Jepson: No problem with Spills

By Jack Nolan
October 22 2006

Ronnie Jepson has told the Kent on Sunday that he does not have a problem with Danny Spiller. It was thought that The Gills boss had a row with Spiller, who only a couple of years ago was being linked with big clubs such as West Ham and Sunderland.

Spiller, 24, made his first start of the season yesterday at Brentford - but he only started the game due to injuries to Mark Bentley and Matty Jarvis. Before that Spiller was simply a benchwarmer, but was even left out of the sixteen to face Nottingham Forest twice in four days.

Friends of Spiller claimed that the former star told friends he was looking for an 'escape route' from the club. Speaking to the Kent on Sunday Gillingham boss Ronnie Jepson said,

"Danny Spiller is a good lad and, like everyone else here, needs to work hard to get a place in the team. There is no problemsn between the two of us. He's fighting for a place like everyone else."

Since making his senior debut for the club in the 01-02 season, Spiller has made 120 appearences for The Gills scoring six goals. It was claimed that Spiller and Jepson had a row leading to Spiller being left out of both games with Nottingham Forest. Spillers contract with the club runs out in the summer of 2007, and was one of Gillingham's brightest prospects having come through the ranks at Priestfield. Following the 03-04 season, Spiller won Player of the Year after winning the Man of the Match awards many times that season.

Under former Gillingham boss Stand Ternent Spiller also spent most of his playing time in the reserves or bench having been trying to win his way back into the Gills side after breaking his leg.

Meanwhile Jepson has also said of his dissapointment for failing to capitalise on a one man advantage at Brentford, but was contempt on going away with a point. Jepson told BBC Radio Kent,

"If you knew what had happened today it would make you laugh because before kick off Mark Bentley goes down sick, Matty Jarvis failed a fitness test yesterday, Andrew Crofts and Danny Jackman turn up with no football boots, they put their bags on the coach and somewhere along the route they've disappeared. So everything that did come to test us tested us today, you saw what time we arrived at the ground as well, we were stuck in traffic. So all in all, we'll take a point," said the dissapointed Jepson.

"We had our chances in the second period, I was disappointed about the first period, but full credit to Brentford, I thought they worked extremely hard for their manager. In the second half they made it very difficult, we couldn't get through the middle, we did get it in wide areas, we had numerous crosses into the box, but sometimes you've just got to give credit to the opposition, they defended with their lives and got their heads on things.

"The chances which did drop to us, maybe Guylain could have had two or three on another day, and Macca's half chance, maybe didn't realise how much time he had so all in all it's disappointing but we'll take a point.

"Danny Spiller's come in and did a job for us, he didn't know he was playing until not far before kick off, Jacko gives us that nice balance on that left hand side but he's not a natural one where he's going to go and take people on, he does get good quality into the box, but I thought their centre halves dealt smashingly with our balls into the box today," said the Gills boss.

"I don't like players getting sent off at all, that's my personal opinion, but he cut inside the 'keeper and the goal was at his mercy, but if anything it makes it more awkard for the away team when you're playing against ten men sometimes, because you start losing your shape, you start doing things you shouldn't be doing, and stop sticking like you normally should, which we found today on one or two occasions.

"I thought Micky Flynn was exceptional today, he drove the team on and to me he was our top man today, Juppy as well kept joining in and never gave up, but I'd say our strikers may be disappointed with themselves today with the amount of ball they got, but I understand when they are defending with ten men, it was hard to get any shots in at goals, we were getting the shots in, but the things that did drop, we didn't put away," Jepson said.

Matty Jarvis mised the game at Griffin Park having failed a fitness test on a knee injury picked up on Thursday. Jarvis would have made his 100th appearence for the Gills, but it looks like that shall now come against Carlisle at Priestfield. "Thursday he felt his knee a little bit, he's had a scan on it and there were no problems with the scan, he's just a bit stiff but he didn't feel it was right to play today so we had to change things around, we had to change things around with Mark Bentley, and I think today, especially with 10 men, Jarvo's pace would have caused them a few problems," Jepson finsished.