1989–90 Gillingham F.C. season

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League Cup
First round
Associate Members' CupFirst round
Top goalscorerLeague: Steve Lovell (16)
All: Steve Lovell (18)
Highest home attendance10,412 vs Maidstone United (26 December 1989)
Lowest home attendance1,004 vs Cambridge United (28 November 1989)

During the

the Football League and the 40th since the club was voted back into the league in 1950. In the previous season, the team had been relegated from the Third Division, after which a number of players left the club, resulting in several teenagers playing in the opening games of the new season. Gillingham began their league campaign in poor form but a run of five consecutive wins in October and November took them into the top six. In December, the team lost to Maidstone United in the first Football League match between two Kent-based teams. Gillingham remained in contention for promotion
until early March, but then lost six consecutive games; the team finished the season 14th in the Fourth Division.

Gillingham also competed in three

Associate Members' Cup but lost in the first round proper. The team played a total of 53 competitive matches, winning 18, drawing 12 and losing 23. Steve Lovell was the team's top goalscorer, with 16 goals in the Fourth Division and a total of 18 in all competitions. Peter Johnson and Paul Haylock made the most appearances; each played 51 times in all competitions. The highest attendance recorded at the club's home ground, Priestfield Stadium
, was 10,412, for the match against Maidstone.

Background and pre-season

Footballer Ron Hillyard
Veteran player Ron Hillyard (pictured in 2001) was appointed to the position of assistant manager.

The 1989–90 season was Gillingham's 58th season playing in the Football League and the 40th since the club was elected back into the League in 1950 after being voted out in 1938. At the end of the previous season, the club had been relegated from the Football League Third Division to the Fourth Division after finishing 23rd out of 24 teams, ending a spell of 15 seasons in the third tier of the English football league system.[1][2]

At the start of the 1989–90 season,

midfielders Dave Smith and Gavin Peacock.[7] During the break between seasons, the club was involved in controversy surrounding the status of Pat Gavin, a young forward who had joined Gillingham on a trial basis in the latter stages of the previous season. After he impressed with his performances, scoring 7 goals in 13 games, Gillingham signed him to a three-year contract at the end of the season. The contract was not registered with the Football League, however, and Leicester City of the Second Division signed the player, which they were able to do without having to pay any transfer fee as he was not technically under contract at Gillingham.[8] Gillingham chief executive Barry Bright offered to resign over the error but the club's board of directors did not accept his resignation.[9] In July, the club was taking legal advice over the situation.[10]

The club retained the previous season's

away kit, to be worn in the event of a clash of colours with the home team, was all-red.[11] The team prepared for the new season with a number of friendly matches, including one against Wimbledon of the First Division; goalkeeper Jeremy Roberts played as a trialist in that game.[12] Although he was included in the official team photograph for the season,[13] he never played a competitive game for Gillingham and there is no record of him ever signing a contract with the club.[14]

Fourth Division

August–December

Gillingham's first game in the Fourth Division since 1974 took place at their home ground,

league table.[25]

Football manager Tony Pulis
Tony Pulis (pictured in 2014) joined the club at the start of the season but did not make his debut until the final game of 1989.

Gillingham next played Southend United, who were top of the table and unbeaten.

promotion play-off places.[33][34] The winning run came to an end with a 3–3 draw at home to Colchester United on 24 November, and Gillingham then lost in the Fourth Division for the first time in nearly two months when they were defeated 1–0 by York City on 9 December.[15]

A week later,

Wrexham which took Gillingham up from 11th to 8th in the table, two points below the play-off places.[41]

January–May

Edgar Street football stadium
Gillingham's first game of 1990 was at Hereford United's Edgar Street stadium (pictured in 2008).

