Gillingham manager Gareth Ainsworth will stick up for his players after 3-0 home defeat to Walsall on first day of the season

Gillingham manager Gareth Ainsworth insists he’ll stick up for his players after their opening-day defeat.

The Gills looked the more likely to find the breakthrough against Walsall at Priestfield on Saturday.

But they conceded three goals in the last nine minutes to lose 3-0 in League 2 – a harsh scoreline considering what had gone before them.

However, the missed chances and injuries to key players in Liam Gordon and Armani Little won’t be enough to keep some supporters happy.

“This place is tough sometimes, but it's tough days like this that make tough people and if anyone wants to have a go, then I'm all for taking that abuse and sticking up for my players because they've given everything,” said Ainsworth.

“We were crap (in the) last 17 minutes, really bad defending, but for 80 minutes in the first game, I'm hoping people went, ‘I can see that’.

“We'll get better, but there's no hiding place. I said these are all my players, judge me on this season. I'm happy to be judged, I believe we'll get places this season.

“It's a tough one to take at home, because we've probably sunk to the bottom of the league here with goal difference, that's not a nice one to have at home.

“But what I saw out there tells me that we're not going to lose games like today, we're going to win more than we lose with that team.

“We probably need a couple more additions now, but we'll have to have a look where they come from.”

Ainsworth added: “If anyone wants to start writing us off now, then I've had a pretty tough day there with injuries and whatnot, but we'll go again.

“You get the shouts from the stand, of course, and the socials will be on fire, I'm sure. That's great, everyone loves a defeat, so they can all have a moan.

“But I’ve got a lot