#goalkeepers

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MONTERREY, MEXICO – The electric atmosphere crackled like a summer storm as two titans of international football, the Netherlands and Morocco, locked horns in a World Cup Round of 16 clash that promised fireworks. At the half-time whistle, the scoreboard stubbornly remained blank, yet the narrative woven across the Estadio BBVA Bancomer pitch was anything but barren. This wasn’t merely a…

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When Gillingham announced there release / retain list on Sunday 3rd Of May, Goalkeepers Glenn Morris and Jake Turner were announced as players leaving the football club following the expiration of there contracts, now there was an announcement the day before Gillingham’s 1-0 home win against Shrewsbury Town That Experienced Goalkeeper Glenn Morris was leaving Gillingham Football Club at the end of the season. It was an announcement which saw many Gillingham Supporters sad to see Glenn Morris leave the football club, and prior to kick off, Glenn Morris got a great reception from Gillingham Supporters inside Priestfield Stadium, and it just seemed fitting that in his final appearance for Gillingham, Glenn Morris kept a clean sheet which earned Gillingham a 1-0 home win against Shrewsbury Town. Glenn Morris also earned The Man Of The Match Award with many saves in goal on the final day of the season as well.

And for the first time since the 2021 / 2022 season, Gillingham go into next season needing to sign two new goalkeepers, Because Glenn Morris and Jake Turner have been Gillingham’s two senior goalkeepers at the football club since the start of the 2022 / 2023 season, and Glenn Morris leaves Gillingham as a fans favourite, and a goalkeeper who is highly respected amongst Gillingham Supporters, so whoever comes in as Gillingham’s New Number One Goalkeeper has some big gloves to fill, but when it came to conversation’s regarding goalkeeper’s for next season, there seemed to be a general consensus amongst the fanbase that Gillingham needed to sign a high quality experienced number one goalkeeper to be Gillingham’s new number one, and had Glenn Morris remained at Gillingham as our understudy goalkeeper, supporters would certainly have been pleased with that scenario, but Gareth Ainsworth has opted to release both Jake Turner and Glenn Morris and look to strengthen the goalkeeping department for next season.

And a quick word on Jake Turner, there have certainly been impressive goalkeeping performances from Jake Turner which needed to be highlighted and complemented, the 1-0 away win against Bristol Rovers with that incredible save right at the end of the match, an exceptional goalkeeping performance away against Brentford in The League Cup which Gillingham won on penalties, the superb goalkeeping performance away against Stockport County on the opening day of the 2023 / 2024 season away at Edgeley Park, But Jake Turner needs to be a number one goalkeeper for his next club and play competitive first team football on a week in, week out basis.

Below, I will be looking at three possible goalkeeper signings who Gillingham can look to sign to be our new number one goalkeeper, and two goalkeepers who Gillingham can look at possibly signing to be our new second choice goalkeeper, so here is my list of five possible goalkeeper signings for Gillingham Football Club……

FIRST CHOICE GOALKEEPERS

ONE - CONNOR RIPLEY - Connor Ripley signed a new two year contract at Swindon Town last year, so if Gillingham were considering signing Connor Ripley to be our new number one goalkeeper heading into the start of The 2026 / 2027 Season, Gillingham will have to agree a transfer fee with Swindon Town to secure Connor Ripley’s signature.

But if Gillingham were to sign Connor Ripley, what type of goalkeeper would Gillingham be signing should Ripley be signed as Gillingham’s New Number One ??? - Well, In The 2025 / 2026 Season, Connor Ripley kept fifteen clean sheets for Swindon Town as Swindon Town narrowly missed out on a playoff position in League Two, Connor Ripley made 117 saves with a 67.2% save percentage in League Two, and Connor Ripley started every league game for Swindon Town and played every minute in every league game, that’s 4140 minutes in forty six league games as a frame of reference, because I am sure that one thing most Gillingham Supporters will be looking at when it comes to transfer rumours for any incoming signings is the number of minutes, and the number of appearances that each player has played throughout the 2025 / 2026 season, so clearly, Connor Ripley has been the perfect professional footballer and looked after himself well on the training ground.

Also, Connor Ripley stands at a good height for a goalkeeper, 6’3’, an experienced goalkeeper at the age of thirty three, has played for Swindon Town in League Two and will know precisely what he is stepping into if Gillingham were to sign Ripley, so there is no adjustment to the division required, and when it comes to vital saves in crucial moments in matches, Connor Ripley is capable of making those types of important saves which wins team’s matches 1-0 when you have been under the cosh defensively, all in all, Connor Ripley would be a decent signing for Gillingham as our new number one.

TWO - OLLIE WRIGHT - The Southampton Goalkeeper has had a very successful loan spell with Accrington Stanley In League Two, achieving twelve clean sheets in forty three league games for A Accrington Stanley side who finished in sixteenth position in League Two In The 2025 / 2026 Season, And Ollie Wright made 118 saves with a 69.3% save percentage, and Ollie Wright saved three penalties in goal for Accrington Stanley as well.

Now Connor Ripley was my pick as The Experienced League Two Goalkeeper at the age of thirty three, but if Gillingham wanted to sign a younger goalkeeper to be our new number one, but a younger goalkeeper who has already had first team experience at League Two Level, then at the age of twenty three, Ollie Wright could be signed more as a longer term option and someone who could be Gillingham’s Number One Goalkeeper for many season’s to come.