Gillingham began the new year with an away game against Hereford United on 1 January;[15] having scored his first goal for the club two days earlier, Johnson scored his second in a 2–1 victory.[21] They would prove to be the only two goals he scored in nearly 80 games with the club.[42] The team achieved a second consecutive victory with a 3–1 win over Doncaster Rovers,[15] after which they were once again in the play-off places. The last two league games of January resulted in a defeat to Aldershot and a draw with Hartlepool United, in both of which the team failed to score any goals; Lovell, the team's leading goalscorer, had scored only once in his last six league games.[31] His first goal of 1990 gave Gillingham a 2–1 win over Burnley on 13 February to keep Gillingham 8th in the table; Pulis was substituted after being injured again and would miss the next four games.[21][43]

Following the victory over Burnley, Gillingham failed to score in a further three matches, which resulted in two more goalless draws and a defeat away to Colchester United.

first team since the signing of Heritage,[21] but was recalled from a loan spell at Margate following an injury to Trusson which would keep the midfielder out for the rest of the season.[51][52] By the time Gillingham lost 1–0 to Hereford United on 14 April, their sixth consecutive defeat and fourth without scoring a goal, they had fallen to 14th in the table.[53]

On 16 April, Gillingham played their away match with Maidstone, who were 4th in the table and challenging for promotion;[54] the crowd of 5,003 was Maidstone's largest to date for a home league game.[54] A goal from Heritage early in the first half gave Gillingham a victory over their rivals,[55] which took Gillingham back up to 12th place.[56] In the next game, Beadle's first professional goal secured a 1–1 draw against Exeter City,[57] but this was followed by a defeat to Wrexham.[15] In the last game of April, at home to Lincoln City, Gillingham were winning until the last minute of the game but then conceded an equalising goal.[58] This left Gillingham nine points off 7th place and therefore, with two games remaining and a maximum of six points available, unable to finish in the play-off positions.[59] Gillingham's last game of the season was away to Scarborough;[15] Lovell scored the only goal of the match in the last 10 minutes to give his team victory, the third consecutive game in which he had scored. The result meant that Gillingham finished the season 14th in the Fourth Division, nine points below the play-off places.[33]

Match details

Key
Results[15]
Date Opponents Result Goalscorers Attendance
19 August 1989 Aldershot (H) 0–0 3,670
26 August 1989 Doncaster Rovers (A) 0–0 1,887
2 September 1989 Scunthorpe United (H) 0–3 3,467
9 September 1989 Hartlepool United (A) 2–1 Palmer, Heritage 1,600
16 September 1989 Burnley (H) 0–0 3,853
23 September 1989 Carlisle United (A) 0–3 3,185
26 September 1989 Southend United (H) 5–0 Trusson, Lovell (2, 1 pen.), Eeles, Manuel 3,842
30 September 1989 Peterborough United (A) 1–1 Lovell 4,199
6 October 1989 Halifax Town (A) 1–0 Lovell 1,776
14 October 1989 Stockport County (H) 0–3 3,887
17 October 1989 Grimsby Town (A) 0–2 3,447
21 October 1989 Chesterfield (H) 3–0 Palmer, Lovell (2, 2 pens.) 2,878
31 October 1989
Rochdale
(H) 		1–0 Lovell 3,187
4 November 1989 Scarborough (H) 2–0 Haylock, Manuel 3,436
11 November 1989 Lincoln City (A) 3–1 Trusson, Heritage, Lovell 3,612
14 November 1989 Torquay United (A) 2–0 Heritage, Palmer 2,318
24 November 1989 Colchester United (H) 3–3 Heritage, Lovell (pen.), O'Shea 3,816
9 December 1989 York City (A) 0–1 2,134
16 December 1989 Exeter City (A) 1–3 Lovell (pen.) 3,818
26 December 1989 Maidstone United (H) 1–2 Walker 10,412
30 December 1989
Wrexham
(H) 		1–0 Johnson 3,733
1 January 1990 Hereford United (A) 2–1 Heritage, Johnson 2,759
13 January 1990 Doncaster Rovers (H) 3–1 Heritage, Brevett (o.g.), O'Connor 3,820
20 January 1990 Aldershot (A) 0–1 2,592
27 January 1990 Hartlepool United (H) 0–0 3,676
10 February 1990 Burnley (A) 2–1 Eeles, Lovell (pen.) 7,274
13 February 1990 Scunthorpe United (A) 0–0 2,226
17 February 1990 York City (H) 0–0 3,653
23 February 1990 Colchester United (A) 0–2 4,456
27 February 1990 Carlisle United (H) 2–1 Manuel, Heritage 3,177
3 March 1990 Cambridge United (H) 1–0 Gavin 4,210
6 March 1990 Peterborough United (H) 0–0 4,301
9 March 1990 Southend United (A) 0–2 4,460
16 March 1990 Halifax Town (H) 3–1 Lovell (pen.), O'Shea, Heritage 3,825
19 March 1990 Stockport County (A) 0–1 3,378
24 March 1990 Grimsby Town (H) 1–2 Lovell 4,150
31 March 1990 Chesterfield (A) 0–2 4,282
7 April 1990 Torquay United (H) 0–2 2,869
10 April 1990
Rochdale
(A) 		0–1 1,334
14 April 1990 Hereford United (H) 0–1 2,365
16 April 1990 Maidstone United (A) 1–0 Heritage 5,003
21 April 1990 Exeter City (H) 1–1 Beadle 3,374
24 April 1990
Wrexham
(A) 		1–2 Walker 3,498
28 April 1990 Lincoln City (H) 1–1 Lovell (pen.) 2,654
1 May 1990 Cambridge United (A) 1–2 Lovell 4,963
5 May 1990 Scarborough (A) 1–0 Lovell 1,807

