2002–03 Gillingham F.C. season
2002–03 season | |||
---|---|---|---|
Chairman | Paul Scally | ||
Manager | Andy Hessenthaler | ||
First Division | 11th | ||
FA Cup | Fourth round | ||
League Cup | Third round | ||
Top goalscorer | League: Paul Shaw (12) All: Paul Shaw (12) | ||
Highest home attendance | tbc | ||
Lowest home attendance | tbc | ||
| |||
During the 2002–03 English football season, Gillingham F.C. competed in the Football League First Division, the second tier of the English football league system. It was the 71st season in which Gillingham competed in the Football League, and the 53rd since the club was voted back into the league in 1950. It was Gillingham's third consecutive season in the second tier of the English football league system, to which the club had gained promotion for the first time in 2000.
Background and pre-season[edit]
The 2002–03 season was Gillingham's 71st season playing in the Football League and the 53rd since the club was elected back into the League in 1950 after being voted out in 1938. In the 1999–2000 season, Gillingham beat Wigan Athletic in the Second Division play-off final to reach the second tier of the English football league system for the first time in the club's history.[1][2] In the team's first season at this level, Gillingham were seen by pundits as likely to finish in the bottom three places of the First Division league table and thus be immediately relegated back to the third tier,[3] but instead finished in 13th place out of 24 teams.[4] The following season, they improved on this performance, finishing in 12th place.[5]
Andy Hessenthaler was the club's player-manager, a position he had held since 2000. Richard Hill, who had held the title of assistant manager during the previous season, was made joint head coach with Wayne Jones, whose job title had previously been first team coach. Both were not offered new long-term contracts but required to work on weekly contracts due to financial issues at the club linked to the collapse of ITV Digital and the resultant loss of the Football League's lucrative TV rights deal with the broadcaster.[6][7] Paul Smith was the team captain. Shortly after the end of the previous season, Marlon King, Gillingham's top goalscorer during the 2001–02 campaign,[8] was sentenced to 18 months in prison after being caught driving a stolen car the previous year.[9] In his place, Gillingham signed two veteran forwards, 31-year-old Tommy Johnson from Sheffield Wednesday and Rod Wallace, aged 32, from Bolton Wanderers. Days before the new season started, the club also signed a younger forward, Mamady Sidibe, who was without a club after leaving Swansea City at the end of the previous campaign; he was offered a contract after playing for Gillingham in pre-season friendly matches. Hessenthaler told the press "We see him as the future because we've got a lot of players who are 30-plus and we need to start bringing a few younger ones in."[10]
Gillingham's first-choice kit consisted of shirts, shorts, and socks all in the club's traditional blue; the second-choice kit, to be worn in the event of a clash of colours with the opposition, was all-white. The team's pre-season games included one against Tottenham Hotspur of the Premier League. Previewing the season, an uncredited writer for The Independent said that "finishing in the top half [of the league table] might be beyond [Gillingham]".[5] A writer for The Guardian predicted the finishing position of every team in the division and contended that Gillingham would finish 18th.[11]
First Division[edit]
August–December[edit]
Gillingham's first game of the season was away to Wimbledon.[12] The match drew an attendance of only 2,476, less than half that of any other league game which Gillingham played during the season,[12] as Wimbledon's supporters almost totally boycotted the game in protest against a proposal by their team's owners to relocate the club to Milton Keynes.[13] Guy Ipoua scored the only goal of the game to give Gillingham a 1–0 victory. Sidibe made his Gillingham debut in the starting line-up and Johnson made his as a substitute. The first game of the season at Gillingham's home ground, Priestfield Stadium,[12] took place three days later and resulted in a second consecutive 1–0 win, a goal from Paul Shaw securing victory over Derby County,[14] and a third 1–0 victory on 17 August against Millwall meant that Gillingham were the only team in the division to have won their first three games, putting them top of the table.[15][16] After this strong start, however, the team would only win one of their next ten league games.[12]
On 26 October, Gillingham played away to Ipswich Town. King, who had been released from prison just three days earlier after serving five months of his sentence, was named as a substitute,[17] and took the field during the second half. Sidibe scored to give Gillingham a 1–0 victory which left them in 9th place in the table.
