Crawley Town goalkeeper Glenn Morris joins Gillingham on loan until January

Gillingham have confirmed the return of experienced goalkeeper Glenn Morris.

Morris’ return to the Gills on loan comes just a day before their League 2 season opener at AFC Wimbledon.

It’s six years since Morris left Priestfield and the 38-year-old had played over 250 league games for Crawley Town since then. He has joined on a deal until January.

Gillingham were forced back into the transfer market for a keeper after Charlton loan stopper Ashley Maynard-Brewer suffered a dislocated shoulder in a pre-season friendly at Dover, just weeks into a season-long loan.

The Gills also have former Newcastle United keeper Jake Turner at the club. The 23-year-old never played for the senior team at Newcastle and has only had a handful of appearances to his name in the league, with loans at Morecambe and Colchester. He will benefit greatly from Morris’ experience.

Morris was at Leyton Orient, Southend and Aldershot before moving to the Gills for the start of the 2014/15 season. He was no.2 in the team to Stuart Nelson, making 12 appearances during his first year, most of those towards the end of the campaign as he briefly claimed the starting shirt.

He signed for another year under Justin Edinburgh but never made an appearance as understudy to Nelson once again.

His move to Crawley, initially as a player-coach, gave him plenty of time in the spotlight, winning player-of-the-year awards for three seasons in a row, between 2017 and 2019. A new one-year deal was triggered at the club this summer.

It could be a busy day for the Gills today (Friday) as they are also expected to sign a striker.