Gillingham FC

The Action

After dominating for large parts of the game, Gillingham was forced to settle for just a point away from a win at Brentford with a 1-1 draw.

The Gills had initially fallen behind to the League Two leaders when the home side's first real chance of the match turned into a goal.

David Hunt hit a well-taken free-kick to put the Bees ahead at 42 minutes, much to the delight of the home fans.

But Gillingham responded in the second half with a hatful of decent goal-scoring opportunities, most notably when Mark McCammon headed one just wide seconds after the re-start.

The Gills got the important lifeline they required just before the hour mark, when Andy Barcham was felled inside the box and a penalty was given.

Canadian international striker Simeon Jackson stepped up to take the kick and slotted home to bring the visitors level and notch his 18th goal of the season.

Gillingham huffed and puffed towards the end, dominating possession and creating several more chances than the hosts.

In the end, though, they were made to rue their missed chances, as the Griffin Park contest ended in a tie. This means the Gills remain in fourth place while Brentford resumes its position at the top of the League Two table.

The Reaction

Gillingham manager Mark Stimson was disappointed his side did not claim all three points in their top-of-the-table clash at Griffin Park but maintained that a point is still satisfactory.

Speaking after the match, he said:

"I felt we deserved the three points. We'll take a point but we're disappointed, because we didn't come for anything else, we went for the three points.

"We didn’t get them, but we played very well and one will do us."

The Gills boss also said that it would've been harder had his team not got a point, and that his players need to stay focused for the remaining games in this season.

"The boys will take a lot from the game," Stimson added. "They know they deserved something from the game, and if they hadn't got anything, then I think it would have been tricky to pick them up.

"We've got six games left now, and we have to focus on what we have to do and want to achieve. If we play like (this) for the next six games, I'm sure we will win more than we lose."

Lastly, Stimmo went on to praise the club's supporters and the "phenomenal" amount of them present away at Brentford.

"The army of supporters that we had with us was phenomenal," said the Gills supremo. "We had around 1,800 in the ground, but it sounded like 6,000, and they appreciated at the end what the boys put in. I'll have a lot better Sunday than I did the week before."

Does football hate me?

"Hell, yeah it does!", I imagine Gillete Soccer Saturday presenter Jeff Stelling telling me, as I check the Sky Sports website to find out the results of my two beloved football teams.

Firstly, I check the Sky Sports online score centre for my first team Gillingham's result. I see them in the League Two section and look at the score: "3-0". Dammit.

To make sure I'm not seeing things and that the mighty Gills really have lost to officially the worst team in the league, I then check Gillingham's official club website, where my friend and the club's media manager, Martin Weller, has written up the match report of today's game.

The first thing I see is the teaser, and it reads: "Mark Stimson's men drop to third in the table after a disappointing defeat to the Mariners." What?!

I look up and see the headline, and my worst nightmare is confirmed: "GRIMSBY TOWN 3-0 GILLINGHAM". We have lost to a team who has only achieved six wins all season.

Even AFC Bournemouth, who started the season with -17 points, are above Grimsby in the table. You really would think that Gillingham would want to win this one if they are to achieve promotion this season. After all, it is only Grimsby, and we have much tougher tests than that coming up this season!

But no, Gillingham lose. And to make it worse, and confirming my knowledge that football hates me, I go back to skysports.com, hopefully seeing Manchester United back to winning ways with a complete annihilation of Fulham.

But again, no. As one quintuple fades away, another smacks me right in the face.

Firstly, BHAM! In the 17th minute, Paul Scholes is given a straight red for handling the ball on the line.

Secondly, BHAM! From the resulting penalty, Fulham take the lead via what the Sky Sports live commentary says, "the penalty spot brilliance of Danny Murphy."

Thirdly, BHAM! Right near the end, on 87 minutes, Hungary international Zoltan Gera makes it double for the Cottagers, flicking the ball up in the air before producing a killer overhead kick which confirms the nightmare for the hundreds of millions of Manchester United all over the world.

Fourthly, BHAM! Wayne Rooney picks up a second yellow, and he's off. Of course it's that cliché, from bad to worse for United.

