Millwall U18s 3 Gillingham U18s 1
Millwall maintained their 100 per cent winning start to the season with a comfortable success against Gillingham on Saturday morning.
Having despatched Southend United 2-0 the previous weekend, Scott Fitzgerald's charges produced another solid team performance to see off their Kent rivals.
The Lions got off to a cracking start and immediately had their guests on the back foot.
In the opening home attack defender Connor McLaren crossed for striker Tobi Alabi, whose effort on goal was only kept out by a fine save from keeper Darren Hawkes.
David Adedipe sent in a series of crosses which were only just cut out by the Gillingham defence under pressure and striker Connor French was desperately unlucky when his header grazed the crossbar.
Ironically it took until the fifth minute for Gillingham to launch their first attack of the game - and they took the lead courtesy of a low drive by Nathan Nyafli.
Undeterred, The Lions continued to put the opposition goal under threat. Midfielder Dammy Shitta threaded a pass to Adedipe who picked out Alabi in front of goal, but he was dispossessed just as he shaped to shoot.
Millwall pressure eventually paid off on 16 minutes when frontman Connor French played the perfect pass to Jake Gallagher following a super run, and Gallagher swept home the equaliser past keeper Hawkes.
Central defender Jake Goodman, Alabi and French all saw their headed efforts flash frustratingly wide from Adedipe corners.
It was from another Adedipe corner in the 35th minute that French nodded back across goal and central defender Rys Paul headed home to put the home side 2-1 ahead.
Alibi then headed yet another corner over the bar in the 38th minute but made no mistake with his effort 60 seconds later when he held off his marker to slot a low drive past the advancing keeper to make it 3-1 for The Lions.
Seconds before the half-time whistle, a pass from Dylan Richards and a superb effort on goal by French was countered by goalkeeper Hawkes with an equally impressive save.
Although no goals were registered by either side in the second period, the effort and hard work put in by both teams could not be faulted.
As The Lions administered wave after wave of attack on the Gills, they in turn attempted to sneak a foothold back into the game.
In Millwall's first attack of the second period substitute Aidan O'Brien dragged his shot wide having been set up by French.
Goodman then headed over the Gills crossbar following yet another corner and substitute Jack Samoutis fired wide having been played in by the hard-working French.
It took until the 62nd minute for the visitors to create their first serious second-half effort when Bradley Dack fired wide from a good position.
Almost immediately action switched to the other end when Shitta found Gallagher who played a one-two with O'Brien and then fired inches wide of the upright.
Jamie Farmer produced a flying save to divert a header at the other end of the field, but it was Millwall who could have added a fourth late on when midfielder Liam Kingsmill did well to create an opening, and saw his shot creep agonisingly wide of the post.
Team: Farmer, McLaren, Kingsmill, Shitta, Paul, Goodman (Parry, 72mins), Adedipe (O'Brien, 46mins), Gallagher, French, Alabi (Samoutis, 60mins), Richards. Subs not used: Bartlett, Mathias.