By Tom George
March 25 2007

A despondent Gillingham side fell miserably to a humiliating 5-0 loss to Carlisle. The strong, passionate Gills following were left disgusted with the team’s efforts, and the 7 hour journey home was made more bitter by the harsh sending off of Mark Bentley, an incident around which the game pivoted. Nearly 300 loyal Gillingham fans made the long trip north to the border town, and were baked in glorious sunshine as they dreamed of the result that the spirited performance at Forest deserved. Sadly it was not to be. A farcical free-kick given by respected referee Mike Dean was converted in the shoddiest fashion by Peter Murphy, who rolled the ball lamely past a static Romain Larrieu. However, although the Gills were disorganised, disjointed and lacked cohesion, the side made it to half time without any further damage. In the second half Gillingham came out fighting. The boys dressed in red put up a spirited fight and were unlucky not to have equalised as Gary Mulligan’s looping header bounced off the crossbar. Following that a deflection from a Bastians cross was put onto the post, as the travelling army wondered whether it would be their day. Bastians was Gillingham’s only reason to be cheerful during the game- the young German looked dangerous from set plays and crosses. His new partner in midfield, Dale Tonge, looked lightweight, lazy and uncommitted, failing to correctly place a pass in the entire game. In the 73rd minute the game pivoted. Mark Bentley was shown a second yellow card and took the long walk down the Brunton Park tunnel. Within 8 minutes the deficit was doubled and it was all over for Gillingham. One Gillingham fan jokingly quoted that the height of optimism was 4-0. Carlisle went one better than this and the day turned into a rout. Goals from Joyce, Gall, a Danny Graham penalty and then header sent the Carlisle fans, who were quiet all game, into raptures. The Gills faithful deserved better than this. However the team deserved everything they got. To have any chance of succeeding at this level, Ronnie Jepson needs a higher level of effort from his players, something that only the players can be accountable for. Gillingham Ratings Larrieu 5- Looked uncertain in the air. Southall 4- Did not pass well, marked poorly Johnson 3- Abysmal marking and tackling. Sancho 3- Named captain, but once again an anonymous performance from the defender. Gave away penalty. Jackman 5- Marking again was suspect. Tonge 4- Failed to adjust to League 1 football Bentley 3- Silly sending off from mature player Bastians 7- Impressed on debut Spiller - 4 Lightweight again. Surely heading for the exit this summer. (Flynn 75) Mulligan- 6 Came close in the second half. McDonald- 4 Not a sniff for a player of his height. (Ndumbu-Nsungu 66). Subs Not Used: Cox, Easton, Chorley. Sent Off: Bentley (73).