1985–86 Gillingham F.C. season

English football club season February 2015 February 2015 Gillingham F.C. 1985–86 Keith Peacock Charles Cox Third Division 5th FA Cup Third round League Cup Second round Associate Members' Cup Southern section semi-finals Tony Cascarino (14) Tony Cascarino (21) 8,983 vs Derby County (4 January 1986) 1,464 vs Brentford (29 January 1986) _whiteborder _whitesides _whiteborder _bluesides _blueline 0000ff 0000ff 0000ff FF0000 FF0000 FF0000 000000 000000 1984–85 1986–87 During the 1985–86 English football season, Gillingham F.C. competed in the Football League Third Division, the third tier of the English football league system. It was the 54th season in which Gillingham competed in the Football League, and the 36th since the club was voted back into the league in 1950. After an unbeaten run of seven games, Gillingham were fourth in the league table in late September, just outside the top three places which would result in promotion to the Second Division. After slipping to ninth in October, the team climbed to third, but at the close of 1985 had fallen again to eighth. Although Gillingham continued to challenge for promotion in the second half of the season and were in second place at the end of January, their form continued to fluctuate. As the end of the season approached, the team were still in with a chance of finishing in a promotion position, however three defeats in the last six games meant that they ultimately fell short, finishing in fifth place. Gillingham also competed in three knock-out competitions, reaching the third round of the FA Cup, the second round of the Football League Cup, and the southern section semi-finals of the Associate Members' Cup. The team played 58 competitive matches, winning 27, drawing 16, and losing 15. Tony Cascarino was the club's leading goalscorer for the second consecutive season, scoring 21 goals in all competitions. Ron Hillyard, Mel Sage, and Karl Elsey made the most appearances; all three played in all 58 of the team's competitive games. The highest attendance recorded at the club's home ground, Priestfield Stadium, was 8,983 for an FA Cup game against Derby County in January. Background and pre-season thumb|right|alt=Exterior view of Priestfield Stadium|Gillingham's home ground, Priestfield Stadium (pictured 1986) underwent redevelopment work prior to the season. The 1985–86 season was Gillingham's 54th season playing in the Football League and the 36th since the club was elected back into the League in 1950 after being voted out in 1938. It was the club's 12th consecutive season in the Football League Third Division, the third tier of the English football league system, since the team gained promotion from the Fourth Division in 1974.Brown 2003 83–90, 114 In the 11 seasons since then, the team had achieved a best finish of fourth place, one position away from promotion to the Second Division, a feat achieved in both the 1978–79 and 1984–85 seasons.Brown 2003 83–90, 114 The club had never reached the second level of English football in its history.https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/sport/football/767702.stm Second time lucky for Gills BBC Sport 6 August 2008 28 May 2000 3 March 2003 https://web.archive.org/web/20030303203928/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sport/football/767702.stm live Keith Peacock was the club's manager for a fifth season, having been appointed in July 1981.Bateson 1986 252 Paul Taylor served as assistant manager,Dunk 1986 169 John Gorman was newly-appointed to the role of coach,Gillingham Vs Darlington Matchday Programme Top Comment 24 August 1985 Keith Peacock and Bill Collins, who had been with the club in a variety of roles since the early 1960s,Triggs 2001 93 held the posts of first-team trainer and manager of the youth team. Peacock signed two new players before the season started. Karl Elsey, a midfielder, arrived from Cardiff City on a free transfer and David Byrne, a winger, joined the club from semi-professional team Kingstonian of the Isthmian League.Triggs 2001 