Gillingham are in with a chance of claiming the League 2 title with five weeks of the season remaining.

But if they can hold onto top spot just which way will they turn.

Over the last 20 years the winners of the division’s basement division have gone in many different directions afterwards, from euphoric heights to catastrophic collapses.

Some of the winners of recent years have gone onto achieve great success, such as the winners in 2000, Swansea City.

A move into a new stadium coincided with bigger crowds and success on the pitch. Next season they will be playing European football after their Capital One Cup triumph over Bradford.

Twenty years ago it was their South Wales bitter rivals Cardiff City who were tasting the title champagne and it looks like the Premiership is within their sights now as they sit pretty at the top of the Championship table.

Wigan Athletic won that title four years after Cardiff, in a chase for honours that saw fellow Premier League side Fulham finish second.

Brighton have taken their time to reach their full potential - not helped by ground problems - but now in a new home they are chasing a play-off place in the Championship this season and building what is a solid club now at the AMEX.

But while there have been great success stories there have also been some clubs who have failed to make the most of their success.

Poor old Rushden & Diamonds won the league a decade ago but back-to-back relegations saw them drop into the Football Conference before they eventually folded under the weight of crippling debts.

Plymouth Argyle had won the title the year before Rushden and they too have suffered a tale of financial woes. Just two points separate them and the relegation places in League 2.

But for the majority of clubs who have won this League 2 title, they have at least held their own or gone onto bigger and better things.

Chesterfield came straight back down last season but few others have.

Of the last 20 title winners 12 (which includes two wins for Carlisle, in 1995 and 2006) are in League 1 and only two are playing in League 2.

Wigan and Swansea are having contrasting fortunes in the Premier League, while Cardiff and Brighton are both dreaming of reaching the top flight this season.

So for the Gills there is not just a title to aim for but much more. This could be the start of great times ahead. If Mr Scally can get his dream stadium as well, which will boost revenue and crowds, there is a fairly well trodden path to bigger and much better things ahead.

Now with six games left let’s hope the Gills can match what the team of ‘64 and take the title.

IF Saturday’s match gets the green light and avoids the frost it could end up being an historical occasion.

Amazingly the Gills have only ever hit double figures in away wins once before in their history,

That came back in the 1984/85 season under the management of Keith Peacock, where the Gills won 10 and lost 10, while drawing the other three of their away outings.

This season the Gills are already on the nine-win mark, with 10 games left to go, so it’s a near certainty that the record won’t just be beaten - it will be smashed!

That 2009/10 season under Mark Stimson now seems like a long way off, when the Gills failed to win a single game in the road.

So why so good away?

Key to the Gills success on their travels this season has been a solid defence, one that is able to soak up anything thrown at them.

The game at Southend was the perfect example of what’s been going right for the Gills away from home.

Home teams can pile the pressure on as much as they want but with a stone wall to get through, it’s brought in an abundance of points this season.

On the flip side to the Gills’ solid back-line is their ability to hit teams on the break - the old smash and grab routine.

The pace of Myles Weston upfront and those in support, like Whelpdale, Lee and Allen mean that those teams are being punished.

Quite often this season, and as shown in their last two away travels, they’ve got an early goal and teams have just been unable to find an answer back. Gillingham have conceded just nine goals on their travels so far - compared to 14 goals at Priestfield in the same number of games.

To have conceded two sloppy goals last weekend was quite a shock, particularly as winning balls in the air has been one of Gills’ strengths this season. Both goals originated from crosses that should have been defended better.

Rochdale are a team in despair and the Gills could really enjoy themselves if they get an early goal.

The talk from Spotland is that their manager is under a fair bit of pressure and it won’t take much for an already frustrated home crowd to turn against their team.

The covers are on at Rochdale and an army of volunteers are ready for remove the snow on Thursday and Friday. I was told by someone in their office the pitch underneath the covers is “ideal”.

It seems to be an ideal time to play a disheartened Rochdale team and if they do, don’t be surprised to see the Gills bounce back with a bumper win to equal that record set by Peacock and co.

IF you weren’t paying attention on Thursday you missed an awful lot.

Mid-season transfer windows usually come and go with precious little activity at Priestfield.

