Cody McDonald's seventh goal in six games gave Gillingham victory at Northampton Town as they moved into the play-off places.
The Gills could have taken an early lead but Curtis Weston failed to get the better of Cobblers keeper Chris Dunn after he was put clean through.
McDonald emphatically volleyed home the winner after Danny Spiller's free-kick was headed down by Josh Gowling.
Michael Jacobs fired the Cobblers' best chance straight at keeper Alan Julian.
Northampton manager Ian Sampson told BBC Radio Northampton: "It was a difficult situation for everyone; we have got a lot of injuries at the club.
"We tried to get a team out that would contain Gillingham and then try and nick something.
"I was pleased with the second half performance. The first half was a bit scratchy but I was pleased with the attitude of the players."
Live text and stats
Saturday, 15 January 2011
Npower League Two
Home Team
Score
Away Team
Time
Gillingham
1-0
Northampton
FT
(HT 1-0)
McDonald 32
Gillingham
01 Julian
03 Nutter
15 Lawrence
16 Gowling
18 Jackman (Bentley 71)
02 Fuller
04 Weston (Akinfenwa 59)
07 Maher
17 Spiller
10 McDonald
11 Barcham (Rooney 75)
Substitutes
26 Cronin,
06 Richards,
08 Bentley,
14 Rooney,
28 Payne,
23 Payne,
27 Akinfenwa
Northampton
01 Dunn
06 Beckwith
14 Johnson
25 Tozer
07 Gilligan yellow card
08 Osman
11 Holt
12 Wedderburn (Hall 74 yellow card)
17 Jacobs
23 Davis
15 Herbert (Kaziboni 61)
Substitutes
26 Gherasim,
02 Rodgers,
03 Hall,
05 Hinton,
27 Kaziboni,
31 Farquharson,
20 Harris
Ref: KettleAtt: 5,613
GILLINGHAM
NORTHAMPTON
Possession
Gillingham49%
Northampton51%
Attempts on target
Gillingham4
Northampton1
Attempts off target
Gillingham6
Northampton5
Corners
Gillingham0
Northampton1
Fouls
Gillingham14
Northampton13
Final Result
Full Time
90:00+4:29 The game is over, as the referee blows his whistle.
90:00+1:44 Mark Bentley concedes a free kick for a foul on John Johnson. Chris Dunn takes the free kick.
90:00+0:30 Michael Jacobs challenges Mark Bentley unfairly and gives away a free kick. Alan Julian takes the free kick.
87:55 Barry Fuller fouled by Marcus Hall, the ref awards a free kick. Barry Fuller takes the free kick.
87:55 Booking Marcus Hall is cautioned by the ref for unsporting behaviour.
86:29 Luke Rooney takes a shot. Save by Chris Dunn.
79:34 Greg Kaziboni gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on John Nutter. Direct free kick taken by Alan Julian.
78:49 Michael Jacobs takes a shot. Alan Julian makes a save.
78:07 Effort on goal by Liam Davis from just inside the area clears the bar.
74:54 The assistant referee signals for offside against Andrew Holt. Direct free kick taken by Alan Julian.
73:29 The offside flag is raised against Dean Beckwith. Alan Julian takes the direct free kick.
73:29 Substitution Andy Barcham leaves the field to be replaced by Luke Rooney.
73:29 Substitution Nathaniel Wedderburn leaves the field to be replaced by Marcus Hall.
72:38 John Nutter gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on Nathaniel Wedderburn. Direct free kick taken by Liam Davis.
70:54 John Nutter fouled by Nathaniel Wedderburn, the ref awards a free kick. Free kick taken by Alan Julian.
70:54 Substitution Mark Bentley joins the action as a substitute, replacing Danny Jackman.
68:35 Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Ben Tozer by Cody McDonald. Chris Dunn takes the direct free kick.
67:04 Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Michael Jacobs by Danny Spiller. Nathaniel Wedderburn takes the direct free kick.
65:01 Effort from inside the area by Nathaniel Wedderburn misses to the left of the target.
