MATT IS LATICS’ OWN SCHOLES
MATT Palmer was compared to the great Paul Scholes after his excellent performance in midfield drove Oldham to an unlikely victory.
Always busy and influential, Palmer’s clever cross led to Timothee Dieng’s backheader, which cancelled out a spectacular Doug Loft opener for Gillingham.
Jonathan Forte then volleyed home from close range to earn Oldham only a second three points on home soil this season – handing the club a big boost in their battle against relegation.
“He is intelligent on the ball and he is not the biggest lad,” Sheridan said of on-loan Burton schemer Palmer.
“He does remind me of Scholes, honestly.
“He would like to get goals like him I am sure, but in the way he plays and his stature he is very good on the ball, can pass it and take that extra touch when needed.”
Had Oldham fan Scholes been present at Boundary Park, he would have been impressed with the way Sheridan’s men dealt with the blow of falling behind against promotion-chasing opponents.
“We thoroughly deserved the result and I can’t ask for any more from the players and the way they went about the game,” Sheridan added.
“There was the disappointment of going a goal behind and against a good team as well.
“Our desire and the way we played on the front foot put them on the back foot and we created chances.
“Fitness levels of people getting up and down the pitch were tremendous.
“It is a brilliant result to come from 1-0 down and get three points, which was the most important thing.”
Daniel Lafferty forced a diving stop from Gills goalkeeper Stuart Nelson early on, before Loft smashed in an unstoppable 35yard drive to hand Justin Edinburgh’s men the advantage.
Curtis Main and Forte also had chances for the home side in the first half, before French centre-back Dieng netted his first goal for Oldham.
Bradley Dack invited a fingertip save from home keeper Joel Coleman before Forte scored from a terrific James Wilson cross.
Oldham also had an Anthony Gerrard goal disallowed for a foul on Nelson and Gillingham failed to find an answer, with the result seeing them drop out of the automatic promotion places.
“I am bitterly disappointed and frustrated,” said Edinburgh, who was robbed of key centre-back John Egan due to a training-ground injury. “We let the game slip away in the second half.
“The conditions were tough for both teams, but you have to be mentally strong to overcome that.
“In the first half, we were everything you want from an away team. But then it all changed. We had to shuffle the pack but it is no excuse, as you could see from the first half it didn’t affect us too much.”