Gareth Ainsworth is hoping that his Gillingham team can build off their much-improved performance on Tuesday night as they welcome Bristol Rovers to the MEMS Priestfield Stadium on Saturday.
Tuesday saw the return of some senior pros in the squad, and Ainsworth was glad to see them make the right impact. The focus now turns towards getting the final preparations for Saturday's fixture right, with the goal of replicating the performance against Swindon and getting the right kind of result.
Former Gillingham manager Steve Evans will be in the opposing dugout on Saturday, someone that Ainsworth has huge respect for. The Gills boss also provided an injury update, as he hopes to see a couple of players return to the matchday squad.
Ainsworth also discussed Ronan Hale, and he is pleased to have seen the forward settle into life in ME7. The 52-year-old knows that the Northern Ireland international will continue to make a positive impact on the pitch, and hopes to see his name on the scoresheet on Saturday.
Preparing for Saturday...
We are looking forward to Saturday's game now. The lads have been in recovery, and it isn't exactly more of the same, as we got beat, but we want more of a performance like that, and we want to create as many chances. Things will turn, I am sure. It is tough. We have had a rollercoaster of a season, with one thing or another. It has been one of those seasons.
It was great to see some familiar names back in the team and playing the way that I know that they can.
The main thing that I will be focusing on now is making sure that tomorrow's [Friday's] training goes well. We are ready, and everyone is in the frame of mind to come on Saturday and get behind the team or be part of the team, and get the result that we want.
On Steve Evans...
He has managed in a similar time frame of when we have managed together. I have huge respect for Steve and what he has done at his various clubs. We have always had full-blooded battles when it comes to it. There are all of those things coming into Saturday's game.
I kick and head every ball, and Steve does the same. We can sometimes get under people's skins for doing that, but that is who we are. I think that who you are is really important. It is really important to be who you are. We will share a beer, like I say, but for 90 minutes, I will be wanting to win that game.
Injury updates and the unpredictability of recovery...
Hopefully, there will be one or two back, which is great. This game is too long in the tooth to know that you can't put targets on injured people coming back. There will be something, a little hiccup in the rehab, and it will be an extra day, or an extra three days or an extra week. You then always get the curveball chucked in when somebody comes in and has an illness, or felt something in training. You have to be adaptable in this game.
I will be looking at a very strong squad if I can get everyone fit, definitely. I still think that there will be one or two missing.
With surgeries, there are one or two that are seeing specialists, and I think that there will be one or two surgeries. Out of respect, I don't want to mention who they are going to be, but we are going to lose one or two big hitters for the rest of the season.
On Ronan Hale...
He was brought here to score goals, and he has had slim pickings in recent weeks. I thought that on Tuesday he had a good amount, and that is great. To see him hitting the target again is brilliant.
We can debate all day, with the amount of shots that we had and Swindon take their moments, but at times, that is what this game is. It is very streaky, and [Aaron] Drinan, fair play to him, has been on the end of a lot of mistakes and opportunities, and he has tucked them away. You have to do that. I think that he is on his way to 20 goals this season.
We hope that Ronan will be there next year. He has come here to score goals, but it's not just Ronan. It's my other forwards and attacking midfielders contributing with goals. We haven't had enough of that this season, or in recent seasons. I am here to change that, and I hopefully will.
Ronan, what a cracking lad. It's frustrating for him as much as everyone else. He just wants to score, but he also wants to contribute. We are close and have some good chats. He has settled in really well, and obviously the fans have taken to him brilliantly, so let's hope he can make a mark on Saturday.