But the arrival of midfielder Steven Gregory on Wednesday, shortly after defender Leon Legge signed from Brentford, took Martin Allen’s squad size to 31 and something had to give.

Cue the departure of four players, the loan departure of one, with another likely to follow, and three heading for the exit door on potential free transfers.

And all this amid rumours of a major signing to bolster the strike force, even if the manager is staying pretty cool on the subject.

So if you weren’t paying attention, then here’s how we stand after a frantic start to the January transfer window.

Boss Martin Allen was hoping to bring in David Wright from Crystal Palace, on a permanent deal rather than a loan, but the Gills were unable to match the demands from the Championship club and so in came Steven Gregory.

He played in the same AFC Wimbledon team as Danny Kedwell as they returned the original Dons back to the Football League in 2011. Allen stepped up his interest in Gregory after sitting in the stands and watching Gregory captain Wimbledon (while there on loan) during their recent FA Cup game against bitter rivals MK Dons.

And the Gills didn’t even need to part with any cash after Gregory was released by Bournemouth on a free just before Christmas.

Allen saved his players from a miserable Christmas by choosing to wait until the festivities were over before delivering the news to those he felt were not going to make the grade.

Making it as a League 2 players is not enough anymore, as Allen said in Thursday’s press conference.

“Everyone that comes in has got to be able to challenge in League 1,” said the Gills boss.

“There is no point in bringing in squad players. Our young players are coming up to fill those gaps and what comes into the building now has got to be good enough to do it again next season and challenge at the top.

“We are not going there (League 1) to make the numbers up, we aren’t going up there to play around with relegation, we can go up there and smash it again; that’s what we are aiming to do.”

So Allen had the task of telling Tom Brunt, Jack Evans, George Humber and Alex Brown that their futures lie elsewhere. All were released.

“One of them (Tom Brunt) told me it was his birthday when he walked into the blinking office!” said Allen, who described the task as being a “horrible” experience.

Allen had bad news for some of his more experienced pros as well.

Striker Ben Strevens, keeper Ross Flitney and defender Connor Essam have all been made available for free, although all will remain Gills players and the door hasn’t been close on any.

Strevens has four strikers infront of him in the pecking order and, contrary to several rumours, all are set to see the season out for the Gills.

“Those four are staying right the way through to the end of the season,” said the Gills boss.

Flitney started the season injured and there is little chance of shifting Stuart Nelson from the number one spot. But even Allen admitted letting Essam go will be tough.

He knows the defender has massive potential and will slap in a 30% sell-on fee if anyone wants him. He is contracted to the Gills until 2015 and Allen said: “The door is not closed and I would be delighted if he forces his way in to be first choice.”

Two more players face time away from the Gills, but with differing reasons.

Bradley Dack is only 19 and has plenty of potential but Allen was keen to get him some game time so contacted Conference Premier side Braintree to see if they would take him. Their manager Alan Devonshire didn’t have to think long, especially as he has got him for virtually nothing.

And lastly, on a frantic day at Priestfield, it looks as though Lewis Montrose has played his last game for the Gills. His contract expires in the summer and he is set to join another club on loan until the end of the season. The deal has yet to be completed so Allen wanted to destination to remain quiet for now.

So that’s it for now, although those asking about Cody McDonald will be interested to here what Allen had to say, so here you go.

“I don’t really know Cody that well,” said Allen. “I know what a good footballer he is but I don’t know what his situation is at Coventry, I just don’t know.

“My priority has been to get a centre back in place of Tom Flanagan and my priority was to get a central midfield player in the position that David Wright was playing.

“It was like a new signing to give Adam Birchall his (league) debut at Southend. He is like having a new centre forward in so I am not banging Mr Scally’s door down to get a new centre forward.

“With regards to that player I am not specifically saying yes or no but what I will say is that I do ask Mr Scally about players and about how we can improve, what we can do to improve, who can we get to improve us, how much it will cost. When he says no I am fine, we just carry on working.”

It’s been a busy start to the January transfer window and it wouldn’t be a shock if we see a little more action before the end of the month.

THE points total may have slowed down a bit for Gills in recent weeks but with January looming things are surely only going to get better.

