Gillingham Till I Die: A Lifetime of Football with David Garth

For some football supporters, following a club is a hobby. For others, it becomes part of who they are.

For David Garth, it has been both.

Born in Gravesend and now retired after a career as a mortgage broker, David remains very much involved in the game he loves. Today, he serves as Media Officer for the Gillingham FC Supporters’ Club, continuing a relationship with the club that stretches back more than six decades.

His love affair with The Gills began as a 10-year-old boy in 1964 — and he has never really looked back.

Falling in love with The Gills

David has loved football for as long as he can remember.

“The fact that I could both watch and take part was always appealing,” he recalls. “But it was the atmosphere of watching games at Priestfield that really captured my heart.”

His earliest memory remains vivid. In early 1964, his father took him to see Gillingham beat Oxford United 2-0.

“I was 10 years old,” David says. “The attendance was well over 10,000 and when we scored it was fantastic.”

That day was the beginning of something that would last a lifetime.

David started attending more and more games whenever his father could take him, and the connection with the club grew stronger with every visit.

There was something special about watching football live in those days — particularly the closeness between supporters and players.

“You could get really close to the players who seemed far more ‘real’ than watching the teams and players on the television.”

For David, Priestfield wasn’t simply somewhere to watch football. It was where football became real.

Heroes in blue

Choosing an all-time favourite Gillingham player isn’t easy for David.

His first hero was left winger Gordon Pulley, who wore the number 11 shirt and, in David’s words, “seemed jet propelled” during those early years.

But another player left an equally lasting impression.

Alan Wilks — affectionately known to everyone as “Arthur” — arrived from QPR and quickly became a firm favourite.

“He was a real character,” David remembers. “Long, shaggy hair and beard, who had great skill and created many chances for his fellow forwards.”

Wilks was also an important member of the Gillingham side that won promotion in 1974, adding another memorable chapter to David’s long list of Gills memories.

Eight, ten… and a lot of goals

Ask David about the greatest match he has ever seen and the answer isn’t one game.

It’s two.

The opening weeks of the 1987/88 season provided an extraordinary couple of afternoons for Gillingham supporters.

Tony Cascarino had just been sold to Millwall, leaving concerns over where the goals would come from.

Those concerns didn’t last long.

First came an astonishing 8-1 victory over Southend United at Priestfield, with Stevie Lovell scoring four goals.

Then, just a week later, Gillingham went one better.

They demolished Chesterfield 10-0.

Two matches. Eighteen Gillingham goals.

It’s difficult to imagine a better answer to the question: “Who’s going to score the goals?”

A day that meant everything

Among all the memories accumulated over decades of supporting Gillingham, one stands above the rest for David for deeply personal reasons.

The 2009 Playoff victory over Shrewsbury Town.

Gillingham won 1-0, securing promotion, but for David the day was about far more than football.

He treated his father to a surprise meal in the Bobby Moore Restaurant before the match. Afterwards, they sat right next to the players’ steps, giving them a wonderful view of the celebrations as Gillingham lifted the trophy.

It was a moment they could share together.

And, sadly, it became an especially precious memory.

“It turned out to be Dad’s last-ever game watching the team in person as ill-health prevented him watching the team after this game.”

Football has a remarkable ability to attach itself to our most important memories — the people we share it with, the places we visit and the moments we experience together.

For David, that playoff victory will forever be about both Gillingham and his dad.

A header that made history

There is another match that David will never forget.

The 2000 playoff final against Wigan Athletic.

Gillingham eventually secured a thrilling 3-2 victory and, in doing so, achieved promotion to the second tier of English football for the first time in the club’s history.

The decisive moment came deep into extra time.

Andy Thomson launched himself at the ball and produced the diving header that sent Gillingham supporters into unforgettable scenes of celebration.

“There’s so many!” David says when asked about moments he will never forget. “If I have to pick one, then it won’t be a surprise if I say it was the wonderful diving header by Andy Thomson deep in extra time that secured a thrilling 3-2 win over Wigan Athletic in 2000.”

For a Gills supporter, it doesn’t get much more dramatic than that.

More than a football club

So what is it about supporting Gillingham that makes it so special?

For David, it’s the emotions.

“It’s a combination of the hope, the joy, the humour and even the tears as we all experience so many emotions week in, week out.”

That’s perhaps the best description of football fandom.

You don’t simply turn up, watch 90 minutes and go home. You hope. You celebrate. You suffer. You laugh. You argue. You dream.

And you do it together.

“Being a Gills’ fan is a way of life,” David says. “It gets to you, it’s in your blood: Gillingham till I die!”

A journey back to 1893

If David could travel through time and watch one match in Gillingham’s history, his choice would be a fascinating one.

He’d go all the way back to the beginning.

That was when New Brompton played Woolwich Arsenal in the club’s first-ever game.

For someone who has spent more than 60 years following the club, seeing that very first match would provide the ultimate connection with Gillingham’s history.

From New Brompton to The Gills of today, David has witnessed an extraordinary amount of the club’s story.

Why football matters

What makes football different from every other sport?

David doesn’t hesitate.

“It’s just the best team sport ever. The passion is second to none.”

And if you’ve never experienced football as a supporter, David has some simple advice.

“Get down to watch your local side.”

Because football isn’t just about the players on the pitch.

“It’s a tribal thing: our club, our pride, our passion.”

For David Garth, those words aren’t simply a description of football.

They are a description of a lifetime.

A lifetime that began with a 10-year-old boy standing among more than 10,000 supporters at Priestfield, watching Gillingham beat Oxford United.

More than six decades later, he’s still there.

Still supporting.

Still remembering.

Still hoping.

Still proud.

Gillingham till I die.