GILLINGHAM v EXETER CITY. 

CITY THREE DOWN AFTER 21 MINUTES:

LOSE 4 - 9!

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17TH 1951.

Exeter City, who met Gillingham at Priestfield Stadium in a League match this afternoon, were three goals down after only 21 minutes of play. First Veck put the Hoppers in front after 9 minutes, and then Doyle put the ball through his own goal in attempting to kick clear a header from Thomas. Three minutes later Lewis put the home side further ahead. At half-time the score was Gillingham 5 Exeter 2. The City had had their first success in the 28th minute of this half when Doyle's misfortune was emulated by Kingsnorth, who headed through his own goal when trying to clear a dangerous cross from Smith. But then Gillingham made it 4-1, Thomas converting Burtenshaw's centre. The City struck again when Smith went through smartly to beat Gage all ends up with an unstoppable shot, and on the stoke of half-time Lewis scored Gillingham's fifth goal. Within two minutes of the resumption Regan scored for Exeter but Thomas immediately struck back for Gillingham. After 14 minutes McGuire got Gillingham's seventh goal, and he added another six minutes later. Lewis then completed his "hat-trick" with Gillingham's ninth goal and Smith got Exeter's fourth, bringing the game's aggregate to thirteen!

Gillingham:- Gage; Marks, Lewin; Boswell, Kingsnorth, Ayres; Burtenshaw, Lewis, Thomas, McGuire, Veck.
Exeter City:- Singleton; Warren, Clark; Harrower, Doyle, Davey; McClelland, Fallon, Smith, Lynn, Regan.

Result:- Gillingham 9 Exeter City 4.

• This is the highest score in a Football League match this season, the previous biggest total being Notts Forest 9 Gillingham 2 at Nottingham.
• Exeter City lost to Notts County in the 1948-49 season by 9 goals to nil.
• Today's total of goals exceeds any previous score in any Football League match played by Exeter City,
• Ten goals (five each) were scored in the match between Bristol Rovers and Exeter City at Eastville in season 1934-35,
•  5 years before that the City defeated Northampton at St James's Park by 6 goals to 4
• Seventeen goals were however scored at Exeter in the Southern Cup competition of 1933-34: Exeter City 11 Crystal Palace 6.
• In 1908-09 season the City beat Weymouth by 14 clear goals in an English Cup qualifying round tie.