Manager Steve Evans has given his backing to Chairman Paul Scally for helping keep Gillingham afloat in these uncertain times.

All levels of football in this country face some very trying financial times in the months ahead.

With the 2020/2021 season looking like possibly not starting until mid-September, clubs are facing six full months of inactivity which simply adds to the growing list of problems which still of course doesn’t include fans returning to stadiums.

We’ve been talking to Gillingham boss Steve Evans about some of those problems, and he admitted to having huge sympathy with Paul Cook and his Wigan Athletic players who have gone from the Championship’s form team to a side facing relegation thanks to a twelve point deduction for entering administration.

The Gills boss exclaimed, “I don’t think that there’s a football person in the country, certainly not in the Championship or League One or even bottom of the Premier League didn’t think Wigan Athletic had fantastic owners, and then suddenly they’re in administration, which is always sad for any football club.”

“It frustrates me a little bit that clubs want to put themselves potentially at risk but if they’ve got a wealthy backer behind them, they’re probably assured that there isn’t a risk!”

It’s not the same by any means at all clubs as Evans went on, “I’m very privileged to be very close to a couple of owners in big clubs in League One and I know that they’ve instructed their managers with the same instructions as my Chairman has given me – get on with your meetings; identify the talent; come back with approximate values for the agents.”

“It’s very much the same – of course our Chairman is the longest serving Chairman in the EFL as I’ve said repeatedly, you’re not in charge of a club for twenty-five years if you repeatedly put your club in jeopardy and doing a stunning job!”

“He’s not always had the credit because unfortunately everyone sees the football club being run as the team plays and as we found out to the cost of Bury and the cost of Bolton – the club that I started as a kid at – to the cost of Wigan Athletic, and there will be more clubs to follow I’m sure, which is why our Chairman should be applauded.”

“And in fairness, the people in the Towns when I’ve been around in the past few weeks have all been saying when you break it all down, the Chairman’s done a very good job considering what has happened elsewhere with certain clubs.”