Finally, BHAM! The scoreline confirms what I just read. "FULHAM 2-0 MANCHESTER UNITED."

Ouch. I felt a quintuple of pain pangs, as after attempting to forget about Gillingham, I'm brought straight back to football misery.

I had a brief respite from such misery when seeing that Chelsea lost, which always feels great.

But in terms of football, that was as good as it got, because the evening game didn't make things any better.

If it wasn't bad enough that Arsenal won and put all the pressure on Aston Villa tomorrow, their first goalscorer was the one that I really didn't want to see on the scoresheet.

I claimed Salomon Kalou was a much better player, and although I stick by that, I probably have egg on my face now.

Big Danish striker Nicklas Bendtner opened the scoring for Arsenal, as they went on to secure what seemed like a fairly routine 3-1 win over Newcastle United.

I received a lot of criticism for saying that Ivory Coast striker Salomon Kalou is much better than Bendtner, and at the moment it seems like my critics are in fact correct.

After seeing my beloved teams lose and my enemies win, I really do get the impression football hates me at the moment.

"It's okay Yoosof, come to us instead", I imagine some guy representing the sport of Rugby Union saying to me.

After playing table tennis and going on my daily jog, I was glued to the television today as I watched all three games in the Six Nations.

Now this sport seems to know what I want.

After seeing France destroy Italy, 50-8, you've really got to wonder where Italian rugby is heading. 44 defeats out of 51 games (I think) since they joined the Six Nations, clearly there is a fatal flaw in the Italian set-up.

Also, after seeing France destroy Italy 50-8 in a real exciting match, I couldn't help but stay to watch the next two thrilling encounters.

The next game was brilliant, as the result finally went my way. The national team of the country where I'm from and have lived my whole life, England, won the Calcutta Cup by beating Scotland 26-12 at Twickenham.

They've done well this Six Nations, and Ugo Monye is a player that stood out for me in that game. What a tackle on Thom Evans to deny Scotland a try, before the winger scored a decent try himself.

And then the greatest moment of day. It was the biggest game of the tournament, the one rugby fans all over the world were tuned in for.

Ireland were out for their first Grand Slam in 61 years, as they took on Wales at the Millenium Stadium in Cardiff.

And in a pulsating, jaw-dropping, heart-stopping, agonsingly close final match of the Six Nations tournament, IRELAND WON!!!

Finally, a result has gone my way. Ireland won their first Grand Slam since 1948, with top scorer in the Five and Six Nations, Ronan O'Gara, kicking Ireland to victory.

Andy Murray has the chance to make football an anomalie for Yoosof Farah, when he takes on Swiss maestro Roger Federer in the semi-finals of the Indian Wells Masters Series in California.

At the moment he's one set up, and so at the time of writing hearing on Sky Sports News in the background that Dimitar Berbatov has had his leg in a plastic cast, hopefully Murray can make it to the final to help me forget about the current misery in my life which is football.

After failing to do it last weekend, this time if one is definitely for certain, it's that BBC's Match of the Day and ITV's The Championship highlights will be a definite, 100 percent no-go for Yoosof Farah this weekend.

Action

Gillingham received a massive boost in their hopes of promotion glory from League Two with a vital 1-0 away win at Notts County.

The result means Gillingham move up to second in the table, three points clear in the automatic promotion places.

It was a first half of few chances for the Gills, as the visitors made only two notable chances throughout the opening 45 minutes.

Their most notable opportunity came on the 37th minute, when John Nutter whipped in a low cross, but from just three yards out, Simeon Jackson smashed a shot over the bar.

Their only other real chance of the half came after just four minutes, when Mark McCammon dragged a shot wide, after Nutter again created the opening.

Notts County’s best moments came from former Gills striker, Delroy Facey. He scored a decent equaliser in the 2-2 draw the last time these sides met, and he came close on Tuesday night.

One shot bounced just wide of the post after taking a ricochet off McCammon.

In the second half, after being guilty of missing a couple of great chances, Simeon Jackson made amends on 58 minutes, by scoring his 16th league goal of the season.

