Just 24 hours ahead of their meeting with Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park, Mark Stimson was taking no chances with his first team squad and selected a mixture of youngster and trialists for this encounter at Ship Lane.
Hoping to impress Stimson were trialist, Alesseny Cissoko a French defender who was joined in the starting line-up by former Stevenage youngster Theo Swaine and former Millwall, Plymouth and FC Haka striker Cherno Samba.
In a first half of few clear cut openings the home side enjoyed the better of the early exchanges and threatened to take the lead in the fourth minute. Paul O'Lima muscled his way through the Gills defence and let fly with a rising drive that rattled the crossbar.
Gillingham's first sight of goal came after 17 minutes as good vision from Cissoko picked out Luis Cumbers with a long pass upfield. Cumbers took a touch then attempted to chip the oncoming Joe Woolley only to see the keeper spectacularly claw away his effort at full stretch.
The only other chance of note came after 34 minutes when Jack Payne teed up Josh Sargeant who launched a shot from similar range to that of his late equaliser against Croydon. Sadly for the second year apprentice his shot was a good height for Woolley to save comfortably.
HT 0-0
Multiple changes by the Gills at half time saw Thurrock on top in the early stages as the visitors side struggled to settle down. O'Lima fired over with a blast from the edge of the box before Leon Lalite forced Conor Quinn to save low to his right from a well struck drive.
Moments later Gillingham broke the deadlock in a move copied straight from the training ground. Josh Sargeant swung a corner into the middle of the Thurrock box and second half sub Emmanuel Udoji rose unmarked to head back across goal and into the corner of the net.
In the 77th minute a long pass found Tom Murphy in space he squared to Luis Cumbers but his shot from the edge of the box was wide of the far post.
Five minutes later Liam Geering's intelligent through ball sent Cumbers one on one with the keeper but the linesman pulled him up for offside as he bore down on goal.
Soon after Murphy set Ashton away down the left, he cut into the box and fired in a shot but Woolley was able to parry it to safety.
Gillingham: Conor Quinn (60 Daran Hawkes), Jack Evans, Alsseny Cissoko (46 Connor Essam), Tom Wynter (46 Emmanuel Udoji), Rimmel Daniel (46 Nathan Ashton), Theo Swaine (60 Tom Murphy), Jack Payne (60 Sam Fisher), Dean Rance, Josh Sargeant (60 Callum Davies), Luis Cumbers, Cherno Samba (Liam Geering).
Subs not used: Ollie Bartrum
Thurrock: Joe Woolley, Ryan Andrews, Jamie Doyle, Rob Swaine (76 Trialist), Kenny Clark, Matt Paine, Matt Bodkin (76 Leslie Thompson), Leon Lalite (60 Reiss Gilbey), David Bryant (38 Danny Morgan 81, Chris Saunders)), Paul O'Lima, Fola Orilonshe.
