Michael Ingham milestone as York City hold Gillingham

11:47pm Tuesday 12th February 2013 in Sport

GOALKEEPER Michael Ingham claimed the 100th clean sheet of his York City career in a 0-0 draw with Gillingham.

The Bootham Crescent stalemate steadied the ship for the Minstermen, who had conceded four goals in back-to-back npower League Two games against Morecambe and Wycombe.

With second-from-bottom Aldershot losing 2-1 at Morecambe, Gary Mills' men moved one place and one point further away from the drop zone.

Striker Michael Rankine proved a handful on his return to City on loan from Aldershot, while fellow loan signing John McGrath impressed in a much-changed home line-up.

Jon Challinor was recalled at right-back for a rare start, but his evening was ended early by an injury in the 76th minute, while Ashley Chambers lasted 80 minutes as he stepped up his comeback from surgery.

The hosts had the better of the few first-half chances, with Rankine going close with a header from a corner, while Gillingham's Charlie Lee struck the crossbar from outside the box in the second period.

City go into Saturday's home clash with struggling Barnet in 17th place, eight points above the relegation zone.

Comments(33)

GreenshawGrinder says...
12:17am Wed 13 Feb 13

Much more like it tonight, that was a big point and a much improved performance. A game of few chances, i thought the draw was a fair result. Pity about the low crowd but understandable after recent results. Both Rankine and McGrath had good games. The team seemed to be up for it tonight and the crowd responded. A point gained!

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tips says...
12:18am Wed 13 Feb 13

This was so much better than previous home performances , those that stayed away on a cold night missed a real treat .More performances like this and we will pull away from danger.
Welcome back Michael Rankine you were immense !!! and a word for Danny Parslow too ...superb

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legend7 says...
12:25am Wed 13 Feb 13

not a bad result but mills is still not the right man to take us forward!

WE NEED TO CHANGE NOW. SACK GARY MILLS!!!!!

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Yorkalltheway1 says...
12:38am Wed 13 Feb 13

I would more say the ones that stayed away saved there money again! We defended well but going forward can't think of a clear chance! Bringing rankine back just brought us to hoof the ball more, and even if he won a header there was no1 round him to pick it up anyway! We need to change the formation every1 2nd time round is wise to the way we play now!

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John New says...
12:39am Wed 13 Feb 13

Give the guy a break legend7. He gets us a point and you want him sacked. Even if he is the wrong bloke now is the wrong time - during December perhaps make a change (although not my recommendation) so someone would be in whilst the window was open.

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yorkonafork says...
12:39am Wed 13 Feb 13

legend7 wrote:
not a bad result but mills is still not the right man to take us forward!

WE NEED TO CHANGE NOW. SACK GARY MILLS!!!!!
Haha, unlucky you creep.

Both new signings happened to put a good shift in tonight as well. You must be gutted.

:D

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cityforthepremier says...
12:40am Wed 13 Feb 13

legend7 wrote:
not a bad result but mills is still not the right man to take us forward!

WE NEED TO CHANGE NOW. SACK GARY MILLS!!!!!
Your getting boring now, great performance from the lads! We're not going down, quiet on here tonight where's all the muppets now?

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openallhours says...
12:42am Wed 13 Feb 13

legend7 wrote:
not a bad result but mills is still not the right man to take us forward!

WE NEED TO CHANGE NOW. SACK GARY MILLS!!!!!
Steady on, you'll give some people a heart attack with comments like that! Although tonight was a great improvement, the crowd and the score don't lie. Yet again we've dropped points at home and lots of fans are choosing not to come. Well done to Ingham for his achievement and hopefully many more clean sheets to come.

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legend7 says...
12:42am Wed 13 Feb 13

John New wrote:
Give the guy a break legend7. He gets us a point and you want him sacked. Even if he is the wrong bloke now is the wrong time - during December perhaps make a change (although not my recommendation) so someone would be in whilst the window was open.
now is the perfect time, lets get a new guy in then he has 10 games to get us to safety, assess the squad and get rid of the crap (parslow, fyfield, johnson etc..) and then he gets the whole of the summer to put his influence to good effect.