January–May[edit]
Gillingham had originally been scheduled to begin 2003 with a home game against Norwich City on 1 January, but it was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch, and so the team's first league game of the calendar year was ten days later away to Derby County. Ipoua scored for Gillingham but Derby equalised and the game ended in a draw, which BBC Sport's report said was a fair result.[18]
On 22 March, Gillingham played away to Wolverhampton Wanderers. The home team scored five goals before half-time and added a sixth in the second half; the BBC Sport report described the result as a rout and said that Gillingham had been "ripped apart". It was the first time Gillingham had conceded as many goals in a game since match against the same opposition in 1989.
Gillingham ended the season with a 2–1 victory at home to Crystal Palace. Nyron Nosworthy, normally a defender but playing as a forward due to injuries to King and Wallace, scored both goals, his first for the team for more than three years. The result meant that Gillingham ended the season in 11th place in the First Division, the highest finish in the English football league system in the club's history.[19]
League match details[edit]
Key
- In result column, Gillingham's score shown first
- H = Home match
- A = Away match
- pen. = Penalty kick
- o.g. = Own goal
Date | Opponents | Result | Goalscorers | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|
10 August 2002 | Wimbledon (A) | 1–0 | Ipoua | 2,476 |
13 August 2002 | Derby County (H) | 1–0 | Shaw | 8,775 |
17 August 2002 | Millwall (H) | 1–0 | Ipoua | 7,543 |
24 August 2002 | Norwich City (A) | 0–1 | 20,588 | |
26 August 2002 | Preston North End (H) | 1–1 | Saunders | 7,785 |
31 August 2002 | Leicester City (A) | 0–2 | 30,067 | |
7 September 2002 | Portsmouth (H) | 1–3 | James | 8,717 |
14 September 2002 | Brighton & Hove Albion (A) | 4–2 | Shaw (2), Perpetuini, James | 6,733 |
18 September 2002 | Nottingham Forest (A) | 1–4 | Hessenthaler | 16,073 |
21 September 2002 | Sheffield United (H) | 1–1 | Shaw | 7,497 |
29 September 2002 | Crystal Palace (A) | 2–2 | Perpetuini, Mullins (o.g.) | 15,699 |
5 October 2002 | Coventry City (H) | 0–2 | 7,722 | |
12 October 2002 | Rotherham United (A) | 1–1 | Wallace | 6,094 |
19 October 2002 | Watford (H) | 3–0 | Sidibe, Ipoua, James | 8,728 |
26 October 2002 | Ipswich Town (A) | 1–0 | Sidibe | 24,176 |
29 October 2002 | Wolverhampton Wanderers (H) | 0–4 | 10,036 | |
2 November 2002 | Grimsby Town (A) | 1–1 | Saunders | 5,715 |
9 November 2002 | Reading (H) | 0–1 | 8,511 | |
16 November 2002 | Sheffield Wednesday (H) | 1–1 | T. Johnson | 8,028 |
23 November 2002 | Walsall (A) | 0–1 | 6,630 | |
30 November 2002 | Stoke City (H) | 1–1 | Shaw | 8,150 |
7 December 2002 | Bradford City (A) | 3–1 | King (2, 1 pen.), Wallace | 10,711 |
14 December 2002 | Sheffield Wednesday (A) | 2–0 | Wallace, Smith | 17,715 |
21 December 2002 | Burnley (H) | 4–2 | Wallace, Smith (2), King | 7,905 |
26 December 2002 | Millwall (A) | 2–2 | Saunders, King (pen.) | 10,947 |
11 January 2003 | Derby County (A) | 1–1 | Ipoua | 22,769 |
18 January 2003 | Leicester City (H) | 3–2 | Shaw, Elliott (o.g.), Sidibe | 8,609 |
1 February 2003 | Preston North End (A) | 0–3 | 12,121 | |
10 February 2003 | Reading (A) | 1–2 | Wallace | 11,030 |
15 February 2003 | Grimsby Town (H) | 3–0 | Wallace (2), Hope | 7,158 |
22 February 2003 | Portsmouth (A) | 0–1 | 19,521 | |
25 February 2003 | Norwich City (H) | 1–0 | Wallace | 7,935 |
1 March 2003 | Brighton & Hove Albion (H) | 3–0 | Shaw, T. Johnson (pen.), Southall | 9,178 |
4 March 2003 | Nottingham Forest (H) | 1–4 | Wallace | 7,277 |
11 March 2003 | Wimbledon (H) | 3–3 | Shaw (2), Wallace | 7,884 |
15 March 2003 | Rotherham United (H) | 1–1 | Wallace | 7,284 |
18 March 2003 | Watford (A) | 1–0 | Shaw | 10,492 |
22 March 2003 | Wolverhampton Wanderers (A) | 0–6 | 25,171 | |
25 March 2003 | Sheffield United (A) | 2–2 | Osborn, Shaw | 15,799 |
29 March 2003 | Ipswich Town (H) | 1–3 | Smith | 8,508 |
5 April 2003 | Stoke City (A) | 0–0 | 12,746 | |
12 April 2003 | Walsall (H) | 0–1 | 6,972 | |
19 April 2003 | Burnley (A) | 0–2 | 14,031 | |
21 April 2003 | Bradford City (H) | 1–0 | Shaw | 6,281 |
26 April 2003 | Coventry City (A) | 0–0 | 14,795 | |
4 May 2003 | Crystal Palace (H) | 2–1 | Nosworthy (2) | 9,315 |