The dimunitive, Canadian, international striker struck the ball low past Notts County keeper Kevin Pilkington, giving the away side a perhaps somewhat undeserved advantage.

The hosts rallied late on in desperate pursuit of that equalising goal, but it was not to be, as the ever-reliable Gill's keeper Simon Royce stayed alert and kept out everything County threw at him.

In the end, it was a decent win for the mighty Gills, and one that will now put them in good stead for their promotion push, as well as give them a big confidence boost heading into a gruelling six hour away trip up north to play relegation favorites, Grimsby Town, on Saturday.

Reaction

After the match, Gillingham manager Mark Stimson was pleased to see his side up to second in the league table.

"For the players it should be a great feeling. It's a lot better for them to be where they are now than where they were last year," he said.

"All we can do is win as many matches as possible. It will give players a lift because the hard work really comes into play now."

However, the Gills boss wasn't going to get carried away with the result, and said his players must continue if they are to stay in their current position come the end of the season.

"Tables mean nothing at the moment. It's just about the boys getting another result," Stimson added.

"We had to dig in against a Notts County team who some people said, before the game, weren't playing for anything, well the way they played and fought for their manager was a credit and we had to stand up and be counted."

"We did that and when we had to show that little bit of quality, it was a fantastic finish from Jackson.

"We've just got to get as many points as we can and be in the race with three or four games to go."

quotes: www.kentonline.co.uk

As you all know, football can either give you a massive high, or a massive low.

Today's the day of the massive low, as Manchester United succumbed to a Liverpool team who now have eight goals in two games - against both United and Real Madrid.

A double whammy then ensued, as a Curtis Weston wonderstrike and a well-worked Nicky Southall goal were both cancelled out, by a penalty that never was, and comical defending.

Yes Manchester United spectacularly lost 4-1 to Premier League title rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford, and the not-so mighty Gillingham unspectacularly "lost" 2-2 at home to Shrewsbury Town.

For the latter I say "lost" because that is what it felt like for the just under 6,000 Gills fans inside the stadium. We were in cruise control for over 75 minutes, and much wanted and needed revenge looked certain to be on the cards.

However, in the 77th minute referee Mr. Penton (I forget his first name) made a catastrophic error for the home side.

Shrews' striker Moses Ashikodi was through on goal before Barry Fuller expertly dealt with the threat. That's what happened, but the referee had other ideas, saying Ashikodi was nudged off the ball.

So in other words ref, you're saying that football should be a non-contact sport, and if strength prevails inside the box then it has to be a penalty?

Now before we go any further, I'm not saying to the referee: "You don't know what you're doing!"as Gillingham's version of the Kop says. It's just that in this one case the referee made completely the wrong decision; other than that he had a very decent game.

The penalty was put away after many expletives from the Rainham End (Gillingham's Kop End) were given to the visitors' spot-kick taker Ben Davies, with Shrewsbury suddenly finding themselves back in with a chance.

In added time I heard a metaphorical bullet, as Gillingham shot themselves in the foot to gift the unworthy visitors a much dreaded equaliser.

Gills' centre-back Garry Richards had him, then he didn't, then he did, and then he didn't again. Keeper Simon Royce moves to come out, then goes back, then comes out again, then moves back, and it's a goal.

Such uncertain stupidity from these lowly men in blue - who complain they should be in a league higher - is clear as they show off some amateur defending by allowing Shrewsbury striker, and League Two top scorer, Grant Holt to be unmarked and roll home a very, very easy equaliser.

My article on here about the Carling Cup final (http://bleacherreport.com/articles/132296-carling-cup-final-slumdog-in-with-the-millionaires-at-wembley) was featured in the Gills' matchday programme, but the delight of that wasn't enough to prevent me from slamming the poor thing right into the ground at the sound of that final whistle.

Gillingham threw it away and effectively "lost" 2-2; every Gills fan inside that ground felt like a slumdog at the final whsitle.

To make matters worse, Part Two of my double whammy of football misery came when I got home and turned on my favourite TV channel, Sky Sports News.

Jeff Stelling confirmed to me that the second greatest team in the world (after Gillingham of course) lost 4-1 to Liverpool.