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GreenshawGrinder says...
1:16am Wed 13 Feb 13

Luton trolls alive and well!

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YoRkIe59 says...
3:17am Wed 13 Feb 13

As im thousands of miles away perhaps someone who was actually there last night or better still plenty of people who were clarify something for me or maybe i should start with asking was legend actually at the game,or is he just another serial Danny p knocker no matter what he does cos another poster described Parslow as being immense last night.Ok drawing at home against anybody can never be described as a fantastic result but after conceding 8 goals in two games playing against second in the league and at least keeping it clean and yes its another invaluable point.ok sure we really need wins right now,id like to think we can push on and get those 3 points in a huge game on saturday but personally i would certianly have accepted a big nil nil last night,we know playing Rankine is going to result in more than a little hoof it foreward it was his first game back with us,i was dreading being hit by another 3 or four goal beating,only time will tell but at least last night we got things right at one end.it is not an ideal time to be sacking a manager unless you really have no option to suggest so is absoloutley barmy.no one will be thinking after last night everything is great again but its a start.

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redbluelion says...
6:44am Wed 13 Feb 13

much better last night we got a massive point,no more to say then that.im happy.

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bertieb says...
7:16am Wed 13 Feb 13

Much, much better last night. I assume Legend7 wasn't there, as Parslow was superb in central defence, so much better than Chris Smith. Fyfield also had a much improved match.

Rankine tired at the end, but is more suited to 4-3-3 than Walker and McGrath added bite in midfield. A good point, even, dare I say it, a massive point

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duffy says...
7:34am Wed 13 Feb 13

Here we go again with the usual suspects abusing fellow city fans. Time for admin to clamp down I think.

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roobarb85 says...
7:41am Wed 13 Feb 13

Decent point, better performance and confident that this bunch of hired hands will keep us in the league.

The only slight downside is the lack of vision and development. Last summer we'd got out of the Conference playing good footy, we'd all seen what Spain could do and it was great that GM/YCFC were trying to copy this.

My consistent complaint has that the signings that have been made have failed to build and develop the footballing talents of a young team.

Last night we looked like just another mid table bump'n'grind League 2 team. That's great - to keep us in the League - and more power to GM for compromising his beliefs to do it. But when all these short term loanees have gone, I hope we can go back to build on the skills that made last year's team so exciting.

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You're Fired says...
8:03am Wed 13 Feb 13

legend7 wrote:
not a bad result but mills is still not the right man to take us forward!

WE NEED TO CHANGE NOW. SACK GARY MILLS!!!!!
legend7? I'd hate to meet legend's 1-6!!

Vastly improved performance last night. I also disagree that it was ALL hoof ball. We played some decent stuff at times although admittedly we did look to change things up more than in recent times, not a bad thing to have a plan B as many have been calling out for for so long.

Credit to Mills and the players for tactically matching one of the best teams in our league and putting a good shift in.

Play like this for the rest of the season (perhaps a more even balance of long ball and our passing game) and we'll have no problems at all.

I was very worried after Morecambe & Wycombe but the lads have gone a long way to re-assuring me.

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ADAMCUTHBERT says...
8:07am Wed 13 Feb 13

A good point last nite' set's us up nicely for Sat where all three are a must!

McGrath impressed and Rankine gave us that other dimension' reasons to be positive'

COYR

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chalkytalky says...
8:15am Wed 13 Feb 13

I thought that it was a decent performance overall. Rankine put a good shift in and won a lot in the air. He did need support though, and many balls dropped around him with no one to pick them up.
Matty Blair played a blinder and for me was MOTM. Chambers was good first half, seemingly got a bit tired in the second and rightly subbed. Daniel Parslow won most things in the air and was solid enough.
The one thing I noticed from their play was they were pretty direct but not just hit and hoof stuff. Direct to the men up field as they weren't a team of giants.
I actually thought Walker may have had a chance last night as they didn't have huge beasts at the back.
McGrath put in a good showing on debut (apart from his shooting), lets just hope he continues to put them on. Scott Brown had a good debut at Lincoln for us and went down hill rapidly.
I haven't been happy with the football we have been playing, and still do think that we need to look at using 442 at times (occasionally Blair got almost alongside Rankine, and perhaps Chambers could be a good partner for him up there too). A timely clean sheet and a good point, next step has to be 3 points against Barnet.
Lets just hope that this is the corner being turned. One good game does not a season make but after recent results it has to be commended.