Partial league table

Main article: 1989–90 Football League § Fourth Division
Football League Fourth Division final table, positions 11 to 16[60]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
11 Scunthorpe United 46 17 15 14 69 54 +15 66
12
Rochdale
 46 20 6 20 52 55 −3 66
13 York City 46 16 16 14 55 53 +2 64
14 Gillingham 46 17 11 18 46 48 −2 62
15 Torquay United 46 15 12 19 53 66 −13 57
16 Burnley 46 14 14 18 45 55 −10 56

Cup matches

FA Cup

As a Fourth Division team, Gillingham entered the 1989–90 FA Cup in the first round, where they were drawn to play Welling United of the Football Conference. The initial match at Priestfield ended in a goalless draw,[61] necessitating a replay four days later at Welling's Park View Road ground. A goal from Welling's Mark Hone in the first half was enough to give the semi-professional team victory and eliminate Gillingham from the FA Cup.[62] It was the first time that Welling had beaten Football League opposition in the FA Cup in their history; Paul Newman of The Times described Gillingham's play in the second match as "ragged" and Welling manager Nicky Bridgen told the press "I wouldn't want to put Gillingham down but, to be honest, getting a draw on Saturday was no more difficult than drawing at somewhere like Telford in the Conference. We got what we deserved."[63]

Match details

Key
Results[64]
Date Round Opponents Result Goalscorers Attendance
18 November 1989 First Welling United (H) 0–0 5,598
22 November 1989 First Welling United (A) 0–1 4,020

Football League Cup

As a Fourth Division team, Gillingham entered the

aggregate score of 7–1.[65][66]

Match details

Key
Results[65]
Date Round Opponents Result Goalscorers Attendance
22 August 1989 First Leyton Orient (H) 1–4 Lovell 3,258
29 August 1989 First Leyton Orient (A) 0–3 2,818

Associate Members' Cup

The 1989–90 Associate Members' Cup, a tournament exclusively for Third and Fourth Division teams, began with a preliminary round in which the teams were drawn into groups of three, contested on a round-robin basis. Gillingham's group also included fellow Fourth Division teams Southend United and Cambridge United. In the first match of the group, Southend defeated Gillingham 1–0.[67] Three weeks later, Gillingham beat Cambridge 2–0 at Priestfield;[68] goalkeeper Harvey Lim, who had recently joined the club as back-up to Hillyard after a spell playing in Sweden,[69] made his debut.[40] The match drew an attendance of 1,044, the lowest of the season at Priestfield.[40] The final match of the group resulted in a draw between Southend and Cambridge, meaning that Gillingham finished second in the group and progressed to the first round proper.[70] Their opponents were Bristol Rovers of the Third Division, who won 1–0 to end Gillingham's participation in the competition.[71]

Match details

Key
Results[72]
Date Round Opponents Result Goalscorers Attendance
7 November 1989 Group stage Southend United (A) 0–1 1,650
28 November 1989 Group stage Cambridge United (H) 2–0 Lovell, Walker 1,044
24 January 1990 First Bristol Rovers (A) 0–1 2,724

Players

Footballer Peter Beadle
Peter Beadle (pictured in 2020) made 10 appearances.

