Gillingham 2 KM Dons 1: Reaction from interim manager Keith Millen after League 2 win at Priestfield
Interim Gillingham manager Keith Millen feared a hangover from the players after Neil Harris’ sacking but they came good after a slow start.
The Gills showed plenty of attacking threat in a 2-1 win over MK Dons but there was still a tense finish after a crucial chance from Connor Mahoney at 2-0 wasn’t taken. MK got one back and almost levelled.
More: Gillingham 2-1 MK Dons
“Firstly, I’m delighted to win the game,” said Millen, who was put in charge on a temporary basis on Thursday after Harris was axed.
“If Connor goes through and scores, or slides someone else in to make the third goal, I think it would have been a lot calmer in the last five or 10 minutes. We didn’t take that chance and luckily it didn’t come back to haunt us.
“Looking at the game I think it took us 20 minutes to clear our heads. It’s been a tough week, certainly a tough last couple of days. I was conscious of a little bit of a hangover.
“No matter what I said in the dressing room, there would be a little bit of a hangover all of a sudden, after 20 minutes, we became a little bit braver on the ball, found a few more passes, broke lines better then all of a sudden we were opening them up. We created some really good chances.
“First 20 minutes was nervy, then we had a 15-minute spell where we were a lot better on the ball, calmer, they pressed us high, which we thought they would, it was a case of us trying to break the lines. It was a matter of time before we punished them.
“We created a lot of chances, but they are a decent side, a good squad, they are a very good club and I knew it was going to be a tough game.
“I still want us to look after the ball better, after one day’s training we are not going to turn into a total-football passing team that’s for sure, but what I liked second half was our desire to keep the ball out of the net.
“I know they have scored from a cross but people were putting their bodies on the line.
“I am really pleased for the players because they have put a lot of hard work in and sometimes you don’t always get your just rewards and today they did.”
It was a tough week for the players, surprised as anyone at Harris’ sacking on Thursday.
Millen said: “I tried to be as positive as I could be in what we showed them, what we were about, we spoke about what we can control, that’s always a big thing for me.
“We weren’t in control of what happened in the week but there are a lot of things we are in control of on a match day and we actually wrote a list. I would have thought they ticked all the boxes. It was a happy ending to a tough week.”
