Gillingham 1 MK Dons 0: Manager Gareth Ainsworth on first win in charge, securing League 2 safety and praising the fans

Gillingham manager Gareth Ainsworth was delighted his team secured their League 2 status with his first win in charge.

Bradley Dack came off the bench to score a stoppage-time winner against MK Dons on Saturday.

Four straight draws under Ainsworth had all but ensured Gills were not going to get dragged into a relegation scrap, although the three points mean they are now mathematically safe.

“People probably raised their eyebrows and said he's leaving League One and coming to a relegation battle in League Two,” said Ainsworth.

“We were never in the actual battle, but it's nice to be safe now. I'm hoping to give a few more players an opportunity to show what I've got because I need a window. I need a pre-season.”

There are few better feelings in football than a last-minute winner, so Ainsworth was understandably delighted with the outcome at Priestfield.

He paid tribute to the fans, who continued to make plenty of noise throughout the second half.

“I am so pleased for the Gillingham fans and I'm so proud of the Gillingham players and staff I've got because they've all deserved that,” said Ainsworth.

“It’s incredible the amount of draws we’ve had but for us to nick a last-minute winner, and it wasn't pretty and it's not always going to be pretty, what a result.

“Everyone at the end there, I celebrated with all my heart because they were brilliant. The fans were patient. They could easily have started getting a little bit disheartened because there were some passes gone astray.

“There were some things we tried, you probably didn't see, but I tried two different formations out there. I thought we needed to get another man up top and then I changed my mind second half.

“I thought, no, I've let MK Downs in here a little bit, so