77, 110 During the break between seasons, the club spent UK 80,000 1985 eq yes £ -4 installing new executive boxes within Priestfield Stadium's main stand. Work also needed to be undertaken to satisfy new safety requirements following the Bradford City stadium fire two months earlier. This was not completed in time for the club's first friendly match of the pre-season, against Queens Park Rangers, which was therefore played behind closed doors.Elligate 2009 117 The team's first-choice kit consisted of blue shirts with a white panel down each side, white shorts and white socks. The away kit, to be worn in the event of a clash of colours with the home team, comprised red shirts, black shorts and black socks.Dunk 1986 169, 171 Third Division August–December thumb|right|upright|Tony Cascarino (pictured 1987) scored ten Third Division goals in the first half of the season.|alt=Head and shoulders shot of footballer Tony Cascarino The team's first game of the Third Division season was away to Lincoln City on 17 August;Dunk 1986 170 Elsey made his debut in the starting line-up.Dunk 1986 171 Gillingham finished the game with ten men after Terry Cochrane was sent off and lost 1–0.Gillingham Vs Blackpool Matchday Programme Extra Time 15 August 1987 Andy Bradley Seven days later the team played their first home league game of the season at Priestfield against Darlington;Dunk 1986 170 Mel Sage scored Gillingham's first league goal of the season in a 1–1 draw.Dunk 1986 171 For the second consecutive game Gillingham had a player sent off, as Peter Shaw was dismissed.Bradley Triggs 1994 318 Two days later, Gillingham won their first league game of the season, defeating Bristol City 2–1 away from home with two goals from Tony Cascarino, and ended August by beating Bolton Wanderers by the same score at Priestfield.Dunk 1986 170–171 Gillingham extended their unbeaten league run to seven games with draws against Notts County and Chesterfield and wins over Wigan Athletic and Bury,Dunk 1986 170 after which they were fourth in the league table.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-3/21-September-1985/ League Division 3 table after close of play on 21 September 1985 11v11 AFS Enterprises 27 March 2022 Gillingham's unbeaten Third Division run ended with a 2–1 defeat at home to York City on 28 September and the team also lost the first game of October, being defeated 3–0 away to Plymouth Argyle.Dunk 1986 170 After the two defeats, Gillingham had slipped to ninth in the table.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-3/01-October-1985/ League Division 3 table after close of play on 1 October 1985 11v11 AFS Enterprises 27 March 2022 The team won consecutive games in mid-October against Cardiff City and AFC Bournemouth before losing 2–1 at Priestfield against fellow promotion contenders Derby County.Dunk 1986 150, 170 Gillingham's last game of October was at home to Swansea City; top goalscorer Cascarino was suspended after being sent off in a Football League Cup game.Gillingham Vs Derby County Matchday Programme Top Comment 22 October 1985 Keith Peacock Despite his absence, the team won 5–1, their biggest win of the season so far. Dave Shearer scored the team's only hat-trick of the season.Dunk 1986 170 The result left Gillingham sixth in the table, albeit only one point behind second-placed Blackpool.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-3/26-October-1985/ League Division 3 table after close of play on 26 October 1985 11v11 AFS Enterprises 27 March 2022 The team were undefeated in five league games in November, including three consecutive victories in which they scored a total of 12 goals.Dunk 1986 170 On 9 November, Gillingham scored five goals for the second consecutive home game, beating Walsall 5–2, and followed the win by defeating Wolverhampton Wanderers 3–1 away from home and Doncaster Rovers 4–0 at Priestfield,Dunk 1986 170 after which the team were third in the table, behind second-placed York only on goal difference.