Gillingham continued their off-season with a trio of important first-team signings, as Andy Smith, Sam Vokes and Conor Masterson all signed on the dotted line at Priestfield.

Masterson put pen to paper on a one-year contract extension at ME7, while Andy Smith, who excelled in defence on loan from Hull City, has joined the club on a permanent three-year contract.

Joining them are veteran Welsh striker Sam Vokes, who arrives to provide a physical presence, and leadership, to the Gills’ front line.

James Hawkins takes the helm for the latest summer instalment of The ME7 Podcast, as he discusses the Gills’ latest off-season moves with fellow Gills fans Emlyn Timmons and Simon Head.

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It’s been a busy couple of weeks at Priestfield with the Gills starting to address their squad needs ahead of the 2025/26 season, and a trio of eye-catching new kits released ahead of the new campaign.

Contracts-wise, the Gills have made one new summer signing already, with Bristol City striker Seb Palmer-Houlden inking a three-year deal at Priestfield, while the contracts of Bradley Dack, Max Clark and Euan Williams have also been renewed, with the club still in negotiations with Conor Masterson.

Kits-wise, the Gills launched a home strip that drew memories of the club’s 1990 “Chatham Maritime” strip, while a very smart-looking back and gold away kit has already drawn plenty of admiring glances online. The third strip has become something of a novelty selection over recent seasons, and this year’s iteration is no different, with a striking orange and purple colourway.

With lots to chat about, James Hawkins helms this special summer episode of The ME7 Podcast, as he chats to fellow Gills fans about the new kits and debates the squad situation at Priestfield ahead of what’s likely to be a busy month ahead of the first games of the club’s pre-season schedule.

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The 2024-25 season is in the books, and all thoughts have turned to the summer, and the work that needs to be done at Gillingham to help turn them from lower-mid-table also-rans to top-half contenders.

It’s a big job, as new manager Gareth Ainsworth looks to transform the team’s fortunes on the pitch, and we’ve been given the first glimpse of the sort of direction he is going via the club’s retained and released list, which was published on Wednesday.

Tom Jasper is joined by Luke Teachen, Dave Miller and Owen Stanley to run through that list and offer their respective takes on the players who have been released, those who have been retained, and who from those still under contract at the club might still be heading out the Priestfield exit door during the summer.

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The Gills finished off the 2024-25 season on a positive note as they claimed a hard-earned 1-0 away win at League 1-bound Port Vale. On a day that was supposed to be a celebration of Vale’s promotion-winning season – and, potentially a championship-clinching win – the Gills played spoilers as they defeated the Valiants courtesy of a peach of a strike from Aaron Rowe.

It meant the Gills finished the season on a 13-match win streak, with the last nine of those games coming under the management of new boss Gareth Ainsworth, who has overseen a complete transformation in the team’s performances on the field.

Now, with the 2024-25 season officially in the books, the attention turns to the summer, and an off-season that promises plenty of changes, with a host of players out of contract, and a good few of them set to be released to make space for incoming reinforcements to key areas.

On this special end-of-season pod, the ME7 team looks back at the win over Port Vale, then assesses the squad situation heading into what should be a busy few months.

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Gillingham’s final home game of the season ended in a 1-1 draw and two late sendings off for the Gills as they drew with Swindon in a combative clash at Priestfield.

Only a 30-yard rocket of a free kick from former Gill Will Wright deprived the Gills of a hard-earned victory, but there were still plenty of positives to take from the game as the team upped the tempo after a sluggish opening 45 minutes.

On this week’s episode, James hosts the show as the pod looks back at that draw with Swindon, and assesses the impact made by Ainsworth in his short, but busy, time at the club so far.

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Gillingham made it two wins out of two at Priestfield as they followed up their home victory over MK Dons with a 1-0 win over AFC Wimbledon at ME7.

Joe Gbode proved to be the matchwinner as he came off the bench early to replace the injured Oli Hawkins. And, despite being manhandled throughout the match, he ended up having the last laugh as he smashed home a late winner in front of the Rainham End.

It continued the feel-good factor around the side since Gareth Ainsworth’s arrival at the club, and after the match, The ME7 Podcast looked back at the game to unpack another good result at Priestfield.

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Gillingham's unbeaten run stretched to nine games with a hard-earned 1-1 draw at Cheltenham Town as Gareth Ainsworth's side added another positive result to the ledger as we head towards the summer.

The Gills took the lead through a beautifully-worked free-kick routine, as Jack Nolan wrong-footed the Town defence with a pass to Jimmy-Jay Morgan, who finished smartly to put the Gills ahead after just two minutes.

But unfortunately the side couldn't quite hang on to the lead, with a 22nd-minute equaliser through Sam Stubbs' header.

Nonetheless, it was another game unbeaten for Ainsworth's Gills, and after the result, The ME7 Pod took a look back at the action to assess the performance.

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The first win of the Gareth Ainsworth era is now in the bag, thanks to a late, late show from Bradley Dack as Priestfield exploded with joy at a last-gasp 1-0 win over MK Dons.

In a match that was nothing to write home about at all, Dack found himself in the right place at the right time to control and tap in at the back post after Max Clark’s free-kick delivery was headed back across goal by Conor Masterson.

It was a simple, well-worked set-piece goal, and it gave Gillingham their first win over new manager Gareth Ainsworth.

It also gave Dack his first goal since returning to the club earlier this season. Injuries and managerial changes have restricted his appearances so far, but it’s clear that he’s desperate to be a part of it here at ME7, and his celebrations after his stoppage-time matchwinner showed just how much it meant.

Tom takes the helm for this week’s post-match pod as The ME7 Podcast recaps the action from Priestfield, including that late winner, as the Gills extended their unbeaten streak to eight.

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It’s been quite the week at Priestfield, with the arrival of Gareth Ainsworth as the new Gills manager, and he’s already made something of an impact.

Previously out-of-favour players have returned to the side, a new, more aggressive approach has already been adopted, and, shock horror, the Gills have actually been awarded a couple of penalties!

After Elliott Nevitt’s disastrous spot-kick earlier in the season, it was interesting to see who would pick up the ball when the spot-kicks were awarded. On both occasions, it was left back Max Clark who took the responsibility. And, on both occasions, he found the back of the net to earn the Gills 1-1 draws away at Harrogate, and at home against Colchester.

It’s early days in the Ainsworth era, but the signs are at least looking a little more positive than they did earlier in the season. But, what have we learned from those first two performances under the new gaffer?

That’s what James Hawkins and Tom Jasper try to fathom on this episode of The ME7 Podcast.

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John Coleman was supposed to be the steady pair of hands to see out the remainder of the season, but the Gills brass have landed the man they wanted to take the club forward, and they’ve made the change immediately.

It means Coleman and Jimmy Bell have departed Priestfield with immediate effect, with Gareth Ainsworth taking over as first-team manager, while his longtime assistant Richard Dobson took up the assistant manager duties.

It’s the start of a new era (again) at Priestfield as the Gills make another managerial change at ME7. But, after seeing the Galinsons’ appointments of Stephen Clemence, Mark Bonner and John Coleman all fall short, will things be any different this time around?

The ME7 Podcast team jumped on Twitter Spaces to chat about the big news, as they, plus a selection of fellow Gills fans, discussed and debated the latest managerial change at Priestfield.

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