Twenty-six players made at least one appearance for Gillingham during the season. Johnson and

Gary Smith made the fewest appearances, playing only twice, both times as a substitute.[40] The two games would prove to be the entirety of his professional career.[73]

Thirteen players scored at least one goal during the season. Lovell was the team's top scorer for the third consecutive season;[74] he scored 16 goals in Fourth Division matches and a total of 18 in all competitions.[40] Heritage was the second highest-scoring player, with a total of 9 goals; no other player scored more than three times.[40]

Player statistics[40]
Player Position
Fourth Division
 FA Cup League Cup
Associate Members' Cup
 Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Peter Beadle FW 10 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 12 1
Brian Clarke DF 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
Ian Docker MF 20 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 23 0
Tony Eeles MF 33 2 1 0 2 0 2 0 38 2
Pat Gavin FW 34 1 2 0 0 0 3 0 39 1
Ivan Haines DF 26 0 2 0 2 0 1 0 31 0
Paul Haylock DF 44 1 2 0 2 0 3 0 51 1
Peter Heritage FW 42 9 2 0 0 0 3 0 47 9
Ron Hillyard GK 42 0 2 0 2 0 1 0 47 0
Peter Johnson DF 45 2 2 0 2 0 2 0 51 2
Francis Joseph FW 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 5 0
Garry Kimble DF 14 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 14 0
Harvey Lim GK 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 6 0
Steve Lovell FW 41 16 2 0 2 1 3 1 48 18
Billy Manuel MF 32 3 2 0 1 0 3 0 38 3
Russell Norris DF 5 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 7 0
Mark O'Connor MF 15 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 16 1
Tim O'Shea DF 36 2 1 0 0 0 3 0 40 2
Lee Palmer DF 39 3 2 0 2 0 3 0 46 3
Ricky Pearson DF 6 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 8 0
Brendan Place DF 4 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 8 0
Tony Pulis DF 16 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 17 0
Gary Smith
 		MF 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0
Steve Thompson DF 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 4 0
Mike Trusson DF 25 2 2 0 0 0 1 0 28 2
Alan Walker DF 38 2 0 0 0 0 2 1 40 3

Aftermath

In his final programme notes of the season, Richardson wrote that in his opinion the team would have been promoted had it not been for the number of injuries suffered by key players; he stated that injuries impacted his team selection for around 70 per cent of the season's matches and said that on some occasions he had as few as 13 players available for team selection. In the 1990–91 season, Gillingham's form was again inconsistent; following a lengthy unbeaten run in the first half of the season the team were in contention for the play-offs but ultimately finished 15th in the Fourth Division after failing to win in 10 consecutive games in the last two months of the season. Gillingham eventually achieved promotion back to the third tier of English football in 1996, ending a spell of seven seasons at the lower level.[75]

