Gillingham chairman Paul Scally has urged the supporters to put all their efforts behind backing the team this Saturday.

Mr Scally has been under pressure from fans as the club’s position in League 1 hangs in the balance but he hopes a noisy Priestfield will help the Gills cause an upset.

He told km-fm: “The fans need to get behind the players and the club they love and if they can get behind them against Carlisle as they did against Bournemouth then we can beat them.

“Sometimes you need an extra bit of luck and the crowd behind you and if they can do that again like they did against Bournemouth then we can get a result.”

The Gills currently sit five points off safety and, whatever the outcome of the season, Scally has reiterated his belief that Mark Stimson is the man to take the club forward.

“It’s unreasonable the criticism levelled at the manager given the time he’s had to change not just the football team around but the whole culture,” said Mr Scally.

“The team will come out of the ashes and whether it’s in this division or the one below his team can take us on a far longer journey and I have no doubt about that.

“We have to ride this out and I know that eventually we will pull it back round again and those fans who abused me can then consider how fair or unfair they were at that time.”

Gillingham are giving away two thousand free tickets ahead of Saturday’s match with Carlisle.

The first thousand season ticket holders to visit the club shop will receive two complimentary tickets.

Season ticket holders can take advantage of the offer by producing voucher c from their books.