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chalkytalky says...
8:17am Wed 13 Feb 13

P.S. Did Ingham leave the one that hit the bar :s PHEW, could've been 99 and counting ;)

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Dave 77 says...
8:19am Wed 13 Feb 13

A much needed clean sheet. Unfortunately no goals at the other end again.
Looking at our fixtures ahead, Port vale, Bradford, Rotherham we may need to park the bus in a few games to get to the magic 50 points!

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cityforthepremier says...
8:38am Wed 13 Feb 13

duffy wrote:
Here we go again with the usual suspects abusing fellow city fans. Time for admin to clamp down I think.
Shame, you've usually got more to say duffy, maybe you would have if we had lost that's usually when you got lots to say, how about well done lads.

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old_school_minsterman says...
8:41am Wed 13 Feb 13

Much better performance!

Great shift by Rankine, really gave their big defenders a tough time and won most headers. Shame there was nobody playing along side him to benefit from his flick on's and hold up play.

Parslow had a good game and McGrath had solid debut, got about and put his foot in. Far more efective than Paddy has been in recent weeks.

Matty Blair was full of effort and running but his final ball and crossing was poor all night. Chambers did ok while still finding is match sharpness ....but how on earth did he get man of the match!? Even Millsy was laughing about it on the radio after the game!

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duffy says...
9:29am Wed 13 Feb 13

cityforthepremier wrote:
duffy wrote: Here we go again with the usual suspects abusing fellow city fans. Time for admin to clamp down I think.
Shame, you've usually got more to say duffy, maybe you would have if we had lost that's usually when you got lots to say, how about well done lads.
Not at all. I post whatever the result and already have on the other thread. But hey dont let the facts get in the way.

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gazlan says...
9:30am Wed 13 Feb 13

Last night was a vast improvement in terms of effort and application. City started at a great tempo with the Gills hardly getting a look in. Considering Rankine has not been getting regular games he certainly made a telling impact. For the first time in acouple of seasons we were a threat at corners, with headers on target for a change. It'll take a while for the team to gell and exploit the new opportunities. Lets hope it starts to come together on Saturday with a win. Pars for me was solid at the back and O' Connels work rate was a great support. High light for me was seeing Fyfield completely skin their right back. Maybe he'll have the courage to do it more often. Lots on show last night to have a little more hope for survival this season. BTW can't help thinking Jason Mcgill is influencing this weeks loans.

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minstermonster says...
9:40am Wed 13 Feb 13

Sack Mills Now !!!!!!!, what an absolute joke. there is no benefit in sacking Gary now, what we need is togetherness, to pull us through. It is not as though we are out of our depth, and languishing at the foot of the table.
Surely this year was all about consolidation. If anybody thought we were going to fly through league 2, they were misguided, league 2 is a tough league.
GM will now have an idea of who can cut it in this league, and what we need to make us more competitive next season.
Lets stick together, be positive in our support, of both team and manager

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redwhiteblue says...
9:48am Wed 13 Feb 13

After the Morecombe & Wycombe games the game against Gillingham looked to be a difficult challenge but we picked ourselves up and showed that we do have the passion, determination and desire to stay in this league. Before the game the majority would have settled for a point - after thirty minutes we were looking for three points. Rankine and McGrath showed there qualities and gave relief to the defence - who I thought were solid and in total control - Danny P - fantastic performance along side O'Connell. After Saturday I would have also rested Kerr and Fyfield - both had good games - just shows how much I know. Sorry to see Chanellor limp out of the game, looked solid and we'll miss him. Finally - as Rankine left the field he clung onto the York City badge on his shirt and showed his passion for the Club - welcome back Michael

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TimYCFC says...
9:55am Wed 13 Feb 13

Great stuff from the lads last night. Big point and was important to stop to rot after the last two games. Admittedly I'd hope to see more chances created at home but Mills set the team not to lose the game rather than to win it which was the correct call given recent results IMO.