I have loved Manchester United for years and I always go up to Old Trafford to see them play at least twice a season.

If I can barely cope with a 2-2 "defeat" four levels down the English football hierarchy in League Two, how on earth will I manage to cope with Manchester United conceding four goals and having star man Nemanja Vidic sent off?

United may still be well clear in the EPL title hunt, but the real agony comes from school, table tennis club, here on B/R, my friends, etc. One thing is for definite, Liverpool fans are like the plague. Enough said on that one.

I would describe my agony from the United game, but this article would be never-ending in that case. So I think I will just stick with focusing on uncertain stupidity as opposed to spectacular defeats.

Using my favourite cliché, if one thing is for certain... it's that BBC's Match of the Day and ITV's The Championship highlights will be a very, very certain no-go this weekend.

Yoosof Farah, the No. 1 Bleacher Report writer, has had a hatred for one certain Gillingham player since he joined the club from the mighty Stevenage, in 2007.

Adam Miller is described on the team's website as a “Creative midfield-forward,” whereas in Yoosof's articles he is called nearly every name under the sun, from an “absolute dog” to the “Shittiest player I have ever seen.”

So, you could say that Yoosof doesn't see Miller in the best of light.

The midfielder's call up for the England C team didn't seem to budge him from his hatred.

When asked what he thinks about his most unliked player, he replied:

"He's a c**t!"

Isn't he nice?

So, to answer my question, the reason why Yoosof Farah hates Miller so much is simply, because he is s***.

Source: Gillingham FC website, Bleacher Report.

You really could not tell it was that day.

The 2008/09 season is reaching its climax and every game becomes that cup final as three points are a necessity for Gillingham FC.

With a 10-point deduction for going into administration, the Gills' counterparts, Darlington, really had no incentive following this crushing of their promotion dream.  

But there was all to play for the team in blue at the krbs Priestfield stadium, and it was a game the fans knew would be a must-win match.

But only 4,730 turned up to watch this all important cup final, and as I walked down the streets to the ground, I really could not tell that Gillingham were playing that 'cup final' today.

But as I reached Gillingham Road (30 secs from the ground), you could at least tell there was some sort of match going on somewhere close.

As the game started, there was a real sense of juxtaposition as the ideas of a Gillingham match and a cup final just did not go together.

I had just done loads of homework (and three hours of table tennis) before going to the game, so the first half would've been the perfect remedy for my insomnia.

Enough said on that one.

I woke up after interval as the Gills turned up the heat, piling constant pressure on Darlington and their massive travelling contingent of a countless amount of fans. Well, actually...there were 32 fans out of a possible 500...if I was being really anal that is.

Chance after chance fell to the hosts, as Gillingham's version of the Kop—the Rainham End—went crazy, both in spurring on the blue lovers of their lives, and against the referee, giving him some of their "You don't know what you're doing!" treatment.

You could just tell the Gills were dominating when midfielder Adam "Sh*test player I have ever seen" Miller rifled a 25-yard free kick low and hard on target, instead of into the usual back of the 50-row Brian Moore Stand.

And it was even more amazing because the keeper actually had to save it, and no, not just catch it, but believe it or not, push it out for a corner. Who'd have thought it, eh?

Of course in usual anti-climatic Gillingham style, nothing happened from the resulting corner, but at least they were dominating.

As the game fizzled out, the general consensus was that a draw would be inevitable. And after all, the Gills never score after 90 minutes.

So three minutes were added on at the end, and a minute into that, disaster struck...

Handball inside the box. Penalty. Tears were following in the stand behind as the team's top scorer stepped up, kicked it...and scored.

Darlington is a long way up north from Gillingham in south east England.

Simeon Jackson claimed his 15th goal of the season, putting tears into the eyes of the countless amount of a 32-strong travelling contingent of Darlington fans.

Right at the death, when it was impossible, they did it. GILLINGHAM HAD WON! Sky Sports News told it to me as well when I got home, and it showed me that League Two table.

Fifth place—well clear of our next opponents, who come down to us looking for another laugh.

