Gillingham manager Steve Evans admitted Wycombe were on a different level to themselves.

He had no complaints about the 2-0 defeat on Saturday as his team lacked the quality where it mattered.

“We weren’t the same level as Wycombe,” Evans admitted.

“What you can’t do is go to a club with boys who have played a lot of Championship football last season and give away two poor goals in the first eight or nine minutes of the game.

“The first goal was poor, we should win the header, Jack (Tucker) comes across and it is too easy, it is poor defending and we find ourselves a goal down (after two minutes). Minutes later they move the ball across the pitch, defensively we are far too deep, the ball comes in and it is a monster mash isn’t it? The ball falls to the boy (Hanlan) and he puts it in the net.”

Gillingham did have chances to get back onto the game - none better than a 31st minute penalty that Vadaine Oliver put over the bar.

“We changed the shape and changed the system and I think that worked for us,” Evans said.

“Danny Lloyd had a good chance, MacDonald has a good chance and you don’t have a better chance than the penalty. When you miss all three of them you start to wonder how the day is going to unfold for us.

“In the second half I am not questioning the lads’ effort but we had a lack of quality in a lot of key areas.

“We started the second half bright then Wycombe do what they do, they get themselves into the game and they played percentages into areas and they were very effective and we have no complaints about the result.

“We knew if we got a goal (back) that they would sink a bit but we didn’t get the goal and they have seen it out comfortably in the end.”

It was a fifth straight win at home for Wycombe in League 1, moving them up to second in the table. They are hoping to a swift return to the Championship. The Gills finished the day two points and two places outside the bottom four.

Evans said: “Wycombe will be in the top seven or eight spenders because of the parachute payments from the Championship and because of their owner’s backing but the other side of the coin is that we didn’t do enough with who we have got and we need to do more.

“You can’t defend like that, you can’t lose simple headers on the halfway line, you can't defend inside you own six yard box when they are trying to drill in a shot from 35 yards, I think that is poor defending.

“The one thing we can say, the players are giving everything they have got and we cannot go in the dressing room and question effort and commitment but as we know in football that is never enough, that is why you play for Gillingham and not Manchester City, Manchester United or Liverpool. Players at those clubs won’t try any harder than our players are trying at this moment but we don’t have the quality to be at the top end of the league.”

Report: Wycombe Wanderers 2 Gillingham 0