Gillingham defender Max Clark was back in the side against Salford City and looks ahead to their League 2 game at MK Dons

Gillingham defender Max Clark admits he feels more at home playing in the left-back role.

The 28-year-old returned to the side last Saturday as manager Mark Bonner switched back from a wing-back system to a more traditional 4-4-2 set-up.

Clark started the season in a four-man defence but Bonner switched the way they lined up in a bid to end a run of defeats in October. It worked for a time, but back-to-back losses to Harrogate and Bromley prompted a rethink for the game against Salford, which the Gills won 1-0 as they reverted to four at the back.

He said: “I think I'm probably more of a left-back because the wing-back these days is more like a winger. I'm more like an old-fashioned left-back who just tries to be consistent in every game.

“You're not going to beat a man or do all this tricky stuff. It's just trying to be consistent with performances and just trying to lead as well in some ways and just be consistent with playing.”

Clark missed the game at Bromley after his partner gave birth to a baby boy, their second child. He was back for the game against Salford as the players looked to prove a few people wrong.

There had been plenty of criticism after a loss to Bromley had come so soon after being beaten at home by a Harrogate side who haven’t pulled up any trees in League 2 this season.

Clark said: “I think we had each other's backs out there and really communicated well and we got a dogged win, which in this league, more times than not, they're the nice ones you're actually happy in the changing room with.

“It just felt like everyone was together as one. I thought we got after people. We didn't allow them to have much time on the ball.

“We went with a game plan and I felt like the lads really had their heads on