Josh Parker praised team-mate Elliott List for allowing him the chance to score Gillingham’s equalising goal on Saturday.

Parker found himself free to attack Dean Parrett’s corner and headed home to level the scores against Wycombe.

He said: “They’ve been putting me on the goalkeeper in set-plays recently and last season I scored about seven headers from set-plays so I was a bit confused but I just do as I’m told.

“Listy said to me, ‘get off the goalkeeper’. He went and stood on the goalkeeper (for the corner) and I scored, so I owe that one to Listy.”

Parker might have won it with a chance at the end.

“I saw the flashing lights,” the striker admitted. “I felt if I hit it right it would go in, I didn’t realise how much time I had.

“When it is a split second you have already made the choice when the ball is coming to you. As soon as I saw it coming across I thought I was going to just hit it.

“Everyone watching it from a different angle would say I should have taken a touch and shot but it’s gone now.”

Parker’s goal did mean the Gills took a point from the match, following on from back-to-back league wins.

“It is a very important point to keep the run going,” said Parker.

“They have had a lot of wins in recent times and we didn’t start the game as we wanted.

“They started the game as we normally do, with a high press, a lot of balls in behind and I think that caught everyone off guard a bit. But we managed to get a point and that’s the most important thing.”

The Gills had to come from two goals down and Parker added: “Their two goals were gifts.

“I don’t think they brought much to the table and it was us who looked most like scoring, but it panned out as a draw which was a fair result.”

Parker’s goal followed one from Tom Eaves, to get Gills back in the game. It was one of very few chances that the striker got.

Speaking about the club’s leading scorer, Parker said: “The gaffer is brutally honest with him and says ‘sometimes you are non-existent on the pitch, there is no point being there’, but that one time when he does get that chance it is vital.

“That goal starts the momentum when things aren’t going your way.

“It is important to have that natural goalscorer or player who might shoot at the most awkward angle and score like he did on Saturday.

“It is vital if you want to push on through the league and push for promotion.”

Parker is back in favour after being one of the players Gills manager Steve Lovell told to take time out, having been disappointed with his performances.

The 28-year-old said: “The gaffer said ‘don’t come back until you are the Josh Parker of old’ and said to take as long as I wanted off, which is a bit strange in football.

“Managers don’t usually do that, but that is the relationship he has with the players, he has their best interests at heart.

“For me, I had so much going on outside of football, I have the case going on with Red Star (a long-running contractual dispute) and I think after such a long period of time it finally started to take its toll on me.

“When I came back I felt re-energised and I have been happy with my performances of late, especially since being back in the team.

“I am happy but I just want to keep the momentum going and get more goals. As long as we’re performing well, that’s the main thing.”