Ronan Hale’s second-half goal saw Gillingham leave Chesterfield with a hard-fought point as they drew 1-1 at the SMH Group Stadium on Tuesday night.
The hosts took a first-half lead through Josh Koroma, who did well to curl his shot through a host of bodies and into the bottom right corner.
Gillingham’s equaliser came just short of the hour. Hale capitalised on a wayward pass to get in behind the Chesterfield defence before he was dragged down by an opposing defender. The forward did brilliantly to recover whilst keeping hold of the ball before getting a shot away, which took a deflection on its way into the back of the net.
Gareth Ainsworth made one change to the starting XI that drew with Northampton on Saturday, as Lamin Sillah made his first start for the club. Will Goodwin dropped to the bench.
Jack Daley was named among the substitutes after signing on a season-long loan from Middlesbrough.
Dilan Markanday had an early sight at goal when he sent a low drive towards the bottom right corner from 25 yards out. However, Ollie Wright had it covered, pushing it behind for a corner, which came to nothing.
The hosts continued to apply pressure as Lee Bonis latched onto a ball down the left side of the Gillingham penalty area. He fizzed it across the six-yard box, but no one was in the vicinity and the ball went out of play.
Omar Beckles and Logan Dobbs did brilliantly to stop Bonis from getting a shot away shortly after. Chesterfield broke forward after a wayward pass, and the ball was played down the middle for Bonis, who was heading towards the penalty area. It appeared that he was primed to get a shot away, but Beckles had stepped across before Dobbs perfectly timed a sliding challenge to take it off his foot.
In the 15th minute, Lewis Gordon had a great chance to open the scoring. Former Gill Remeao Hutton curled a ball deep into the box, with the Chesterfield left-back getting on the end of it. Fortunately, Gordon could not angle it towards the far bottom corner, and it bounced harmlessly wide of the target.
In the 22nd minute, Josh Koroma put Chesterfield in front. He did well to get hold of possession inside the Gillingham box, and as he readied to shoot, he had plenty of bodies in front of the goal. However, he did well to bend his shot into the far bottom right corner, leaving Wright at full stretch in his attempts to keep it out.
Koroma had a half-chance in the 36th minute. The Chesterfield forward had the ball on the edge of the box and tried his luck. Fortunately, his attempt flew over the crossbar.
Wright had to be alert to deny Markanday as the hosts continued to search for a second goal. Liam Mandeville had the ball on the edge of the penalty area and was afforded the time and space to set himself before shooting. His attempt was blocked, but the loose ball was picked up by Markanday, who was allowed to drive into the box. Once he had the space required to shoot, he sent a low drive goalward. Wright did well to react quickly and saved with his foot before the danger eventually subsided.
Wright made a magnificent save in first-half stoppage time to deny Markanday. Andy Smith did well to get a foot in to upend Koroma, but the loose ball sat perfectly for Markanday to strike. His effort was curling towards the top corner, but Wright got a solid hand behind the ball to keep it out.
HALF-TIME: Chesterfield 1-0 Gillingham
Kyle McFadzean came close in the 54th minute. Hutton’s long throw into the box was flicked on by Jack Simpson, with it falling into McFadzean’s path. The central defender tried looping the ball into the far corner, but it went over the crossbar.
Robbie McKenzie had a half-chance following some good build-up by the Gills. Nick Freeman did well to win possession before offloading to Andy Smith, who spotted Sillah on the right. The Nottingham Forest loanee played a smart ball in behind for Harry Waldock to latch onto, and his cross found Ronan Hale. The forward played it back to McKenzie, who sent a low drive goalward, but it was blocked by a home defender.
In the 58th minute, Hale brought the Gills back on level terms. The Northern Ireland international capitalised on a poor defensive pass that allowed him to get in behind the Chesterfield defence. He was soon dragged down by Simpson, but did excellently to keep hold of the ball before recovering and getting a shot away from the edge of the box. His attempt took a deflection, allowing it to go beyond Ryan Boot, who was rooted to his spot, and it landed in the back of the net.
In the 65th minute, Gillingham made their first change, with Goodwin replacing Sillah.
Wright was called into action when Mandeville shot from outside the box. However, his curling strike was straight down the middle and at the perfect height for the Southampton loanee to catch.
In the 71st minute, Garath McCleary replaced Hale.
The visitors were forced into a final change a few minutes later after McKenzie went down following a hefty challenge, and he was replaced by Cameron Antwi.
Mandeville’s powerful strike forced a save out of Wright as the game headed into the closing stages. The Chesterfield forward was allowed to cut inside from the left before thumping a shot towards the near post. Wright had it covered though, getting two solid palms behind it to push it behind.
A vital touch took what seemed to be a certain goal behind for a corner. The hosts were bombarding the Gillingham box and the ball dropped to Louie Marsh, who prodded goalward. There was bated breath as it looked destined for the net, but the faintest touch took it off course and behind for a corner.
From the resulting kick, Tom Naylor’s header towards the near post was well-blocked, with Wright having it covered.
Marsh had another chance after a smart turn allowed him to drive into acres of space. However, his eventual shot from distance lacked the power to test Wright, who got down to comfortably gather.
FULL-TIME: Chesterfield 1-1 Gillingham
Chesterfield: Boot, Hutton (Eccleston 90+5), Simpson, McFadzean, Gordon, Stirk, McEachran (Naylor 76’), Markanday, Mandeville, Koroma (Marsh 76’), Bonis (Bryden 77’)
Unused Substitutes: Owolabi-Belewu, Pond, Lamptey
Gillingham: Wright, Smith, Beckles, Dobbs, Freeman, McKenzie (Antwi 75’), Waldock, McManus, Brophy, Sillah (Goodwin 65’), Hale (McCleary 71’)
Unused Substitutes: Holtam, Kendall, Daley, Booth
Referee: Ross Martin
Attendance: 7103 (252 Gillingham supporters)
