Nevitt to the Rescue! Gills Snatch a Point at the Death

Just when you thought it was all over, Priestfield erupts. It took until the 95th minute, but super-sub Elliott Nevitt smashed one home to grab us a 1-1 draw against Cheltenham Town and save us from a third straight defeat.

In front of just over 6,000 of us, it was a dramatic end to a game we should have had wrapped up long before. Let's be honest, it was one-way traffic for pretty much the whole match, but we just couldn't find the back of the net. The point keeps us in the mix, but everyone leaving the ground was thinking the same thing: how on earth was that not a win?

How on Earth Did We Not Win That?

If you just looked at the result, you’d think it was an even game. It was anything but. We absolutely battered them from start to finish, and the stats tell the whole story. We had something like 29 shots (10 on target!), won 11 corners, and had over 100 successful passes in their final third. We swung in 51 crosses and had 48 touches in their box. It was relentless.

For all that pressure, you just had that horrible feeling. And sure enough, with three minutes to go, Cheltenham nicked a goal. Their defender Sam Sherring pops up with a header from pretty much their only clear-cut chance of the game. A classic smash-and-grab was on the cards, and Priestfield was stunned.

You could feel the frustration. Dobbo, said the dressing room was disappointed because the performance was "very, very good." He pointed to the "incredible stats," saying "you normally come away with a win with stats like that." He’s not wrong.

But this team doesn't give up. Deep into stoppage time, a hopeful ball into the box caused a bit of a scramble, and there was Elliott Nevitt to drill it low into the corner. The Rainham End went absolutely mental. It wasn't the win we deserved, but it felt like justice in the end.

Relief and Frustration?

Over on social media after the final whistle, the feeling was a bit all over the place. The guys at The ME7 Podcast probably summed it up best for everyone, saying they weren't quite sure what to make of it all. And you can see why.

On the one hand, as plenty of fans like Jack Gracie pointed out, creating that many chances is a massive step forward. Think about it: 29 shots at home, with 10 on target! We’d have absolutely killed for stats like that over the last couple of seasons. It really does feel like things are moving in the right direction and that we’re watching a team that can properly dominate a game.

But that’s where the other side of it comes in – the feeling that we’re still struggling to kill teams off when we’re on top. Having all that pressure and all those chances is fantastic, but it still took us until the 95th minute to find a goal.

Still, the overriding emotion was pride. As fan Keelan put it, he was all set to be "heartbroken but proud" when it looked like we were going to somehow lose. That last-gasp equaliser just tipped the scales to pure pride. And he made a brilliant point that really hits the nail on the head: seeing our own players look gutted with a draw at full time speaks volumes. They know they should have won, and that high standard is exactly what we want to see.

German Gills Man of the Match – Ethan Coleman

For me, there was only one choice for Man of the Match, and that’s Ethan Coleman. He was an absolute machine in the middle of the park.

Coleman was the heartbeat of everything we did. He was everywhere, breaking up their attempts to counter, spraying passes to keep the pressure on, and just generally bossing the midfield. He even took a booking for the team, fighting to win the ball back. He's the reason we were camped in their half for so long, constantly winning it back and getting us moving forward again.

Gareth Ainsworth has called him an "absolute warrior" before, and you could see why today. While Nevitt will rightly get the headlines for that crucial goal, it was Coleman’s non-stop work that gave us the platform to dominate the game. The sponsors gave him their award, and they were spot on. A true leader's performance.

In the end, was it a good point gained or two points dropped? A bit of both, really.

On the one hand, we stopped the rot of a couple of losses and showed that brilliant character to fight right until the final whistle. A point rescued like that always feels a bit like a win. On the other hand, we have to be more clinical. You can't create that many chances and not put a team away.

There’s no midweek game, so the team gets a full week to work on that finishing touch before we head up to Grimsby Town next weekend. If we can take that same performance up there but find our shooting boots, we’ll come away with all three points. The fighting spirit is there for all to see; now let's turn dominance into wins.

Los Geht's Gills!