Gillingham striker Lewis Walker is as mystified as anyone over their contrasting league and cup form.

The Gills won another cup game last week, beating Dagenham in the FA Cup to set up a match against Premier League Leicester City in the third round. They are playing another top-flight side, Wolves, in round four of the Carabao Cup next week.

It’s a different story in the league, however, now bottom of League 2, overtaken by Hartlepool after their win on Friday and with an inferior goal difference to second from bottom Colchester.

Gills are without a league win in their last nine games, without a league goal in six and with just two wins from their opening 20 games this season.

“I can’t (understand why),” said the 24-year-old. "I am not too sure. We try just as hard in both so it is a mystery.”

Manager Neil Harris has previously suggested it could be that the pressure is off in cup football.

“Personally, I don’t think so,” Walker said. “I go into every game the same, there is the same amount of pressure so I genuinely don’t know what the difference is.”

Gillingham will hope to end their goal-drought in the league away at Stockport County this Saturday - a team who scored five in their last league fixture, just one less goal than the Gills have scored all season in League 2.

Walker accepts the criticism coming their way but insists they are working hard to put it right.

He said: “The gaffer backs us and if there is any criticism we are going to take it the right way, he works just as hard as we do, we are all working for the same goal, which at the moment is to score more goals. He is really good at helping us in training especially, it is just about us converting that into games.

“I take responsibility for the lack of goals and I am sure the other attacking players do as well, but even if you score a load of goals, if there is one game you don’t score you are still going to have the same sort of feeling, nobody is missing on purpose, everyone is doing everything we can to put it right. There is a little bit of a burden (on the attacking players) and we know it is there but we are working as hard as we can to put it right.”