Partial league table[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
9 | Millwall | 46 | 19 | 9 | 18 | 59 | 69 | −10 | 66 |
10 | Wimbledon | 46 | 18 | 11 | 17 | 76 | 73 | +3 | 65 |
11 | Gillingham | 46 | 16 | 14 | 16 | 56 | 65 | −9 | 62 |
12 | Preston North End | 46 | 16 | 13 | 17 | 68 | 70 | −2 | 61 |
13 | Watford | 46 | 17 | 9 | 20 | 54 | 70 | −16 | 60 |
FA Cup[edit]
As a First Division team, Gillingham entered the 2002–03 FA Cup at the third round stage.
FA Cup match details[edit]
Key
- In result column, Gillingham's score shown first
- H = Home match
- A = Away match
- pen. = Penalty kick
- o.g. = Own goal
Date | Round | Opponents | Result | Goalscorers | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
7 January 2003 | Third | Sheffield Wednesday (H) | 4–1 | King (2, 1 pen.), Ipoua, Hope | 6,434 |
25 January 2003 | Fourth | Leeds United (H) | 1–1 | Sidibe | 11,093 |
4 February 2003 | Fourth (replay) | Leeds United (A) | 1–2 | Ipoua | 29,359 |
Football League Cup[edit]
As a First Division team, Gillingham entered the 2002–03 Football League Cup in the first round.
League Cup match details[edit]
Key
- In result column, Gillingham's score shown first
- H = Home match
- A = Away match
- pen. = Penalty kick
- o.g. = Own goal
10 September 2002 | First | Torquay United (A) | 1–0 | Hessenthaler | 1,981 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 October 2002 | Second | Stockport County (A) | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Ipoua, T, Johnson | 2,396 |
6 November 2002 | Third | Chelsea (A) | 1–2 | King | 28,033 |
Players[edit]
During the season, 27 players made at least one appearance for Gillingham. Chris Hope made the most, playing in every one of the team's 52 games; it was the third consecutive season in which he had been ever-present for the team.[21]
No. | Player | Position | First Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Total | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
1 | Vince Bartram | GK | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
2 | Mark Patterson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
3 | Roland Edge | 34 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 37 | 0 | |
4 | Paul Smith | 45 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 50 | 4 | |
5 | Barry Ashby | 38 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 43 | 0 | |
7 | Nyron Nosworthy | 39 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 43 | 2 | |
8 | Andy Hessenthaler | 33 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 38 | 2 | |
9 | Marlon King | 10 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 7 | |
10 | Guy Ipoua | 33 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 39 | 7 | |
12 | Paul Shaw | 44 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 49 | 12 | |
13 | Jason Brown | 39 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 44 | 0 | |
14 | Leon Johnson | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 20 | 0 | |
15 | Mark Saunders | 34 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 38 | 3 | |
16 | Richard Rose | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
17[a] | Adrian Pennock | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
17[a] | Akwasi Edusei | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
18 | Chris Hope | 46 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 52 | 2 | |
19 | Rod Wallace | 22 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 11 | |
20 | Kevin James | 15 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 3 | |
21 | Simon Osborn | 18 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 1 | |
22 | Danny Spiller | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 0 | |
23 | Tommy Johnson | 26 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 29 | 3 | |
26 | David Perpetuini | 29 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 33 | 2 | |
27 | Jones Awuah | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
28 | Andrew Crofts | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
29 | Mamady Sidibe | 30 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 34 | 4 | |
30 | Nicky Southall | 24 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 1 |
FW = Forward, MF = Midfielder, GK = Goalkeeper, DF = Defender
a. ^ Edusei was not allocated a squad number until late in the season and was given the number worn earlier in the season by Pennock, who had since left the club.
