Gillingham were eliminated from the Vertu Trophy after losing 3-0 to Wycombe Wanderers in the final group stage game at the MEMS Priestfield Stadium on Tuesday night.
Gareth Ainsworth made wholesale changes for the fixture. Taite Holtam made his first start of the season, while Shad Ogie, Travis Akomeah and Logan Dobbs were a part of a back three. Harry Waldock and Cruz Beszant started in midfield, and Jonny Smith made his return to action.
Louie Dayal and Stan Sargent were named among the substitutes, and Max Clark was on the bench after scoring the winner against Bristol Rovers at the weekend.
Aaron Rowe had the first chance of the game. Jonny Smith’s cross from the right made its way out to Rowe, who was on the edge of the penalty area. He struck it first time, with his low drive towards the bottom corner gathered by Stuart Moore.
In the ninth minute, Alex Lowry gave Wycombe the lead. Armando Quitirna carried the ball forward before sliding it through to Lowry, who remained composed and slotted it beyond Holtam.
Dobbs did brilliantly to stop Lowry from scoring his second moments later. Quitirna was at the heart of the Wycombe attack again, as he made his way into the penalty area, evading challenges. He squared it for Lowry, who got a shot away, but Dobbs was on hand to provide the diving block. The rebound came out to Quitirna, who blazed his strike over the crossbar.
Marcus Wyllie had a good chance to level the score in the 23rd minute. Waldock cut out a pass, sliding to intercept it, which allowed Wyllie to latch onto the loose ball and enter the box. However, his low-driven attempt was too close to Moore, who saved with his feet.
Holtam stood his ground to keep Donnell McNeilly’s long-distance strike out. The Wycombe wide man picked up the ball from 25 yards out before unleashing a powerful strike, which the Gills goalkeeper stood firm to block before the hosts cleared their lines.
McNeilly tested Holtam again on the half-hour. Magnus Westergaard carried the ball through the midfield, which gave Wycombe an overload in attack. He played it on to Lowry, who played a pass to McNeilly in space on the left side of the box. He struck a low drive across the goal towards the far bottom corner, but Holtam was equal to it, palming it away from the goal.
HALF-TIME: Gillingham 0-1 Wycombe Wanderers
Gills made two half-time changes, with Sam Gale and Sargent replacing Remeao Hutton and Jonny Smith.
Rowe came inches away from equalising in the opening seconds of the second half. The visitors could not clear their lines, which allowed Rowe to get on the ball inside the penalty area. He evaded one challenge before getting a shot away. His low drive towards the near post beat Moore, but smacked off the inside of the post before going out of play for a goal kick.
Gale tried his luck from distance after 57 minutes. He picked up a loose ball before coming out on top of a strong tackle. The academy graduate opted to shoot, but his effort from 25 yards was always rising.
Ogie did brilliantly to deny Bradley Fink. The Wycombe forward found himself through on goal and only had the oncoming Holtam to beat. However, Ogie came sliding in at the right time to block the shot behind for a corner. The defender collided with the goalkeeper, leading to a stoppage in the game, as Ogie received treatment.
During the injury stoppage, Gillingham made two more substitutions, with Dayal and Clark replacing Beszant and Nelson Khumbeni.
From the resulting corner, Wycombe doubled their advantage. Caolan Boyd-Munce’s cross into the six-yard box was left unchallenged, allowing Jack Matton to prod it home from a couple of yards out.
Moore had to react quickly to stop Wyllie from possibly pulling a goal back. Clark’s challenge turned into a through ball, which Wyllie chased after. However, the Wycombe goalkeeper beat him to it, making first contact before gathering at the second attempt.
In the 71st minute, Gillingham made their final substitution, with Josh Andrews replacing Rowe.
A shot from Dayal caused Moore problems as the hosts tried to find a way back into the game. Clark’s cross bounced around the penalty area until Gale brought it under control and laid it back to Dayal, who got a shot away. His attempt went through a crowd of bodies, which meant Moore saw it late. He blocked the shot, but it came back out towards Andrews, who challenged to win the loose ball, but he was adjudged to have fouled Moore.
Fink scored a third for Wycombe with six minutes remaining. James Tilley curled a cross into the box from the right, and Fink got across his marker to guide a diving header past Holtam and into the right side of the goal.
Sargent came close when he made a bursting run down the left-hand side before getting a shot away. However, his low drive towards the far bottom corner went just wide of the target.
Akomeah had a great opportunity to score during stoppage time. Gale delivered a cross deep towards the back post, which Andrews kept alive. It came back to the defender, who sent a half-volley goalward, but he could not keep it down as it cleared the crossbar.
FULL-TIME: Gillingham 0-3 Wycombe Wanderers
Gillingham: Holtam, Hutton (Gale 46’), Akomeah, Dobbs, Ogie, Waldock, Khumbeni (Dayal 61’), Beszant (Clark 61’), Rowe (Andrews 71’), J. Smith (Sargent 46’), Wyllie
Unused Substitutes: Turner, Palmer-Houlden
Wycombe Wanderers: Moore, Quitirna, Body-Munce, Fink (Stones 87’), Back (Huggins 59’), McNeilly (Tilley 59’), Taylor, Matton (Casey 75’), Westergaard, Lowry (Savage 75’), Gregory
Unused Substitutes: Norris, Peart
Referee: Abigail Byrne
Attendance: 906 (66 away fans)
