Former Gills player, Lenny Piper, has passed away at the age of 46.
LENNY PIPER
(8 August 1977 – 28 January 2024)
Former Gillingham midfielder Lenny Piper has passed away after a long illness.
Lenny joined the Gills from Wimbledon for a £40,000 fee in the summer of 1996 and made his debut for the club on the opening day of the 1996-97 season when he came on as an 83rd minute substitute in the home match against Bristol City, our first game back in the third tier following promotion. The score was 2-2 at the time and Lenny scored the decider in a 3-2 win, deep into stoppage time.
He started four league games in 1996-97 and came on as a substitute on 15 occasions. He also made one start in the FA Cup, played four times (two starts and twice off the bench) in the League Cup and started in the 2-1 home defeat against Cardiff City in the Football League Trophy, when he scored his only other goal in our colours.
Piper made his final two appearances in late August of the 1997-98 campaign, on both occasions as a substitute, in a league game at home to Walsall and a League Cup tie at Birmingham. He suffered a broken leg during a reserve game in early 1998, was released at the end of the season and dropped into non-league, where he played for the remainder of his career, including spells with Dagenham and Redbridge and Margate.
Our thoughts and condolences are with Lenny's friends, family and loved ones at this very difficult time.