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-3/30-November-1985/ League Division 3 table after close of play on 30 November 1985 11v11 AFS Enterprises 27 March 2022 The unbeaten run ended with a 1–0 defeat away to Bristol Rovers on 14 December and Gillingham then lost 3–2 away to Darlington six days later.Dunk 1986 170 The team ended the year with a 1–1 draw at home to Bristol City; Cascarino scored Gillingham's goal to take his total of league goals for the season to 10.Dunk 1986 170 The result left Gillingham eighth in the table at the end of 1985, four points below the three promotion places.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-3/31-December-1985/ League Division 3 table after close of play on 31 December 1985 11v11 AFS Enterprises 27 March 2022 January–May thumb|right|alt=Interior view of Elm Park football stadium during a match|Gillingham's first game of 1986 took place at Elm Park (pictured in 1981), home of league leaders Reading. Gillingham began 1986 with an away game against Reading, who had lost only twice in 24 Third Division games and were top of the table, 19 points clear of second-placed Derby. Goals from Byrne and Elsey gave Gillingham a 2–1 victory over the league leaders.Elligate 2009 10 https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A117906587/STND?u=wikipedia&sid=bookmark-STND&xid=b93facc5 The Times 29 March 2022 Gale Football: Gillingham show no reverence 2 January 1986 Simon O'Hagan subscription 12 Wins away to Bolton Wanderers and at home to Lincoln City took Gillingham up to second in the table.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-three/18-January-1986/ League Division 3 table after close of play on 18 January 1986 11v11 AFS Enterprises 28 March 2022 The team began February with a 4–0 win at home to Notts County and a 2–0 victory against Bournemouth.Dunk 1986 170 Gillingham remained unbeaten until the end of February, taking their total of consecutive Third Division games without defeat to nine;Dunk 1986 170 Peacock was awarded the Third Division Manager of the Month award for February.Gillingham Vs Brentford Matchday Programme Gills Chat 18 March 1986 Tony Hudd On 1 March, Gillingham were defeated for the first time in 1986, losing 2–0 away to York.Elligate 2009 44 This game was the first in a run of six consecutive matches without a win,Dunk 1986 170 which resulted in Gillingham dropping to fifth in the table.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-three/22-March-1986/ League Division 3 table after close of play on 22 March 1986 11v11 AFS Enterprises 27 March 2022 Cascarino suffered a serious injury in the defeat to Brentford on 18 March and would miss the remainder of the season.Bradley Triggs 1994 318 Shortly before the transfer deadline, the last date in the season on which clubs could sign new players, two players signed for Gillingham. David Tong, a midfielder, joined the club from Bristol City on a short-term contract until the end of the season and Dale Tempest, a forward, arrived on a one-month loan from Huddersfield Town.Triggs 2001 315, 320 Both went straight into the starting line-up for the game at home to Reading on 29 March.Dunk 1986 171 Tempest scored two goals in a 3–0 victory which made Gillingham the only team of the season to defeat the eventual Third Division champions both at home and away.Dunk 1986 302 Gillingham followed the result with a second consecutive victory, beating Brentford 2–1, to end March third in the table.Dunk 1986 170https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-three/31-March-1986/ League Division 3 table after close of play on 31 March 1986 11v11 AFS Enterprises 27 March 2022 The team achieved a third consecutive win when they beat Rotherham United 3–0 on 4 April before their winning run ended with a defeat away to Derby, which was followed immediately by another against Walsall.Dunk 1986 170 Commenting on the match against Derby, Simon O'Hagan of The Times wrote that Gillingham, who could normally be "dangerously inventive", were hampered by terrible weather conditions. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A117888554/STND?u=wikipedia&sid=bookmark-STND&xid=3115d0e4 The Times 29 March 2022 Gale Football: Gillingham are out of their class 8 April 1986 Simon O'Hagan subscription 12 The next game finished 4–1 to Walsall, the most goals Gillingham had conceded in a game since November 1984.Brown 2003 94–95 The result left Gillingham in fifth place, two points off the promotion places, although they were at a disadvantage as they had played at least two games more than all the teams above them.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-three/12-April-1986/ League Division 3 table after close of play on 12 April 1986 11v11 AFS Enterprises 27 March 2022 Gillingham won their next two games but then lost 1–0 at home to Newport County on 29 April;Dunk 1986 170 midfielder Dave Mehmet took over in goal during the game when Ron Hillyard was injured.Bradley Triggs 1994 320 It was the first time the team had failed to score in a home game since a defeat to Burnley in March 1984; the run of 62 consecutive home games in which the team scored at least one goal was a new club record.Elligate 2009 74 The result, along with those achieved on the same night by Plymouth and Wigan, left Gillingham four points below the promotion places and therefore, with only one game remaining and a maximum of three points available, unable to finish in the top three.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-three/29-April-1986/ League Division 3 table after close of play on 29 April 1986 11v11 AFS Enterprises 27 March 2022 In the final game of the season, Gillingham defeated Bristol Rovers 2–0 at home with goals from Martin Robinson and Mehmet; the second goal was the 102nd scored by the team during the season in all competitions, the highest figure in a single season since the club joined the Football League.Elligate 2009 77 The team finished 5th in the Third Division, five points short of promotion.Brown 2003 95 Match results Key In result column, Gillingham's score shown first H = Home match A = Away match pen. = Penalty kick o.g. = Own goal +ResultsDunk 1986 171DateOpponentsResultGoalscorersAttendance17 August 1985Lincoln City (A)0–12,09924 August 1985Darlington (H)1–1Sage2,92926 August 1985Bristol City (A)2–1Cascarino (2)6,05231 August 1985Bolton Wanderers (H)2–1Hinnigan, Cascarino2,7737 September 1985Notts County (A)1–1Byrne3,62414 September 1985Chesterfield (H)1–1Cascarino3,10117 September 1985Wigan Athletic (H)2–0Mehmet (pen.), Elsey3,40121 September 1985Bury (A)2–1Mehmet, Cochrane2,80228 September 1985York City (H)1–2Collins3,5091 October 1985Plymouth Argyle (A)0–34,1355 October 1985Blackpool (A)2–2Elsey, Cascarino4,57112 October 1985Cardiff City (H)2–0Oakes, Weatherly3,36719 October 1985AFC Bournemouth (A)3–2Cascarino (2), Shearer3,56122 October 1985Derby County (H)1–2Mehmet4,61326 October 1985Swansea City (H)5–1Shearer (3), Hales (2, 1 pen.)3,0822 November 1985Newport County (A)1–1Byrne1,9706 November 1985Rotherham United (A)1–1Weatherly2,3169 November 1985Walsall (H)5–2Hales (2), Cascarino, Shearer, Robinson3,33923 November 1985Wolverhampton Wanderers (A)3–1Cochrane, Shearer (2)3,54330 November 1985Doncaster Rovers (H)4–0Robinson, Mehmet (pen.), Cochrane, Shearer3,51914 December 1985Bristol Rovers (A)0–14,22420 December 1985Darlington (A)2–3Shearer, Cascarino2,07228 December 1985Bristol City (H)1–1Cascarino4,6721 January 1986Reading (A)2–1Byrne, Elsey10,66511 January 1986Bolton Wanderers (A)1–0Cochrane5,23218 January 1986Lincoln City (H)2–0Cochrane, Weatherly4,39725 January 1986Chesterfield (A)1–1Hinnigan2,5211 February 1986Notts County (H)4–0Robinson (2), Oakes, Musker4,3688 February 1986AFC Bournemouth (H)2–0Cascarino, Hales3,89515 February 1986Wigan Athletic (A)3–3Elsey, Weatherly, Mehmet5,01722 February 1986Bury (H)1–0Weatherly4,2121 March 1986York City (A)0–24,3514 March 1986Plymouth Argyle (H)1–1Cascarino3,4908 March 1986Blackpool (H)2–2Cascarino, Robinson4,53715 March 1986Cardiff City (A)1–1Cascarino2,50518 March 1986Brentford (H)1–2Robinson3,58222 March 1986Swansea City (A)2–2Sage, Weatherly3,36429 March 