Gillingham’s Bradley Dack believes the players, rather than manager Gareth Ainsworth, must shoulder the blame for the collapse of their League Two season.
The Gills, who topped the table in September, are now 16th and surrendered a half-time lead against Bristol Rovers on Saturday to lose 2-1 – their fourth consecutive defeat and seventh in the past nine games.
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“The manager’s got nothing to do with the second goal – that’s us as a team, a collective,” midfielder Dack told BBC Radio Kent. “We had this last season, almost a carbon copy and it shows we haven’t grown.
“He always said it was a two-year plan and I know he’d have liked to be more successful this season, but I think he needs time.
“The club’s had a track record of going through managers and I think at this point everyone knows it’s probably the playing squad that needs changing.
“Everyone should be playing for next year – that’s what I’m doing. I’m not guaranteed to get another contract here next season, so I’m playing for my livelihood.”
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Dack has scored 38 goals in 160 league games for Gillingham, the majority of them in League One before moving on to Blackburn and Sunderland and eventually returning to Priestfield in 2024.
The 32-year-old, who is Gills’ top scorer this season with seven goals, added: “I’ve been in a team at this club that’s been successful, so I know what it takes and we don’t have it right now.
“The fans have every right to be angry, but we need them because that’s the only way I can see us getting out of this and trying to play for a bit of pride.”
Gillingham are next in action at 21st-placed Crawley Town on Saturday, 28 March (15:00 GMT).
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