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Gillingham manager Neil Harris knows his team have to win tonight.
A disappointing weekend performance in the league took the shine off their big Carabao Cup success last Tuesday and Harris’ team are under pressure to succeed against non-league AFC Fylde.
The midweek visitors to Priestfield - who have just named their new manager - earned a replay in the first round of the FA Cup after a 1-1 draw at the Lancashire side’s impressive Mill Farm Stadium. Fylde are two levels below the Gills, playing in National League North.
While Harris’ men struggled in the league again on Saturday, losing 2-0 to Northampton and slipping to third from bottom in League 2, Fylde knocked the leaders in their division, Darlington, off top spot with a 2-1 away win.
Confidence is always important but the Gills should still win against their lower-ranked visitors.
Harris said: “Tuesday is a must win game for us, let’s be honest, we are playing against a team who are two leagues below us.
“It is easy to say, when you have just beaten Brentford, who are three leagues above us, but we have to be as professional as we were in the first game, but just better with the ball.
“We saw ourselves at Brentford, last Tuesday, how tough you can make it for an opponent in a higher division.
“Fylde made it tough for us up there and for 70 minutes we absolutely controlled the game and then cup football and the underdog kicked in.
“Brentford absolutely controlled (last week’s Carabao Cup) game against us and we nicked a draw and went to penalties, we know it will be a tough fixture.
“Fylde will come and have a right go at us and enjoy the occasion of coming here and they want to be in the next round but for us, it is a winnable fixture. I expect us to be as professional and the mentality to be as good as it was at their place, but I do expect better quality with the football than we showed up there.”
The winners play National League Dagenham away in round two. It should be a great opportunity for the Gills to make it to round three and have another pop at a bigger opponent.
But Harris admits he can’t be looking too far ahead.
He said: “I am not in a position with our form at the moment to talk about opportunities. I think we showed at Brentford that anything can happen.
“Brentford won at Man City on Saturday, football is crazy and that is the beauty of the pyramid system and anyone who knocks the pyramid system is absolutely bonkers, it is amazing. We are 90th in the Football League and we won at Brentford the other night, Brentford have then gone to play the best team in the world and beat them!
"We now play Fylde seven days later and they are two leagues below us, five below Brentford, that is the beauty of it and what cup football is all about. We have to make sure on Tuesday that we have the right mentality and we win the game of football.”
The Gills could be without regular keeper Glenn Morris after his shoulder injury on Saturday. Jake Turner will play and youth keeper Taite Holtam could come in as cover.