There is no question over how much the Gills have missed the presence of David Wright as a calming influence at the back and no doubt he’ll be number one on Martin Allen’s hit list.

The defensive midfielder hasn’t played for Crystal Palace since ending his initial loan spell at the club.

Hopefully when the transfer window opens the Gills and Palace can pick up where they left off with the paperwork and complete a deal that wasn’t done in time when the previous window shut.

Apart from the 2-1 home defeat to Rochdale, the Gills were a tough nut to crack with Wright in the team, conceding just three goals in the seven games he played and winning most of them.

Tom Flanagan is another miss. The Gills have some talented youngsters at the back, in Connor Essam, Callum Davies and now Devante McKain, but Flanagan has something the rest didn’t - experience.

It was such a shame to see him pick up an injury just days after celebrating making his international bow for Northern Ireland’s under-21 side.

Another loan defender with a bit of pace and experience will be a valuable addition to the squad. That’s not to say Davies and co can’t do a job if a newcomer doesn’t arrive.

Perhaps a back-up for Myles Weston wouldn’t harm either. He has been a fantastic free transfer signing for the club but there are few others on the books with his pace and direct approach in attack.

Could Allen also be looking at a back-up in the full-back department. Both Matt Fish and Joe Martin are on four bookings - so likely to face a ban soon - and a versatile and experienced player to rampage up and down the wing wouldn’t be a bad move.

Whatever Martin’s plans, January looks like being an exciting time for the Gills fans. Hopefully the extra players coming in will give them that push to take them up as champions. And to think some people STILL moan!

The Gills seem to have money to burn, now chairman Paul Scally and his fellow directors have wiped out the bank loan that had been like a noose on the club’s neck.

Let’s not pretend the debt has disappeared. Mr Anderson and the fellow directors will want their money back at some point, but better them than owed to a bank who could call in the debt at any time.

The money generated from Matt Jarvis, Paulo Gazzaniga, Luke Rooney and Ryan Bertrand will have given the balance sheet a much better look and helped pay off some of those loans. Maybe it means that stadium move - designed to help wipe the debt clean and generate money away from 3pm on a Saturday - can wait a little longer.

Things are certainly looking good for the Gills, with a man in charge that is desperate for that first promotion and title win on his CV. 

Saturday’s attendance showed that the fan-base is still there so let’s hope the second half of the season sees the Gills push on and make this season an historic one.

Gillingham fans will have more reason than normal to tune in for England’s European Championship qualifier against Wales on Saturday.

The call-up of former Gills youngster Matt Jarvis to Fabio Capello’s England team has been a hot topic this week, and with Gillingham’s game at Cheltenham taking place on Sunday, there could be a bumper audience from Kent watching the match.

Not only could there be a full international debut for Jarvis but another Gills product, Andrew Crofts, will also be involved after winning a regular place back in the Wales set-up.

Both players may have to settle for a place on the bench but an appearance from either will be warmly received in Kent.

And if the Gills did their haggling wisely when Jarvis departed for Wolves there could be some money in it as well. The fee wasn’t disclosed at the time, when Jarvis moved on, although speculation puts it at around £600,000 and the Gills did pocket some cash when Wolves were promoted to the Premier League.

Shortly before the Gills negotiated a settlement for Jarvis in the summer of 2007, chairman Paul Scally declared, "I believe he’ll play for England within the next three or four years."

His vision could be proved correct.

Jarvis at the time was heading for the Championship and soon made a name for himself with the club, helping them to achieve promotion to the top flight in 2009.

Gillingham fans will remember the many times Jarvis had them off their seat, while bombing down the left flank, sending numerous full-backs into meltdown.

There were times when the final ball or shot lacked quality but others when he raised the roof by finishing off a burst of speed with a goal. With quality coaching he has developed what was obvious raw quality into a polished Premier League performer.

I just can’t understand why he wasn’t called up sooner. England have been crying out for a decent left sided player - a proper winger - with natural pace for as long as I can remember.

Jarvis quickly established himself in the Premier League and there is no reason why he can’t do the same at international level. Let’s hope that is the case.

Gills boss Andy Hessenthaler recently said their current academy player Ashley Miller is showing more promise than Jarvis did in his youth so at least it looks as though the production line at Priestfield is still fit and well.