Gillingham take on Northampton Town away this Tuesday in the Jersey Mike’s Trophy group stage as under-18s face Luton Town at Kenilworth Road

Manager Gareth Ainsworth is determined to get Gillingham into the knockout stages of the EFL Trophy as they look to bounce back from their FA Cup humiliation.

The Gills travel to Northampton Town on Tuesday night knowing a point will secure their place in round two for the first time since the 2020/21 season.

Even a one-goal defeat should be enough to see them progress as group runners-up behind Cambridge United, although anything worse would leave their hopes hanging in the balance.

Gillingham have struggled in cup competitions in recent seasons, losing in the FA Cup first round for the third year running on Saturday and suffering the same fate in the League Cup for the past three seasons.

Many fans scoff at the EFL Trophy, but it is a competition that ends in a Wembley final and has provided a brilliant platform for the club’s best young players to show what they can do.

The U’s have already won all three of their group-stage games, including a 6-0 thrashing of Brighton under-21s last week, a result which elevated the Gills into second place ahead of Brighton on goal difference.

Gillingham’s last outing was a painful one, dumped out of the FA Cup by non-league Barrow on Saturday. That has given manager Gareth Ainsworth extra determination to make something of their chance in the Trophy competition.

He said: “That becomes a big game because I want to get through in the Jersey Mike’s Trophy.

“You've got to win football games, no matter what game it is. We've got to keep winning football games and making strides and making winning a habit and that's big for me.

“There's not a lot of time to dwell over [Saturday’s loss], but we'll definitely be having some words about how we can be better.

"We've got to go again Tuesday;