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Gillingham midfielder Alfie Jones is proving he’s a fast learner.
Jones, who is on loan at Priestfield from Premier League Southampton, has quickly adapted to the challenges put in front of him this season.
He ticked off another box in the goalless draw at Lincoln, returning to the side in a fiery draw at a windy Sincil Bank.
“The conditions, the stadium, the fans and the fire of the game – this is what League 1 is about,” said Jones.
“It’s been a good learning curve and the games come thick and fast for me.
“You’ve got to look after yourself and play to the game and conditions. You’ve got to keep your head as well, obviously when the crowd are getting on you from tackles and stuff like that you have to maintain a level head and try to play your game.
“I’ve learnt a lot from Max Ehmer behind me and Barry Fuller, they’ve obviously been in the game for years and you pick up things day in day out from them.”
On reflection, it may turn out to a be a decent point for Gills.
Jones knows that they didn’t hit their usual heights but refused to blame the conditions.
“The way the game turned out it was a good point,” he added.
“We weren’t at our best so it was a frustrating performance from us. In the end, we’ll take a point.
“If we’d performed better and created more chances then we might have sat down and said that’s not a good point and we should have walked away with three. It’s a good point on the road considering how we played.
“It was a battle and we dealt with it well at times. The wind played a big part but that’s no excuse. We did what we had to do defensively; it was just we lacked that clinical edge in the final third.”
It was an eighth clean sheet during Gillingham’s 15-game unbeaten league run for goalkeeper Jack Bonham.
Jones noted: “Another clean sheet shows how good we’ve been this year defensively. We were solid again.
“Jack’s been brilliant this season, he’s played in every game and has made some terrific saves.
“We count on him and he steps up in the big moments.
“We’re solid, we have good shape and good communication. We concentrate for the 90 minutes and we’ve done that well for the last few months.”
The pressure is on the big guns in League 1 to deliver promotion at the end of the season.
That’s not the case for Gillingham but that doesn’t mean Jones and his team-mates are not aiming high.
“Playing with pressure is something in football you have to deal with,” he said. “That unbeaten run is a bit of pressure in itself.
“Obviously we want to continue that but we take every week as it comes. It’s a good bunch of lads, we’ve all got the same goals so we push forward together.
“We go game by game. It’s been an unbelievable run and it shows how solid we’ve been and how hard we are to play against. That’s a credit to the boys, the manager and staff.
“We need to keep it going now, we need to keep getting points and trying to push up the table.
“(Other teams) feel the pressure more from above, the managers have got pressure on them to get promoted.
“We haven’t got that but we’ve got that spirit and fight so we know we can upset that team and can be the one that pushes through (the pack).”
