Justin Edinburgh believes the 1,903 Gills fans at Southend will help the players get a vital victory
Gillingham manager Justin Edinburgh believes the near 2,000 fans who will cheer on his side at Southend United tomorrow will help his players get a vital victory.With tickets no longer being sold for the Roots Hall tie, 1,903 supporters will travel to Essex to watch the Gills face the Shrimpers, who sit 10th in Sky Bet League One. The number of away fans beats the season's previous best, when 1,607 saw the defeat of Millwall at The Den in December.
“I’ve always been complimentary about our support, we travel well, wherever we go,” said Edinburgh. “It's going to be one of the highest numbers we've taken to an away game since I've been in charge.
"The players are focused, and it will be rewarding for them to know they've got that backing. It will be a great atmosphere.”
Edinburgh started his playing career at Roots Hall, spending two years there before moving to Tottenham - and admits he’s looking forward to returning to the club – although he hopes his current team get the three points.
He added: “I've been back as a manager once before, it's a club that played a huge part in my football career, it gave me the platform to achieve what I did.
“I'm very grateful for that, it's nice to go back and see a few people who are still around there.
“It's a game that I look forward to, but I hope we get the right result. “
The Gills manager confirmed that captain Doug Loft will miss the game, and potentially the next six weeks, owing to the Achilles injury sustained in last weekend’s victory over Crewe Alexandra.
“Doug will be out for four to six weeks, which is another blow,” Edinburgh said. “He was excellent here on Saturday, but it's somebody else's opportunity to come in and have their chance.”