Featured Article Summary #116

In the 1998–99 season, Gillingham F.C. played in the Football League Second Division, the third tier of English football. This was their 67th season in the Football League and 49th since they rejoined in 1950. After signing two record-fee forwards, they began poorly, winning only one of their first eight league matches, but then improved dramatically, going unbeaten for 17 games and pushing for promotion. They finished fourth, qualified for the play-offs, beat Preston North End in the semi-final, and faced Manchester City at Wembley, where they led 2–0 with under 10 minutes left but lost after conceding late goals and being defeated in the penalty shoot-out. In other competitions they were knocked out early in both the FA Cup and the Football League Cup, reached the Southern semi-final of the Football League Trophy, and in total played 56 matches with 26 wins and 16 draws. Carl Asaba scored 22 goals, Paul Smith played 54 matches, attendance peaked at 10,400 against Manchester City, and after Tony Pulis was sacked amid allegations of gross misconduct, he sued the club and later accepted an out-of-court settlement. The 1998–99 season was Gillingham’s 67th in the Football League and their third straight year in the Second Division, the third tier of English football. Managed by Tony Pulis, with Andy Hessenthaler as captain, the club made major squad changes, including breaking their transfer records both for fees paid and received: Jimmy Corbett was sold to Blackburn for an initial £525,000, while top scorer Ade Akinbiyi moved to Bristol City for £1.2 million, and Robert Taylor was signed from Brentford. Gillingham also changed to blue and black striped shirts again, and they went into the season with pre-season friendlies, including a match against former Premier League side Crystal Palace. Gillingham started poorly with a 1–0 defeat to Walsall and three straight draws, leaving them 18th after early turmoil that included a brawl and multiple sendings-off. They then began a longer unbeaten run from September, with Carl Asaba making an impact—scoring in multiple consecutive games as Gillingham climbed up the table, even as some fans criticised fellow striker Taylor. By December, they were unbeaten in 16 league games, including a 4–0 win over Notts County and strong crowds, finishing the year sixth after drawing 1–1 with Millwall. Gillingham started 1999 well with a 1–0 win over Blackpool to extend their unbeaten league run, but then lost 2–1 away to Walsall. After a 1–1 draw with Colchester, in which Asaba was initially sent off but later had the red card overturned, they had their biggest away win of the season, beating Burnley 5–0 with Taylor scoring all five, before mixing results through February and March. In April they gained key victories and secured a play-off spot after Wigan lost, and they finished the regular season fourth by beating Notts County 1–0, ending seven points behind second place. In the match results, Gillingham’s score is always shown first. “H” means the match was at home, and “A” means it was away. The symbols “pen.” and “o.g.” refer to a penalty kick and an own goal, respectively.