1986Reading (H)3–0Tempest (2), Horrix (o.g.)5,71031 March 1986Brentford (A)2–1Robinson, Elsey4,7024 April 1986Rotherham United (H)3–0Hales, Weatherly, Robinson4,5257 April 1986Derby County (A)0–211,35112 April 1986Walsall (A)1–4Tempest3,88419 April 1986Wolverhampton Wanderers (H)2–0Hales, Mehmet (pen.)3,68125 April 1986Doncaster Rovers (A)3–2Robinson, Tempest, Hales1,65929 April 1986Newport County (H)0–12,5663 May 1986Bristol Rovers (H)2–0Robinson, Mehmet (pen.)2,050 Partial league table 1985–86 Football League#Third Division main WDL left auto Football League Third Division final table, leading positions PR BOU Reading MID Plymouth Argyle SWI Derby County WIG Wigan Athletic GIL Gillingham BRI Walsall 29 7 10 67 51 26 9 11 88 53 23 15 8 80 41 23 14 9 82 48 22 13 11 81 54 22 9 15 90 64 Division Champions, promoted CP Promoted P P complete Dunk 1986 406 Cup matches FA Cup As a Third Division team, Gillingham entered the 1985–86 FA Cup in the first round and were drawn to play Northampton Town of the Fourth Division. Cascarino, Mehmet and Cochrane scored to give Gillingham a 3–0 win.Dunk 1986 467Bateson 1986 74 In the second round, Gillingham played Bognor Regis Town of the Isthmian League; before the game Bognor manager Jack Pearce commented on Gillingham's recent levels of goalscoring, telling the press, "The reports I've had from my spies are frightening. The way Gillingham are scoring goals we will have to board our goals up." https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A117941102/STND?u=wikipedia&sid=bookmark-STND&xid=4066241b The Times 29 March 2022 Gale FA Cup: Bognor may have to put up the shutters 7 December 1985 Paul Newman subscription 12 Cascarino scored twice as Gillingham defeated the semi-professional team 6–1.Bateson 1986 74Dunk 1986 470 The teams from the top two divisions of the Football League entered the competition at the third-round stage; Gillingham missed out on higher-level opposition and were paired with fellow Third Division side Derby County.Bateson 1986 72 The initial match at Priestfield drew an attendance of 8,983, Gillingham's largest home crowd of the season.Brown 2003 95 The game ended in a 1–1 draw, necessitating a replay at Derby's Baseball Ground.Dunk 1986 472 The score was again 1–1 at the end of the regulation 90 minutes; the rules of the competition meant that on this occasion 30 minutes of extra time were played, during which Derby scored twice more to win 3–1 and eliminate Gillingham from the competition.Bateson 1986 72Dunk 1986 474 Match results Key In result column, Gillingham's score shown first H = Home match A = Away match pen. = Penalty kick o.g. = Own goal +ResultsDunk 1986 467, 470, 472, 474DateRoundOpponentsResultGoalscorersAttendance 16 November 1985 FirstNorthampton Town (H)3–0 Cascarino, Mehmet, Cochrane3,991 7 December 1985 SecondBognor Regis Town (H)6–1 Cascarino (2), Robinson, Shearer, Cochrane, Hales4,228 4 January 1986 ThirdDerby County (H)1–1 Robinson8,983 13 January 1986 Third (replay)Derby County (A)1–3 Robinson10,959 Football League Cup Gillingham entered the 1985–86 Football League Cup in the first round, being drawn against Southend United of the Fourth Division. The first round was played over two legs. The first leg at Southend's Roots Hall ground ended 1–1, and Gillingham won the second leg at Priestfield 2–0 with two goals from Cascarino to secure a 3–1 victory on aggregate.Dunk 1986 437, 439Bateson 1986 90 In the second round Gillingham played Portsmouth of the Second Division. The higher-level team won 3–1 at Priestfield in the first leg and 2–1 at their own Fratton Park ground in the second to eliminate Gillingham from the competition by an aggregate score of 5–2.Dunk 1986 441, 443Bateson 1986 89 Cascarino was sent off in the second leg; manager Peacock wrote in his next programme notes that, although he had never previously commented publicly on the dismissal of one of his players, on this occasion he wished to state that he viewed Cascarino's sending off as "totally undeserved". Match results Key In result column, Gillingham's