It was too easy last time at the New Meadow. That little team in blue from down south were roll-overs—7-0, what mugs!

This time the roles are reversed. Shrewsbury Town come down here having played a game more, have got three points less, and are in eighth place.

Gillingham have a game in-hand, are three points ahead of them, are up in a glorious fifth place promotion spot, and will be looking for one thing in Saturday's cup final at the krbs Priestfield Stadium.

Revenge.

Action

Gillingham kept alive their Coca Cola League Two promotion hopes with an easy 2-0 win over the famous Accrington Stanley, at the Fraser Eagle stadium on Saturday.

The win keeps the Gills right on track to at least secure a playoff position come the end of the season, as they maintained seventh place, a point above eighth placed Shrewsbury Town and with a game in-hand.

The much fancied away side had the better of the opening exchanges, most notably in the 17th minute, when Dennis Oli had a shot deflected for a corner after good build-up play from both Simeon Jackson and Mark McCammon.

And from that notable chance, Gillingham scored. Simeon "Jacko" Jackson secured his 15th goal of the season, after finishing off a goal-ward volley by centre-back Simon King, following John Nutter's in-swinging corner.

The home side had a few decent chances themselves, before and after the interval, but were punished for not taking any of them when Dennis Oli made it two on 67 minutes.

Adam Miller, yet another Gills player attracting interest from higher league teams, carried the ball out wide, before cutting inside and playing in a cross for Oli to finish, though his shot appeared to take a hefty deflection en route to goal.

The home side turned on the pressure in the closing stages, in desperate pursuit of at least a consolation, but it was not to be for Stanley, as they just could not find the clear cut shot on goal.

So a well deserved victory in the end for the mighty Gills; a result that now means they go marching on in pursuit of bringing much hoped promotion glory to the 1.7 million inhabitants in the south eastern county of Kent.

Reaction

After the away win at Accrington Stanley, Gillingham Manager Mark Stimson was pleased after his side "battled" their way to victory, especially against the former non-league teams in League Two.

Speaking to the Kent Messenger, Stimmo said, "At this level if you don't battle you don't get anything, and you have to make sure you are up for that fight first, especially at places like Accrington."

"We did that. We dug in, showed a little bit of quality a couple of times, but not a lot because it wasn't needed. If we do have to show that then I'm sure we're capable of doing that."

The Gills boss also warned that his players need to continue their current form if they are to build on their recent away wins.

He added, "It's another win for the team and it will only give the players confidence which we can take into the two home games, because they are going to be big, and what we don't want to do is not collect any points now after doing well on our travels."

With the ways things are going for the two professional football teams that receive the most media coverage in Southeastern county of Kent, it seems that next season there could well be two mouth-watering encounters in the Coca Cola League One [third tier of English football].

Gillingham pushed themselves ever closer to promotion glory with an important 1-0 victory over League Two [fourth tier of English football] rivals AFC Bournemouth.

Legendary player at the KRBS Priestfield Nicky Southall secured the much-needed win with a powerful blast into the top corner on 57 minutes.  

It's a result that now means the Mighty Gills move up to sixth in the League Two table, with key rivals Shrewsbury Town in seventh having played a game more.

With back-to-back wins and undefeated in their last three matches at home, things are looking rather rosy in the glum town of Gillingham.

Up in the most southeasternly point of London, where Charlton Athletic for some strange reason are included in Kent media coverage, the Addicks would also appear on the up, having also been undefeated for three games in the Coca Cola League Championship [second tier of English football].

However, look at the league table and note their position. Rock bottom, and 10 points off safety.

A hard-earned draw at Swansea City might've turned that around slightly, but unluckily for Charlton, their fellow struggling chums Southampton, Plymouth Argyle, Watford, and Nottingham Forest all managed to pick up vital points.

Nathan Dyer gave Swansea the lead at the Liberty Stadium on 42 minutes as Addicks' defender Graeme Murty slipped, allowing the Swans' striker the easy chance to score.

However, much to the disappointment of bitter Gillingham fans (such as myself), Charlton unfortunately managed to get an equaliser.