Aftermath[edit]
In terms of league standings, the 2002–03 season proved to the peak of Gillingham's time in the second tier of English football. The following season, they finished 21st, level on points with 22nd-placed Walsall and avoiding relegation only by virtue of a superior goal difference.[22][23] Hessenthaler resigned as manager in November 2004 as the team again struggled near the foot of the league table, and at the end of the 2004–05 season Gillingham were relegated, ending a five-season spell in the division. As of 2024[update], the club has never returned to the second tier of English football.[24]
References[edit]
- ^ Rollin & Rollin 2000, pp. 34–35.
- ^ "Second time lucky for Gills". BBC Sport. 28 May 2000. Archived from the original on 3 March 2003. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
- ^ Tomas, Jason (6 August 2000). "Football: Nationwide League Countdown: Nationwide predictions". The Observer. p. 6. Retrieved 23 November 2021 – via Gale.
- ^ Rollin & Rollin 2001, p. 44.
- ^ a b "First Division Team by Team Guide". The Independent. 10 August 2002. p. 27. Retrieved 28 May 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Hill loses assistant manager's title". Kent Online. KM Media Group. 6 June 2002. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
- ^ Parkinson, Gary (30 April 2022). ""Everyone said, 'This sounds too good to be true'. It turned out to be exactly that." – Remembering the fall of ITV Digital, twenty years on". FourFourTwo. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
- ^ Brown 2003, p. 111.
- ^ "Footballer jailed over stolen car". BBC News. 10 May 2002. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
- ^ "Gills sign striker Sidibe". BBC Sport. 7 August 2002. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
- ^ "First Division predictions and fixtures". The Guardian. 12 August 2002. p. 186. Retrieved 28 May 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f Brown 2003, p. 112.
- ^ "Wimbledon 0–1 Gillingham". BBC Sport. 10 August 2002. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
- ^ "Gillingham 1–0 Derby". BBC Sport. 13 August 2002. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
- ^ "Gillingham 1–0 Millwall". BBC Sport. 17 August 2002. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ "League Division 1 table after close of play on 17 August 2002". 11v11. Association of Football Statisticians. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ Hancock, Matthew (28 October 2002). "Ipswich look for Royle seal of approval". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
- ^ "Derby 1–1 Gillingham". BBC Sport. 11 January 2003. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
- ^ "Gillingham 2–1 Palace". BBC Sport. 4 May 2003. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
- ^ "League Division 1 end of season table for 2002-03 season". 11v11. Association of Football Statisticians. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ Brown 2003, pp. 110–112.
- ^ Alexander, Jeremy (10 May 2004). "Gillingham live to fight again". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ "League Division 1 end of season table for 2003-04 season". 11v11. Association of Football Statisticians. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ "Gillingham FC Stats and History". FBRef. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
Works cited[edit]
- Brown, Tony (2003). The Definitive Gillingham F.C.: A Complete Record. Nottingham: Soccerdata. ISBN 1-899468-20-X.
- Rollin, Glenda; Rollin, Jack, eds. (2000). Rothmans Football Yearbook 2000–01. London: Headline Book Publishing. ISBN 978-0-74727-232-8.
- Rollin, Glenda; Rollin, Jack, eds. (2001). Rothmans Football Yearbook 2001–02. London: Headline Book Publishing. ISBN 978-0-74727-260-1.