score shown first H = Home match A = Away match pen. = Penalty kick o.g. = Own goal +ResultsDunk 1986 437, 439, 441, 443DateRoundOpponentsResultGoalscorersAttendance 20 August 1985 First (first leg)Southend United (A)1–1 Shearer2,008 3 September 1985 First (second leg)Southend United (H)2–0 Cascarino (2)3,106 24 September 1985 Second (first leg)Portsmouth (H)1–3 Cascarino4,617 8 October 1985 Second (second leg)Portsmouth (A)1–2 Dillon (o.g.)7,629 Associate Members' Cup right|thumb|alt=Interior view of Ashton Gate football stadium during a match|Gillingham were eliminated from the Associate Members' Cup at Ashton Gate (pictured in 1982), home of Bristol City. The 1985–86 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 contained fellow Third Division sides Derby County and Brentford.Dunk 1986 449, 450 Gillingham's first match of the tournament was away to Derby and came just nine days after the FA Cup third round replay between the two teams. On this occasion Gillingham won 2–0 with goals from Robinson and Cascarino.Dunk 1986 449 Seven days later Gillingham played Brentford at Priestfield; the attendance of 1,464 was Gillingham's lowest crowd of the season.Brown 2003 95 The match finished 1–1, giving Gillingham four points from their two games; as Brentford's game against Derby ended in a draw, Gillingham topped the group and progressed to the southern section quarter-finals.Dunk 1986 450 Gillingham's next opponents were Cambridge United of the Fourth Division; the game, held at Priestfield on 24 January, again drew an attendance of less than 2,000. Goals from Paul Collins and Joe Hinnigan secured a 2–0 win for Gillingham.Dunk 1986 451 The southern section semi-final did not take place until April and paired Gillingham with fellow Third Division side Bristol City.Dunk 1986 452 Hinnigan was sent off for a foul on Steve Neville, which assistant manager Taylor described in his next programme notes as "totally unjust",Gillingham Vs Newport County Matchday Programme Top Comment 29 April 1986 Paul Taylor and the game ended 3–0 to Bristol City, ending Gillingham's participation in the tournament; Bristol City went on to win the Associate Members' Cup final at Wembley Stadium.Bateson 1986 122 Match results Key In result column, Gillingham's score shown first H = Home match A = Away match pen. = Penalty kick o.g. = Own goal +ResultsDunk 1986 449–452DateRoundOpponentsResultGoalscorersAttendance 22 January 1986 Preliminary (southern section)Derby County (A)2–0 Robinson, Cascarino3,721 29 January 1986 Preliminary (southern section)Brentford (H)1–1 Hales1,464 24 February 1986 Quarter-finals (southern section)Cambridge United (H)2–0 Collins, Hinnigan1,812 16 April 1986 Semi-finals (southern section)Bristol City (A)0–3 5,707 Players thumb|right|upright|Graham Westley (pictured in 2014) made his debut in the last game of the season.|alt=Waist-up shot of football manager Graham Westley holding some papers Twenty players made at least one appearance for Gillingham during the season. Hillyard, Sage and Elsey made the most appearances: all three were in the starting line-up for all 58 competitive matches, and as neither Hillyard or Sage was substituted in any game, both played every minute of competitive football of Gillingham's season.Dunk 1986 171 Two other players, Cochrane and Oakes, made 50 appearances. The veteran Hillyard made his 500th appearance for the club in January, only the third Gillingham player to reach this milestone.Triggs 2001 351 Teenager Graham Westley made the fewest appearances during the season; he made his professional debut in the final game of the season, the first of only two games he played for Gillingham before dropping into non-League football.Triggs 2001 332 Tong and Ian Macowat were the only other players to make fewer than 10 appearances during the season. Fifteen players scored at least one goal for Gillingham. Cascarino was top scorer with 14 goals in Third Division matches, 3 in the FA Cup, 3 in the League Cup, and 1 in the Associate Members' Cup for a total of 21 in all