Midfielder Nick Bailey got his eighth goal of the season with a 25-yard strike that deflected in off Swansea substitute Albert Serran.

In the post-match press conference, with the way Addicks manager Phil Parkinson talks, it would seem clear Charlton Athletic do not having the mentality to avoid relegation.

He said: "I was well satisfied with our performance against a very good Swansea side, especially in the second half when the belief flooded back into our game. We could have even won had Darren Ambrose tucked away a very good chance."

Clearly, the belief deserted them in the first half, and that's why they went 1-0 down and could only draw. And clearly they seem surprised at winning games, note the word "even."

With Gillingham seemingly on the up, and Charlton Athletic looking very much on the down, it appears almost inevitable that next season The Valley and the KRBS Priestfield will at least once be two absolutely jam-packed, sell-out stadiums.

At the start of the season, us Gills fans were seriously thinking about the dull, boring, real Kent derby that could happen in League Two between Gillingham and Ebbsfleet United in the 2009/10 season.

Now towards the end of the season, we're thinking about the exciting, mouth-watering "Kent" derby in League One between Gillingham and Charlton Athletic.

Said to be the next big thing, Curtis Weston's career never really moved forward from the 2004 FA Cup Final.

Weston began his career at Millwall in 2003, and at 17 years and 119 days became the youngest ever FA Cup finalist, when he came on for Millwall in the 2004 FA Cup Final against Premier League giants Manchester United, beating the 125-year old record set by James F M Prinsep.

After spells at Swindon Town and Leeds United—the third club where he had played under Dennis Wise—Curtis played in the Coca Cola League Championship for Scunthorpe United before joining Gillingham at the start of the 2008/'09 season.

At Gillingham FC's Beechings Cross training ground, I managed to interview Curtis Weston, and ask him a few questions about his playing career and of course that FA Cup Final in 2004.

1. How did you first become involved in football?

I used to play for my school team when I was a kid, and then Millwall FC came to watch me and I signed for them when I was 13 years old. I stayed there up until I was 19, and that's how I started out in football.

2. Playing for Millwall in the 2004 FA Cup Final against Manchester United, at 17 years and 119 days, you became the youngest ever FA Cup finalist. How did it feel breaking that record?

Well I didn't actually know that I broke the record until after the game, but it was brilliant to know and the whole experience was just fantastic. So far, it has definitely been the highlight of my career.

3. After that, things didn't go quite so well. What happened?

Yeah, I got released by Millwall at 19, and then I joined Swindon Town who were in the league below. After that I went to Leeds United, and then of course I came here [Gillingham].

Although, it hasn't been all that bad, as I have been playing many games, and for me that is the main thing.

4. You've played under Dennis Wise at three clubs - Millwall, Swindon Town, Leeds United - what is your relationship like with Wise?

I had a very decent one-to-one relationship with Dennis. Obviously he took me to three different clubs and signed me up at those clubs, and even now we still talk to each other a bit. It was really nice to have him help me along in my career.

5. You joined Gillingham back in August 2008, what made you join the club?

When I was at Leeds [United], my agent spoke to me and said that I needed to start getting some football under my belt. Gillingham came up and wanted me on a one month's loan, with a view to a permanent contract, and in the end I just wanted to move there and so I signed on a two-year deal.

6. How do you feel Gillingham, as a club, will progress in the next few years?

Hopefully there'll be this season where we will get promoted from League Two, and then in a few years time we should be back up in the [Football League] Championship. That's where we belong, this [Gillingham FC] is quite a big club and we should be playing Championship football.

7. Lastly, what do you feel are the strengths and weaknesses to your game?

[My strengths are] running with the ball, closing down strikers, and scoring some goals this season hopefully.

[One weakness I have is] definitely my heading, I think I need to improve on that one.

I would like to thank Curtis Weston for agreeing to the interview and taking the time to answer my questions.

I would also like to thank Gillingham Football Club and their media manager Martin Weller for arranging the interview and making all of this possible.

Let's hope Curtis can re-live the glory he achieved at such a young age, and at only 22 years of age, it is still very much possible that he can. Hopefully he can re-live the glory with Gillingham, as they aim for promotion this season from the Coca Cola League Two.

