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Gillingham will feel they are due a result against tonight’s visitors AFC Wimbledon following the two games between the sides last season.
The Gills bossed the game at Kingsmeadow but ended up losing 1-0 and then suffered a last-minute defeat at Priestfield in February. Former Gillingham players Scott Wagstaff and Callum Reilly bagged the winning goals in those two fixtures.
It’s sure to be a hotly contested affair again, with Reilly and another former player Luke O’Neill in the Wimbledon team. Wagstaff has since departed and is now playing for Forest Green Rovers.
“We were the better team (twice),” commented assistant boss Paul Raynor, recalling those two fixtures.
“They have started the season quite well and I know Glyn (Hodges, the AFC manager) very well, he has got some good players, it will be a good game and we are looking forward to it. If we play like we did on Saturday then I am sure there will be three points on the way.
“Glyn will get them up for it and I know he did last year. They nicked it twice and we will be ready for it. It’s not revenge, we just want to get three points.”
The Gills are starting to put points on the board again after a five-game losing streak, heading into the game against Wimbledon with a win over Crewe and a well-deserved point against Charlton behind them.
“If we can put in performances like that consistently between now and the end of the season we will win lots of matches,” said Raynor, after Saturday’s match.
“Some of the performances in those five defeats were very good and we just couldn’t convert the chances. Some of those games, Fleetwood especially, could have gone either way. We came away with nothing and then at Crewe we came away with a win from a game we probably didn’t deserve. That gave us confidence.
"We had a good second half against Woking (in the FA Cup), a good performance against Arsenal (in the EFL Trophy) and a really good performance on Saturday, so it’s something to build on.”
Boss Steve Evans has led his side into games against some top teams of late, including Sunderland, Ipswich and Charlton, but knows his team will have to be on top form to get something against Wimbledon too.
He said: “The same level of performance is the requirement and this time taking our chances will be needed.
“We will look at all the lads in training, the opposition match reports in detail, and pick a team to win the match. Every match in any league is tough and Tuesday will be no different so we will again need to be at our best.”
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