References

  1. ^ "League Division Three end of season table for 1988-89 season". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
  2. ^ Rollin 1990, p. 253.
  3. ^ Bateson & Sewell 1992, p. 300.
  4. ^ Triggs 2001, p. 158.
  5. ^ Triggs 2001, p. 264.
  6. ^ a b Triggs 2001, p. 175.
  7. ^ Triggs 2001, pp. 72, 187, 251, 299.
  8. ^ a b Triggs 2001, p. 130.
  9. ^ Elligate 2009, p. 107.
  10. ^ "Tribunal with settle the price for Smith". Chatham News. 21 July 1989. Retrieved 15 May 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  11. ^ Rollin 1990, pp. 252–253.
  12. ^ "Fact File". Gillingham Vs Aldershot Matchday Programme. 19 August 1989.
  13. ^ Rollin 1990, p. 252.
  14. ^ Rollin 1990, p. 256.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Rollin 1990, p. 254.
  16. ^ Triggs 2001, p. 265.
  17. ^ "Busy Gills' manager out to sign two new players". Chatham News. 25 August 1989. Retrieved 13 May 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  18. ^ Rollin 1990, pp. 255, 256.
  19. ^ Triggs 2001, pp. 235, 318.
  20. ^ Elligate 2009, p. 136.
  21. ^ a b c d e f g Rollin 1990, p. 255.
  22. ^ Triggs 2001, p. 321.
  23. ^ Triggs 2001, p. 155.
  24. ^ Triggs 2001, p. 154.
  25. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 23 September 1989". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  26. ^ Rollin 1990, p. 506.
  27. ^ Brown 2003, pp. 97–99.
  28. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 6 October 1989". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  29. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 17 October 1989". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  30. ^ "Walker puts Ron in a party mood". Chatham Standard. 24 October 1989. Retrieved 15 May 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  31. ^ a b Rollin 1990, pp. 254–255.
  32. ^ Elligate 2009, p. 162.
  33. ^ a b Rollin 1990, p. 615.
  34. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 14 November 1989". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  35. ^ Triggs 2001, p. 237.
  36. ^ a b c d Blackmore, Keith (27 December 1989). "Maidstone take the honours; Football". The Times. Retrieved 3 May 2022 – via Gale.
  37. ^ Tucker, Craig (25 January 2019). "John Still explains why he's back at Maidstone United after 30 years away". Kent Online. KM Media Group. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  38. ^ Rollin 1990, p. 337.
  39. Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original
    on 16 July 2021. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
  40. ^ a b c d e f g h i Brown 2003, p. 99.
  41. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 30 December 1989". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  42. ^ Brown 2003, p. 122.
  43. ^ Bradley, Andy (13 February 1990). "Three chairs for a winning return". Chatham Standard. Retrieved 13 May 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  44. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 26 February 1990". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  45. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 27 February 1990". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  46. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 3 March 1990". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  47. ^ Brown 2003, p. 121.
  48. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 6 March 1990". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  49. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 16 March 1990". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  50. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 17 March 1990". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  51. ^ "Supersaver Ron can't halt slide". Chatham Standard. 10 April 1990. Retrieved 13 May 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  52. ^ "Gills left shattered in week of disaster". Chatham News. 13 April 1990. Retrieved 13 May 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  53. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 14 April 1990". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  54. ^ a b Rollin 1990, p. 338.
  55. ^ Blackmore, Keith (17 April 1990). "Maidstone falter in promotion quest; Football". The Times. Retrieved 11 May 2022 – via Gale.
  56. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 16 April 1990". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  57. ^ Brown 2003, pp. 98–99.
  58. Cambridge Daily News. 1 May 1990. Retrieved 15 May 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive
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  59. ^ "League Division Four table after close of play on 28 April 1990". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  60. ^ "League Division Four end of season table for 1989-90 season". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
  61. ^ Rollin 1990, p. 668.
  62. ^ Rollin 1990, p. 670.
  63. ^ Newman, Paul (23 November 1989). "First League scalp for Welling; Football". The Times. Retrieved 10 May 2022 – via Gale.
  64. ^ Rollin 1990, pp. 668, 670.
  65. ^ a b Rollin 1990, pp. 639, 641.
  66. ^ Morgan, Lance (25 August 1989). "Lovell strike is only beacon in a night of gloom". Chatham News. Retrieved 13 May 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  67. ^ Rollin 1990, p. 655.
  68. ^ Rollin 1990, p. 656.
  69. ^ Triggs 2001, p. 199.
  70. ^ Rollin 1990, p. 657.
  71. ^ Rollin 1990, p. 659.
  72. ^ Rollin 1990, pp. 655–657, 659.
  73. ^ Triggs 2001, p. 300.
  74. ^ Triggs 2001, p. 348.
  75. ^ Elligate 2009, p. 72.

Works cited

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