2002–03 Gillingham F.C. season
# 2002–03 Gillingham F.C. season

During the 2002–03 English football season, Gillingham F.C. competed in the Football League First Division.

## Season summary

Gillingham topped the table after three matches, but that would be as good as it got for the Kent side. They were within a shout of the playoffs as late as March, but a run of three wins from their last thirteen (two of those wins came in the final three games) saw their slim promotion hopes quashed, although the final 11th place was Gillingham's highest ever in the Football League.

In the FA Cup, Gillingham earned a 1–1 home draw against Premiers League Leeds United in the fourth round, before losing 2–1 in the replay at Elland Road. This would be the scoreline that saw Gillingham knocked out of the League Cup too, against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

## Kit

Gillingham continued to manufacture their team kits under their own brand, while French ferry company SeaFrance remained kit sponsors. The kit was essentially the same as that worn the previous season, except that the collar had been changed, to a v-neck shape with a red band.

## Final league table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 9 | Millwall | 46 | 19 | 9 | 18 | 59 | 69 | −10 | 66 |
| 10 | Wimbledon | 46 | 18 | 11 | 17 | 76 | 73 | +3 | 65 |
| 11 | Gillingham | 46 | 16 | 14 | 16 | 56 | 65 | −9 | 62 |
| 12 | Preston North End | 46 | 16 | 13 | 17 | 68 | 70 | −2 | 61 |
| 13 | Watford | 46 | 17 | 9 | 20 | 54 | 70 | −16 | 60 |

## Results

Gillingham's score comes first

### Legend

| Win | Draw | Loss |
| - | - | - |

### Football League First Division

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 10 August 2002 | Wimbledon | A | 1–0 | 2,476 | Ipoua |
| 13 August 2002 | Derby County | H | 1–0 | 8,775 | Shaw |
| 17 August 2002 | Millwall | H | 1–0 | 7,543 | Ipoua |
| 24 August 2002 | Norwich City | A | 0–1 | 20,588 | |
| 26 August 2002 | Preston North End | H | 1–1 | 7,785 | Saunders |
| 31 August 2002 | Leicester City | A | 0–2 | 30,067 | |
| 7 September 2002 | Portsmouth | H | 1–3 | 8,717 | James |
| 14 September 2002 | Brighton & Hove Albion | A | 4–2 | 6,733 | Shaw (2), Perpetuini, James |
| 18 September 2002 | Nottingham Forest | A | 1–4 | 16,073 | Hessenthaler |
| 21 September 2002 | Sheffield United | H | 1–1 | 7,497 | Shaw |
| 29 September 2002 | Crystal Palace | A | 2–2 | 15,699 | Perpetuini, Mullins (own goal) |
| 5 October 2002 | Coventry City | H | 0–2 | 7,722 | |
| 12 October 2002 | Rotherham United | A | 1–1 | 6,094 | Wallace |
| 19 October 2002 | Watford | H | 3–0 | 8,728 | Sidibe, Ipoua, James |
| 26 October 2002 | Ipswich Town | A | 1–0 | 24,176 | Sidibe |
| 29 October 2002 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | 0–4 | 10,036 | |
| 2 November 2002 | Grimsby Town | A | 1–1 | 5,715 | Saunders |
| 9 November 2002 | Reading | H | 0–1 | 8,511 | |
| 16 November 2002 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 1–1 | 8,028 | T Johnson |
| 23 November 2002 | Walsall | A | 0–1 | 6,630 | |
| 30 November 2002 | Stoke City | H | 1–1 | 8,150 | Shaw |
| 7 December 2002 | Bradford City | A | 3–1 | 10,711 | King (2, 1 pen), Wallace |
| 14 December 2002 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 2–0 | 17,715 | Wallace, Smith |
| 21 December 2002 | Burnley | H | 4–2 | 7,905 | Wallace, Smith (2), King |
| 26 December 2002 | Millwall | A | 2–2 | 10,947 | Saunders, King (pen) |
| 11 January 2003 | Derby County | A | 1–1 | 22,769 | Ipoua |
| 18 January 2003 | Leicester City | H | 3–2 | 8,609 | Shaw, Elliott (own goal), Sidibe |
| 1 February 2003 | Preston North End | A | 0–3 | 12,121 | |
| 10 February 2003 | Reading | A | 1–2 | 11,030 | Wallace |
| 15 February 2003 | Grimsby Town | H | 3–0 | 7,158 | Wallace (2), Hope |
| 22 February 2003 | Portsmouth | A | 0–1 | 19,521 | |
| 25 February 2003 | Norwich City | H | 1–0 | 7,935 | Wallace |
| 1 March 2003 | Brighton & Hove Albion | H | 3–0 | 9,178 | Shaw, T Johnson (pen), Southall |
| 4 March 2003 | Nottingham Forest | H | 1–4 | 7,277 | Wallace |
| 11 March 2003 | Wimbledon | H | 3–3 | 7,884 | Shaw (2), Wallace |
| 15 March 2003 | Rotherham United | H | 1–1 | 7,284 | Wallace |
| 18 March 2003 | Watford | A | 1–0 | 10,492 | Shaw |
| 22 March 2003 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 0–6 | 25,171 | |
| 25 March 2003 | Sheffield United | A | 2–2 | 15,799 | Osborn, Shaw |
| 29 March 2003 | Ipswich Town | H | 1–3 | 8,508 | Smith |
| 5 April 2003 | Stoke City | A | 0–0 | 12,746 | |
| 12 April 2003 | Walsall | H | 0–1 | 6,972 | |
| 19 April 2003 | Burnley | A | 0–2 | 14,031 | |
| 21 April 2003 | Bradford City | H | 1–0 | 6,281 | Shaw |
| 26 April 2003 | Coventry City | A | 0–0 | 14,795 | |
| 4 May 2003 | Crystal Palace | H | 2–1 | 9,315 | Nosworthy (2) |

### FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| R3 | 7 January 2003 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 4–1 | 6,434 | King (2, 1 pen), Ipoua, Hope |
| R4 | 25 January 2003 | Leeds United | H | 1–1 | 11,093 | Sidibe |
| R4R | 4 February 2003 | Leeds United | A | 1–2 | 29,359 | Ipoua |

### League Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| R1 | 10 September 2002 | Torquay United | A | 1–0 | 1,981 | Hessenthaler |
| R2 | 1 October 2002 | Stockport County | A | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | 2,396 | Ipoua, T Johnson |
| R3 | 6 November 2002 | Chelsea | A | 1–2 | 28,033 | King |

## Squad

    Squad at end of season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| - | - | - | - |
| 1 | GK | ENG | Vince Bartram |
| 3 | DF | ENG | Roland Edge |
| 4 | MF | ENG | Paul Smith |
| 5 | DF | ENG | Barry Ashby |
| 7 | DF | ENG | Nyron Nosworthy |
| 8 | MF | ENG | Andy Hessenthaler (player-manager) |
| 9 | FW | ENG | Marlon King |
| 10 | FW | CMR | Guy Ipoua |
| 11 | MF | ENG | Ty Gooden |
| 12 | MF | ENG | Paul Shaw |
| 13 | GK | WAL | Jason Brown |
| 14 | MF | ENG | Leon Johnson |
| 15 | MF | ENG | Mark Saunders |
| 16 | DF | ENG | Richard Rose |
| 17 | FW | ENG | Akwasi Fobi-Edusei |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 18 | DF | ENG | Chris Hope |
| 19 | FW | ENG | Rod Wallace |
| 20 | FW | ENG | Kevin James |
| 21 | MF | ENG | Simon Osborn |
| 22 | MF | ENG | Danny Spiller |
| 23 | FW | ENG | Tommy Johnson |
| 24 | MF | ENG | Michael Phillips |
| 25 | GK | ENG | Danny Knowles |
| 26 | DF | ENG | David Perpetuini |
| 27 | FW | GHA | Jones Awuah |
| 28 | MF | WAL | Andrew Crofts |
| 29 | FW | MLI | Mamady Sidibe |
| 30 | DF | ENG | Nicky Southall |
| 31 | MF | ENG | Jon Wallis |
| 37 | FW | ENG | Stuart Latham |

### Left club during season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| - | - | - | - |
| 2 | DF | ENG | Mark Patterson (retired) |
| 6 | DF | ENG | Guy Butters (to Brighton and Hove Albion) |
| 14 | MF | WAL | Marcus Browning (to Bournemouth) |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 16 | DF | ENG | Richard Rose (on loan to Bristol Rovers) |
| 17 | DF | ENG | Adrian Pennock (to Gravesend & Northfleet) |
| 25 | DF | ENG | Ben White (to Gravesend & Northfleet) |
| 37 | FW | ENG | Stuart Latham Retired at the end of the season |

## Transfers

### In

* Leon Johnson - Southend United, free, 2002
* Rod Wallace - Bolton Wanderers, free, June 2002
* Mamady Sidibe - Swansea City, free, 7 August 2002