Simeon Jackson is a name that perhaps isn’t really that known to Canadians. However, it is very well-known in the South Eastern county of Kent in England, and after scoring against Aston Villa in a recent FA Cup match, it’s a name that is beginning to become known across England.

Jackson is a diminutive striker who has made a name for himself since arriving at Gillingham back in January 2008 for £150,000. So far in his professional football career, he has made 134 appearances and scored 59 goals.

He has also played at international level, earning seven caps for the Canada U-20 Men’s Youth Team, as well as being called up for the senior side.

At Gillingham’s KRBS Priestfield stadium, I managed to interview Simeon Jackson and ask him a few questions about himself and his playing career.

1. Simeon, you were born in Jamaica but grew up in Canada, a country where football or ‘soccer’ isn’t considered one of the main sports. What made you become interested in football?

When I was growing up in Canada, there wasn’t really any professional teams around, so I had no professional ego to look up to. But I watched football on TV, and when you play the game, you fall in love with it, you start playing it and it gets more serious, and you begin to become recognised by your county.

2. You’ve played for the Canada U-20 team and you were called up for the senior Canada side. At both levels, how does it feel representing your country?

It’s one of the good feelings you want to have in the game. It’s where you can really make a name for yourself. It is a different feeling altogether.

3. Moving on, how did your move to England come about?

In Canada, there were no real professional teams about, so to further my career I had to move to Europe. I had a British passport, so I came to England.

4. You played for four seasons at Rushden & Diamonds, scoring 42 goals in 93 appearances. How do you view your time at the club?

I had a very good time there; it was a very good experience. I made my professional league debut at Rushden & Diamonds, and for me playing in the Conference [Blue Square Premier] was a big learning curve.

5. You joined Gillingham back in January 2008. How did your move to the Gills come about, and at the time what did you know about the club?

I knew a lot of clubs were watching me when I was at Rushden & Diamonds, and I knew Gillingham were one of the clubs interested. I spent a bit of time in their youth team so I did know a bit about the club before I joined them.

6. And has your view of the club changed since you arrived?

No, not really. When I left the club, the first team were in the [Coca Cola League] Championship and had some high ambitions. When I came back to the club, that was still the case and they are all really ambitious.

7. You played in Gillingham’s recent FA Cup match with Aston Villa and scored the equaliser for the Gills. How did it feel scoring past one of the USA’s all-time greats, Brad Friedel?

It was a good experience, and it was good for me to get my name on the scoresheet, although unfortunately we didn’t quite get the result we wanted in the end.

8. Was it the best moment of your career?

Yeah definitely, because I haven’t won any championships or trophies or anything. Playing for Canada was also a very good experience. I’d say those two are my top two moments [in my career] so far.

9. As a footballer, what do you think are the stronger aspects of your game? And your weaker aspects?

I try to work hard, I can shoot, I use my pace, and I just try to score goals really.

[My weaker aspects are] Heading I guess, and my defending I suppose. Oh yeah, and my strength a bit as well.

10. Despite the recent 2-1 loss, Gillingham are still inside the playoffs places in the League Two table. Do you think you can clinch promotion this season?

Well, I wouldn’t write us off at the moment, because the league is very tight. I think we just need to keep getting the results we have been and I think we’ll be alright.

11. Lastly, the Super Bowl XLIII is coming up on Sunday. As a Canadian, do you take an interest in the NFL? And who do you want to win, the Pittsburgh Steelers or the Arizona Cardinals?

Yeah definitely, I used to watch it week in week out back in Canada, but here in England, I don’t really get the chance to anymore. The NFL is a big thing in Canada.

And as for the Super Bowl, I’m gonna go for the Steelers. Dunno why, I just like their badge.

I would like to thank Simeon Jackson for taking the time to do the interview and answer my questions.

I would also very much like to thank Gillingham Football Club’s Media Manager Martin Weller for arranging the interview and making all of this possible.

Let’s hope Simeon Jackson can keep his fine run of form going, and help take Gillingham forward as they look to continue their campaign for promotion from League Two.