competitions; Robinson was the second-highest scorer both in league games and overall, with 10 in the Third Division and 14 in total. Shearer and Hales both also reached double figures. It was the second of three consecutive seasons in which Cascarino was Gillingham's top scorer.Triggs 2001 348 +Player statisticsBrown 2003 95PlayerPositionThird DivisionFA CupLeague CupAssociate Members' CupTotalAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsDavid Byrne footballer, born 1961MF233302020303Tony CascarinoFW34144343314521Terry CochraneFW385424040507Paul Collins English footballerMF231104041322Karl ElseyMF465404040585Derek HalesFW2982110313510Ron HillyardGK460404040580Joe HinniganDF392202041473Ian MacowatDF3000100040Dave MehmetMF317313020398Russell MuskerMF91101010121Keith OakesDF402304030502Martin Robinson footballerFW33104300414114Mel SageDF462404040582Peter Shaw footballerDF240104020310Dave ShearerFW2394111102911Dale TempestFW94000010104David Tong footballerMF5000000050Mark WeatherlyDF387304040497Graham WestleyFW1000000010 FW = Forward, MF = Midfielder, GK = Goalkeeper, DF = Defender Aftermath Cascarino was voted into the Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year for the Third Division by his fellow professionals, the second consecutive season in which he had been honoured and the fifth consecutive season in which a Gillingham player had been selected.Triggs 2001 352 Sage was named the club's player of the year by two local newspapers, the local radio station, two supporters' groups, and his teammates. https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001800/19860507/001/0001 Chatham Standard 29 March 2022 British Newspaper Archive subscription Mel's six of the best 7 May 1986 1 He then joined Derby, newly-promoted to the Second Division, for a fee of UK 60,000 1986 eq yes £ -4. As he was seen as one of the club's most highly-valued players, Gillingham had hoped for a significantly higher transfer fee; with the two clubs unable to agree on terms, the fee had to be set by an independent tribunal.Elligate 2009 124 Gillingham again challenged for promotion in the following season and on the last day of the season clinched a place in the newly-introduced promotion play-offs.Brown 2003 84 https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A117630565/STND?u=wikipedia&sid=bookmark-STND&xid=ae690de0 The Times 25 June 2021 Gale subscription Football: Rush bows out in the usual way 11 May 1987 Andrew Longmore After beating Sunderland in the semi-finals, Gillingham faced Swindon Town in the final.Elligate 2009 89 The two teams drew 2–2 on aggregate, necessitating a replay at a neutral venue. https://theguardian.newspapers.com/clip/74663116/the-guardian/ The Guardian Newspapers.com 29 March 2021 26 May 1987 28 Swindon spirit pulls back two-goal lead Robert Armstrong 30 March 2021 https://web.archive.org/web/20210330110946/https://theguardian.newspapers.com/clip/74663116/the-guardian/ live Swindon won 2–0, meaning that Gillingham would remain in the Third Division.Elligate 2009 96 https://theguardian.newspapers.com/clip/55278305/the-guardian/ The Guardian 29 March 2021 Newspapers.com 30 May 1987 Russell Thomas Swindon remount on White's night 17 30 March 2021 https://web.archive.org/web/20210330110946/https://theguardian.newspapers.com/clip/55278305/the-guardian/ live References Works cited Bateson Bill Sewell Albert News Of The World Football Annual 1986–87 Invincible Press 1986 978-0-85543-076-4 Bateson 1986 London Bradley Andy Roger Triggs Home of the Shouting Men: Complete History of Gillingham Football Club 1893–1993 Gillingham F.C. Gillingham 1994 0-9523361-0-3 Brown Tony The Definitive Gillingham F.C.: A Complete Record Soccerdata 2003 1-899468-20-X Nottingham Dunk Peter Rothmans Football Yearbook 1986–87 Queen Anne Press 1986 978-0-35612-334-9 London Elligate David Gillingham FC On This Day Pitch Publishing 2009 978-1-90541-145-0 Durrington Roger Triggs The Men Who Made Gillingham Football Club Tempus Publishing Ltd 2001 978-0-75242-243-5 Stroud Category:Gillingham F.C. seasons Gillingham