THREE - NATHAN BAXTER - Now, could Gillingham tempt a goalkeeper who is understudy goalkeeper at A Championship Football Club to drop down to League Two and be Gillingham’s Number One Goalkeeper, now, there is one goalkeeper I am going to mention here who could have been the ideal goalkeeper for this scenario, and that goalkeeper is Birmingham City Goalkeeper Ryan Allsop, who was Gareth Ainsworth’s Number One Goalkeeper at Wycombe Wanderers when Wycombe Wanderers were promoted into The Championship, however, Ryan Allsop has just singed a new contract with Birmingham City, and he is also A Birmingham City Supporter.

So I have been looking at the appearance stats for goalkeepers in The Championship this season, and Nathan Baxter has made eight appearances in goal for Watford During The 2025 / 2026 Season, and the question which would be fair to ask is, only eight appearances!!!!! why should Gillingham sign Baxter ??? - It’s a fair question, but Gillingham would be talking to A Championship Standard second choice goalkeeper and looking to sign that goalkeeper to be our number one, and Nathan Baxter is also twenty seven years old, so experienced, and also approaching his prime years as a goalkeeper.

Because I was looking at other goalkeepers on this list, and you had the likes of Alex McCarthy, 36, Ben Hamer, 38, and Richard O’Donnell 37, all very experienced goalkeepers, but goalkeepers who perhaps are happy to provide experienced goalkeeping cover when they are needed to be called upon in an emergency, where as Nathan Baxter is experienced as a goalkeeper, but Gillingham could tempt Baxter to come to Priestfield Stadium and sign for Gillingham in League Two as our new number one goalkeeper ???

And this is a signing, or, the type of signing that Gillingham need to make, can Gillingham convince A Championship Standard Goalkeeper with experience to come to Gillingham as our established number one goalkeeper, and the key for me goalkeeper wise next season is this, sign two goalkeepers who are clearly defined as our number one and number two goalkeepers, don’t sign two goalkeepers of similar standard and they battle it out for number one, not for me, I think Gillingham have got to sign a top quality goalkeeper as our number one goalkeeper, and that goalkeeper could be Nathan Baxter, it could be Ollie Wright or Connor Ripley, or maybe it will be someone entirely different who Gillingham sign as our new number one goalkeeper, but whoever the back up goalkeeper Gillingham sign, has got to be a goalkeeper who knows before signing for Gillingham that they are signed to be second choice goalkeeper, and if Nathan Baxter signed for Gillingham, Baxter is signed as Gillingham’s New Number One.

BACK UP GOALKEEPERS

BEN AMOS - Ben Amos has been released by Port Vale at the end of his contract, and the thirty six year old goalkeeper was mostly an understudy goalkeeper for Port Vale throughout the 2025 / 2026 season, making thirteen appearances in all competitions, and Ben Amos would provide Gillingham with an reliable, experienced back up goalkeeper to whoever Gillingham are looking to sign as our new number one goalkeeper.

Because your second choice goalkeeper needs to realise that they are signing to be second choice and that game-time is going to be limited throughout the season, but when an opportunity to play presents itself, then your ready to play for the first team, and Ben Amos has played for the likes of Bolton Wanderers, Charlton Athletic, Wigan Athletic, Millwall, and Cardiff City, all clubs who have played in League One and The Championship in recent season’s, and Ben Amos would bring a lot of experience if he were to sign for Gillingham Football Club this summer.

HARRISON MALE - The York City Goalkeeper has kept an incredible thirty eight clean sheets in ninety eight matches, and I am very surprised to see Harrison Male released by York City given that he is a highly regarded goalkeeper and one of the best goalkeeper’s in non league football, the twenty five year old goalkeeper was York City’s Number One Goalkeeper, and having played such an important role in getting York City promoted into The Football League, surely, Harrison Male will want to sign for A Football League Club in the summer and be playing League Two Football next season.

I think Harrison Male could do something similar to what Alan Julian did when Alan Julian signed for Gillingham from Stevenage, and Alan Julian learned from the experience of Simon Royce and was understudy goalkeeper in his first season at the football club before earning himself the number one goalkeeper position at Gillingham for the 2009 / 2010 season, and maybe Harrison Male could so something like that, learn from a very experienced number one goalkeeper and Gillingham sign a top quality first choice goalkeeper, and Harrison Male will be second choice goalkeeper, start in goal for Gillingham in League Cup and Football League Trophy Games, but gain valuable knowledge learning from a more experienced goalkeeper.

Also, should Harrison Male sign for Gillingham, then we would have the slightly amusing situation of Harrison Male, Sam Gale and Ronan Hale all playing for Gillingham with rhyming surnames.

The Czech Republic stopper was taken off after just 17 minutes in the Champions League Former Tottenham stopper Joe Hart has criticised head coach Igor Tudor following his handling of goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky during a difficult Champions League debut on Tuesday night. The young goalkeeper was handed his first start since October and his first appearance in the competition, but the evening…

Football: if sport called FOOTball why HANDS better? Probably daydreams during half of the game. Liked eating grass as a kid.

Handball: should have gone into gymnastics. Definitely has broken fingers. Is a kid trying to get the attention of a friend they just spotted across the street.