A RESOLUTE Gillingham showed the team spirit they believe will keep them in the Coca-Cola Championship as they kept their first clean sheet of the season.

After “defending for their lives” on Saturday to earn a deserved 1-0 win over Wolves, delighted player-manager Andy Hessenthaler said: “It just shows how close we are as a team.

“The character is good, the spirit is good. Some people have been saying we’re not together as a team but today’s performance speaks volumes.”

It was the first time in four years that Gills have got the better of Wolves in the league and the win could not have come at a better time, halting Gills’ run of seven straight defeats.

Hessenthaler added: “After the nightmare we had with injuries last season, it seems to be happening again as we had nine senior players out.

“But we went with the kids and they turned over a side that was playing Premiership football last season.

“It was performance that has been coming for a while. As I have said before, we have spent just £200,000 in the past four years and it’s been catching up with us recently.

“We have beaten a big club here today and to put it into context, our annual wage bill is £3m. Leeds, another relegated side, spend £15m a year on players’ wages. That’s the difference.

“But if we keep it tight at the back, as we did today, I have no doubt we will stay up. It’s amazing that we have not managed to do that with 11 players, yet did it superbly with just 10 today.”

Hessenthaler was reluctant to reserve praise for individuals as the whole team played well, although he did talk about some of the youngsters’ performances, including Matt Jarvis who scored his first senior goal to win the game.

“Matty is just 18 yet we gave him a professional contract early because we know what he can do. There’s a lot more to come from him and we know if we can keep his confidence up, he can really hurt teams,” Hessenthaler added.

“I thought Nyron Nosworthy also had a great game. Central defence is his position. He doesn’t agree and says he doesn't like it there but Chris Hope enjoys having him alongside him because of his pace.

“It’s been hard lately to get confidence running through the side but results like these help. So has John Gorman because he’s come in and his enthusiasm has been infectious.

“His one-to-one skills are very good, especially with the young players. He knows exactly who needs a comforting arm around them to get the best from them and who responds best to a kick up the backside.

“He has also helped me relax and has allowed me to concentrate more on playing. Now we are looking to put a decent run together, starting on Tuesday night against Watford.

“Unfortunately Ian Cox is now out suspended, so we’ll have to go with the same young team, although Iwan Roberts is back available, so that’s a bonus and Darius Henderson wants to play despite having seven stitches in his head today.”