Gillingham character gives them a "chance" against Walsall

John Coleman says the recent "character" shown by his Gillingham side will always give them a chance ahead of Walsall's visit to the Priestfield Stadium tomorrow.

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The former Accrington Stanley boss failed to win any of his first nine league games at the helm for the Gills, but has overseen two successive home wins against Morecambe and Bradford City respectively for the first time since September. 

Gillingham rescued a point against Coleman's ex-employers Accrington with a stoppage time equaliser from Max Clark last Saturday. 

Clark received special praise from his boss who feels that the left-back's attitude has been matched by the rest of the group in recent weeks.

He told the club: "We knew he was a great lad from day one because we knew his appetite in training was good. 

"We went a different way and then we changed it. Thankfully we changed it soon enough to get that type of character on the pitch. 

"In League Two, a lot of it is about character. You'd love to have the flashes of brilliance, you'd love to have the skill that turns the game. 

"But if you've got 11 characters then you've got a chance in this league.

"You need to build a team going forward. When you're chopping and changing, that's virtually impossible. 

"We were maybe guilty of that early on but we've settled down now."

Gillingham welcome Walsall to Kent sitting 12 points clear of the relegation zone in 19th-place following their recent resurgence. 

Coleman's side have also improved defensively, keeping four clean sheets in their last seven games, as many as they managed in their previous 15 in League Two.

However, the Gills have not beaten Walsall on their own stomping road since September 2007 - a run spanning eight games in total (four draws, four defeats). 

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