A tale of two Gills
Brad Galinson’s takeover has finally kickstarted Neil Harris’s reign, a year after it began
Neil Harris’s unveiling as the new Gillingham manager in January 2022 came as a surprise to many EFL fans. The ex-Millwall boss had been out of work for 12 months since leaving Cardiff City but had established a reputation as a dependable Championship coach, so pitching up at Priestfeld Stadium to take charge of a team seemingly destined for League Two was a risk.
Harris galvanised his new charges and almost achieved the impossible, but a final day defeat to Rotherham consigned the Gills to relegation on goal difference. However, this near escape masked just how lacklustre the season had been; 2021-22’s League One strugglers were particularly poor by historical standards and the 40 points accrued by both the Gills and survivors Fleetwood Town would not have been enough to dodge the drop in any other season this century.
Somehow, 2022-23 began even more disastrously. By December, Gillingham sat bottom of the fourth tier, plummeting towards non-league. Just seven goals were mustered in the opening 23 league games, with centre-back Elkan Baggott the club’s top scorer despite registering only two strikes. The direct style of play worsened an already difficult situation; had results been positive, Gills fans would have been willing to forego the attractive football, with the team’s poor form, the lack of entertainment became another stick to beat the manager with.
An instant return to League One had not been expected in pre-season, but Harris was clearly underperforming, so the news of US property developer Brad Galinson’s takeover likely left him fearing for his job.
Galinson did make changes but chose to supplement his manager, rather than replace him. Kenny Jackett, who had previously coached Harris at Millwall, became director of football and club legend Andy Hessenthaler returned as head of recruitment. Provided with a generous budget, together they immediately set about building a squad capable of dragging the team up the table.
The focus on experience in the off-field recruitment was reflected on the pitch too. 30-year-old Timothee Dieng joined from League One Exeter City, while Tom Nichols, 29, and Glenn Morris, who turns 40 this year, arrived from relegation rivals Crawley Town. Physical forward Oli Hawkins left Mansfield for Priestfield and former Millwall striker Aiden O’Brien signed on loan until the summer.
For most clubs, such a disproportionate focus on experience in the transfer window would be short-sighted, but in this case, it made sense. A relegation scrap is hardly the place to blood young talent and Galinson can afford to absorb the lack of resale value in the new recruits.
The transfer window has triggered a phenomenal change of results. In the eight league matches since 2023 began, the Gills have amassed 16 points and 12 goals, more than they managed in the first 22 games of the season. They now sit outside the relegation zone for the first time since November.
Stylistically, the football is marginally easier on the eye than it was pre-takeover but Harris hasn’t strayed too far from what he knows. The little and large strikeforce of Nichols and Hawkins is reminiscent of the partnership formed by O’Brien and Lee Gregory during Harris’s promotion-winning season at Millwall and has been the basis of the recent upturn in fortunes. Goalscoring midfielder Dieng has also established himself as aerial threat, most notably with a powerful headed equaliser in the recent draw at Swindon.
For the level the Gills are at, and the division they hope to be back in by 2024, this is an effective choice. Direct build-up play is the most common recipe for success in League Two and the few clubs who have been promoted from the fourth tier playing free-flowing football have then generally struggled to adjust to League One. Swindon Town earned plaudits for their eye-catching style during their title-winning campaign but were relegated 12 months later and Forest Green look set to suffer the same fate. Even Crewe Alexandra, who impressed in their first season up, had their squad picked apart by clubs in higher divisions and finished bottom of the pile the following year.
By contrast, with Galinson’s deep pockets, Harris’s knowhow and the experience of Jackett and Hessenthaler there is a clear blueprint to ensure the Gills’ stay in League Two is a short one and that once they eventually depart, they will not return.
When he signed on the dotted line a year ago, Harris joined a team on a downward spiral, a sinking ship with the potential to seriously damage his managerial career. 12 months later, he is now in charge of a highly ambitious club, with his sights set on League One and maybe even higher. After a thoroughly depressing 2022, the future is finally bright again for Gillingham and their manager.