Gillingham boss Justin Edinburgh was pleased to see his side show their competitive edge.

The Gills were up against a bigger and more physical side in Port Vale but fought gamely to come away with a well-earned point.

It was a contrasting style to the rampant 4-0 opening day result the week before but still one that made Edinburgh happy.

Edinburgh said: “Port Vale had a very good start to the season and hadn’t conceded up until this game.

“They were buoyed by their victory against Burnley in the week (beating them 1-0 in the Capital One Cup) and we had to do a bit of the ugly side. We did it very well.”

Gillingham’s competitive nature did earn them a few bookings, six in total, but Edinburgh thought many of those were harsh.

“I would rather not comment,” he said, when asked about the booking dished out by referee Fred Graham.

“There were some soft ones. There were some that obviously needed to be done by I don’t want to talk about the referee and the bookings. To pick up six is harsh.

“It was about the character that we showed. We left and questions have been answered about us because we can do both sides of the game.”

Bradley Dack opened the scoring with his third goal from the opening three games. He scored from close range after the Gills were awarded an indirect free-kick inside the area.

“He dispatched it very well,” said the manager.

“It was a difficult execution and it was a very, very good finish.

“It came at the right time because we started slowly and then worked our way into the game.

“We were up against a good Port Vale sideand they played some good football.

“It was a really good game and any point on the road is a good point.”