Second-half goals from Ronan Hale and Seb Palmer-Houlden earned Gillingham a well-deserved point, as the back-and-forth Good Friday fixture at Walsall ended in a 2-2 draw.
Aaron Loupalo-Bi gave the Saddlers a first-half lead when his header from Courtney Clarke’s cross looped into the back of the net.
Gills came battling back in the second-half, and were level as Hale capped off a beautiful move when he played a lovely one-two with Garath McCleary, putting the Northern Ireland international through on goal before he curled beyond Myles Roberts.
Palmer-Houlden gave the visitors the lead just after the hour when he capitalised on a mix-up between Roberts and a defender. The forward did well to bring the ball under control before prodding into an empty net from close range.
Walsall equalised moments later when Priestley Farquharson’s header was well-saved by Glenn Morris, but the rebound ricocheted off the oncoming Daniel Kanu, and the ball went just over the line despite Nelson Khumbeni’s best efforts to clear.
Both sides had chances to win the game in stoppage time, with Andy Smith and Albert Adomah going close, but the game ended all square.
Gareth Ainsworth made one change to the starting XI that lost at Crawley, as Nelson Khumbeni came into the team in the place of Josh Andrews, who dropped to the bench.
Khumbeni nearly opened the scoring in the 13th minute. Max Clark curled a corner into the penalty area, with Khumbeni rising the highest. The midfielder headed the ball into the ground, with it bouncing into Myles Roberts’ path, and the Walsall goalkeeper had to push it behind for another corner.
From the resulting corner, Clark saw his attempt blocked. Bradley Dack’s delivery was cleared as far as the left-back, who drilled a first-time half-volley goalward. Unfortunately, there was an opposing player in the way before they cleared their lines.
In the 21st minute, Aaron Loupalo-Bi headed Walsall in front. Courtney Clarke carried the ball down the left wing before getting a yard of space and curling a cross towards the six-yard box. Loupalo-Bi rose the highest, sending a looping header past Glenn Morris.
The hosts had a half-chance when a corner dropped to Jamie Jellis. The ball dropped to him, and he thumped it goalward first-time. However, the Gillingham defenders were quick to close him down as they made the block.
Following the goal, Gillingham managed to weather the initial Walsall pressure before easing back into the game. They had a couple of spells of possession around their host’s penalty area, but were unable to fashion an opportunity of note.
HALF-TIME: Walsall 1-0 Gillingham
Andy Smith produced a crucial goal-line clearance at the beginning of the second period. Mason Hancock’s looping cross caused Gillingham problems, as the ball bounced inside the six-yard box. It was flicked into Aaron Pressley’s path, who headed goalward, but Smith had recovered to get back on the line. As the players battled for the rebound, the referee blew his whistle for an apparent foul on Morris.
Walsall continued their fast start to the half when they broke forward in numbers with Jellis carrying the ball before thumping goalward from distance. It was straight at Morris, who had to push away from the danger before the visitors cleared their lines.
Moments later, Ronan Hale equalised for Gillingham, capping off a magnificent team goal. Seb Palmer-Houlden did well to regain possession near the Gillingham penalty area before finding Hale. The Northern Ireland international then laid it back into Palmer-Houlden’s path, which allowed him to make his way down the left-hand side.
The forward then played it inside to Hale, who played a lovely one-two with Garath McCleary, which put him through on goal. Hale showed great composure to set himself with just Roberts to beat, as he curled it around the goalkeeper and into the bottom right corner.
In the 63rd minute, Palmer-Houlden put Gillingham in front. Dack’s high-looping cross caused a mix-up between Roberts and a Walsall defender, as he dropped the ball into Palmer-Houlden’s path. The forward did well to bring it under his control before prodding home from close range.
Daniel Kanu came off the bench and made an immediate impact for the hosts. A corner was flicked on towards the back post where Priestley Farquharson headed goalward. Morris did brilliantly to react and made the save, but the rebound ricocheted off the oncoming Kanu, and the ball went just over the line.
In the 69th minute, Gillingham made their first change, as Andrews replaced Palmer-Houlden.
Gills made their second change after 82 minutes when Jonny Williams replaced Harry Waldock.
Gills nearly found a late winner after Remeao Hutton’s long throw was cleared as far as Dack. He thumped a low drive goalward that took a deflection into Smith’s path. He prodded it towards the goal, but the oncoming Roberts was quick off his line to block the attempt before the loose ball was cleared.
Albert Adomah nearly scored from a free-kick in the fifth minute of additional time. The hosts had a free-kick to the left of the centre from 25 yards out. Adomah curled it over the wall and towards the near post, but it fortunately whistled just wide of the goal.
FULL-TIME: Walsall 2-2 Gillingham
Walsall: Roberts, Hancock, Burke, Farquharson, Loupalo-Bi (Adomah 74’), Comley, Clarke, Pressley, Jellis (Kanu 64’), Pattison (Lakin 38’), Browne
Unused Substitutes: Hornby, Flint, Harper, Okeke
Gillingham: Morris, Hutton, Gale, A. Smith, Clark, McCleary, Waldock (J. Williams 82’), Khumbeni, Dack, Hale, Palmer-Houlden (Andrews 69’)
Unused Substitutes: Turner, Akomeah, Cirino, Dayal, Vokes
Referee: William Davis
Attendance: 5994