64:26 Nathaniel Wedderburn takes a inswinging corner.
63:38 Unfair challenge on Andrew Holt by Matthew Lawrence results in a free kick. Ben Tozer takes the free kick.
60:35 Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Michael Jacobs by Danny Jackman. Free kick taken by Ben Tozer.
60:35 Substitution Greg Kaziboni joins the action as a substitute, replacing Courtney Herbert.
58:47 Substitution (Gillingham) makes a substitution, with Adebayo Akinfenwa coming on for Curtis Weston.
57:31 Cody McDonald produces a right-footed shot from inside the area that clears the bar.
54:09 Free kick awarded for a foul by Andy Barcham on Michael Jacobs. Ryan Gilligan produces a strike on goal direct from the free
kick, Danny Jackman gets a block in.
53:26 Free kick awarded for a foul by Michael Jacobs on Danny Spiller. Free kick taken by Alan Julian.
45:01 The game restarts for the second half.
Half Time
45:00+1:52 The players leave the pitch at half time.
40:33 Danny Spiller concedes a free kick for a foul on Liam Davis. Free kick crossed by Michael Jacobs.
38:42 Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Abdul Osman by Curtis Weston. Chris Dunn restarts play with the free kick.
37:49 Barry Fuller has an effort at goal from outside the box which misses left.
35:47 Cody McDonald produces a header from inside the area that goes over the bar.
31:10 The assist for the goal came from Josh Gowling.
31:10 GOAL - Cody McDonald:Gillingham 1 - 0 Northampton Goal scored by Cody McDonald from deep inside the penalty box to the bottom left corner of the goal. Gillingham 1-0 Northampton.
30:36 Foul by Ryan Gilligan on Andy Barcham, free kick awarded. Matthew Lawrence takes the direct free kick.
30:36 Booking Booking for Ryan Gilligan for unsporting behaviour.
28:37 Cody McDonald takes a shot. Save made by Chris Dunn.
26:56 Free kick awarded for a foul by John Johnson on Andy Barcham. John Nutter takes the direct free kick.
26:20 Unfair challenge on John Nutter by Courtney Herbert results in a free kick. Alan Julian takes the free kick.
25:38 Cody McDonald has a shot on goal from outside the box which misses right.
21:45 Abdul Osman challenges Danny Jackman unfairly and gives away a free kick. Danny Jackman takes the direct free kick.
20:06 Michael Jacobs produces a right-footed shot from just outside the area that goes harmlessly over the bar.
18:48 Effort on goal by Nathaniel Wedderburn from deep inside the area goes harmlessly over the bar.
18:02 Danny Spiller concedes a free kick for a foul on Liam Davis. Chris Dunn takes the direct free kick.
15:39 Foul by Michael Jacobs on Barry Fuller, free kick awarded. Free kick taken by Alan Julian.
13:35 Foul by Kevin Maher on Nathaniel Wedderburn, free kick awarded. Free kick taken by Liam Davis.
12:16 Ryan Gilligan gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on Danny Spiller. Direct effort from the free kick comes in from
Danny Jackman.
11:08 Curtis Weston fouled by Ben Tozer, the ref awards a free kick. Danny Spiller crosses the ball in from the free kick, clearance
by John Johnson.
9:12 Free kick awarded for a foul by Abdul Osman on Danny Spiller. Barry Fuller takes the direct free kick.
8:12 Foul by Kevin Maher on Andrew Holt, free kick awarded. Michael Jacobs delivers the ball from the free kick right-footed from
left channel, Chris Dunn makes a save.
7:35 Danny Spiller produces a right-footed shot from deep inside the area which goes wide of the left-hand post.
3:04 Curtis Weston concedes a free kick for a foul on Abdul Osman. Ben Tozer takes the direct free kick.
2:19 Curtis Weston takes a shot. Save by Chris Dunn.
0:51 Kevin Maher concedes a free kick for a foul on Michael Jacobs. Direct free kick taken by Dean Beckwith.
0:00 The match begins.
Live text and data provided by The Press Association.
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