive form but his team aren’t doing bad at the moment, too.
“They are on an incredible run,” he said.
“Steve (Lovell) has turned things around there really well.
“He has a good sense of humour and I think he has relaxed the players and taken the pressure off them.
“You can see they enjoy playing and in those early stages, he got results by hook or by crook which builds confidence.
“They change formations, they are happy to play different ways. They are in a confident, buoyant mood but so are we.”
One to watch – Erhun Oztumer;
Attacking midfielder Erhun Oztumer is Walsall’s leading scorer, with 12 to his name so far this season.
He wasn’t on the scoresheet in their 4-2 win over Doncaster but Oztumer did provide a great throughball for their fourth.
In the 63 league starts he’s made for Walsall, the 26-year-old Turk has netted 26 goals.
Oztumer was released by Charlton as a youngster, for reportedly being too small, but the creative no.10 isn’t short of admirers. He’s out of contract in the summer and will have a host of clubs chasing his signature.
Fancy a flutter;
Gills are the 13/10 favourites with SkyBet. It’s 23/10 for the draw and 21/10 for an away win.
Visiting sides have opened the scoring in the last three games at Priestfield, but it’s 20/1 for Tom Eaves to score in the first 10 minutes and get the Gills off to a flyer.
Eaves and Josh Parker got the winning goals at Nothampton and they are 13/2 to both net again.
For match updates on Saturday follow kentonlinegills on twitter