I was impressed with McGrath and delighted to see Ranks back. He may not have bags of ability but he's a hard worker and we've missed that in recent times. Not to mention he has goals like this in his locker every now and then ... http://www.youtube.c
om/watch?v=Wn11rhvq1
qE

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Fat Harry says...
9:56am Wed 13 Feb 13

Much improved performance, which gives me renwed hope after Saturday's despair.

Pleased that we finally appear to have a plan B.

One of the most pleasing things though was that the fans got behind the team right from the start.

Now the task is to make sure we beat Barnet on Saturday. Depending how the rest of the season pans out, it could turn out to be a massive six-pointer.

We didn't turn the corner last night, but Saturday has the potential to see us do just that.

COYR

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OLD - HEAD says...
10:19am Wed 13 Feb 13

That was a much better performance by City. Everyone would have settled for a point before last nights game. Rankine had a good return and won many balls in the air. McGrath looks steady in md-field. But Gillingham always looked the most likely team to score and Michael Ingham was nowhere near that shot that hit the bar. We need to be even better on Saturday for we need to beat Barnet and put some daylight between ourselves and them.

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RooBeck says...
10:38am Wed 13 Feb 13

A much improved and wholehearted team performance from us and a much better atmosphere, in spite of the lower gate, in what was a good game. The central pairing of O'Connell and Parslow was very good and though I had my doubts about O'Connell after the Morecambe game, can GM get on to Blackburn sharpish and extend the loan?! McGrath was just what we needed - a bright spark in midfield and it was good to see Scott Kerr upping his game in reponse. Mattie Blair ran his socks off all night and surely he will start getting back on the scoresheet! Though we are still mis-firing in terms of making and taking chances Ranks looks like he will lead the line in a manner where we have a target, someone who can win balls in the air and totally committed to the cause. Gillingham were strong at the back, but with a few more bodies in the box we could have caused them more problems. Looks well set-up for Barnet, where again we must play at a tempo like the first-half last-night and take the game to them. Perhaps, Jason Walker would feed off Michael Rankine and it would be a decent option to see him on Saturday fully fired-up and pairing-up with the Big Guy in a 4-4-2! Finally, all the GM whingers - get off his back and keep the bile to yourselves. You could see after the match that he really cares for this club and he has the managerial skills to lead us out of this recent slump and is the right choice for the future, longer term development of the team.COYR.

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Yorkieroy60 says...
11:29am Wed 13 Feb 13

Nice to have that bit of physicality up front in the familiar frame of Michael Rankine-gives the opposition something to think about-there's nothing worse then being bullied out of games which this season has happened
all to often-it will happen less often with big 'Ranks' about he always gives everything and last night was a good start to his return to the club-good luck Michael - and well done the other Michael Mr. Ingham on his 100th clean sheet for the club-hope there's a lot more to come!

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yorkiemike says...
12:03pm Wed 13 Feb 13

Yes a good performance when you think half the lads hardly new each other!
Well done to GM for being prepared to change the style of play a bit.Not easy to do when you believe in the passing game.I`m sure we`ll get back to that once we get some daylight between us and the bottom.
Some really good games coming up let`s hope the attendances pick up and we get behind the team as last night.

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Budgie says...
3:33pm Wed 13 Feb 13

Much better,good draw at last Mills has woken up to see we need a big striker who can put himself about,pity it has taken over half a season to wake up to the fact. Rankine, I do not feel is long term but my he will do for now.Chambers M.O.M, not for me O'Connell and Parslow were outstanding.The support from the crowd was superb. Six pointer on Saturday. Phew.

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