Swindon Town will be hoping to assert their place in the promotion battle as they host Gillingham on Saturday afternoon. The visitors will be hoping for a win that will take them out of the relegation zone.
The hosts currently occupy 6th place in League Two, having recorded 11 wins, 8 draws and 7 defeats from their 25 league games so far this campaign. In what is a very compact league Two table, there is only four points between Swindon in 6th place and Doncaster in 12th place.
Swindon come into this tie following a mixed run of performances that has seen the Robins record three wins, three draws and a defeat from their last seven league games. Last weekend’s scheduled game against Stevenage was postponed due to the weather conditions.
Last time out, Swindon were able to capitalise on an early Grimsby red card as they recorded their largest victory of the campaign so far. A first half Charlie Austin goal saw the Robins go into the break with a slender 1-0 advantage. However, four second half goals ensured that Swindon would record an eye-catching result.
Swindon have been without a manager since the 11th of January when Scott Lindsey left the club to join league Two rival Crawley Town on a two-and-a-half-year deal. Former Chelsea and Derby coach Jody Morris is the current favourite to become the new boss. Interim managers, Gav Gunning and Steve Mildenhall will take charge of the Robins this weekend unless there is a managerial appointment.
Gillingham find themselves one place above the foot of the League Two table, having recorded 20 points from their 25 league games so far this campaign. A win could see the Gills climb as high as 21st place in the league come the end of the weekend.
Gillingham come into this tie on the back of two vital wins, which have come against fellow league strugglers in the form of Hartlepool and most recently Colchester. In their opening game of the calendar, Neil Harris’ side were narrowly defeated by Stevenage in a game that ended 1-0.
However, since that defeat, Gillingham recorded a 2-0 victory over Hartlepool and a 2-0 victory over Colchester. It is notable that the Gills have only conceded once in their last three games, which may be a sign of defensive improvements.
The Gills have dominated meetings of these sides in recent years and have only lost once in the last twelve encounters. Of these twelve meetings, Gillingham have won on six occasions and there have been five draws. Gilliangham won both games last campaign, recording 2-0 and 3-1 victories.
Neither side were able to find the back of the net when these sides met in the reverse fixture at the beginning of this season. Despite receiving a red card within the first 10 minutes, ten-man Gillingham stood strong for over 80 minutes to record a well deserved point.
Swindon are odds on favourites ahead of this tie @ ⅘, whilst an away win for Gillingham is currently priced @ 10/3. We are backing Swindon to win and Jonny Williams to score as he has been in top goalscoring form so far this season. Despite the Gills recent victories, we believe that Swindon will pose a much harder task than Colchester and Hartlepool.