Happy Birthday to former Gills striker... | Vital Football

Happy Birthday to former Gills striker...

Ken was probably one of Gillingham's most feared strikers.Opponents would not only have a striker with a more than decent scoring record to attend with Ken would bully Goalkeepers and defenders alike in a way you would not get away with today.Certainly a villain if he was playing against you .Ken feared nobody it seemed .Not the biggest of Gillingham centre forwards but quite possibly the toughest. He had a decent partnership with Danny Westwood who was almost the complete opposite in many ways.I can't say that he is one of my all time favourites but if picked to play in goal against a all time Gillingham X1 I think the the one person I would not want to see on the team sheet was our Ken.For me that says it all.
 
Saw him play at Hull in a 0-0 draw. Pre match a friend and I had a friendly wager on how many minutes would elapse before Price got booked. We both lost by a mile. The first aerial challenge after KO saw Ken try to back head the centre half and then tread on him, the ref didn't hesitate.
 
My clearest memory of him was away at Northampton when he was carried off injured. He's been his usual combative self and the home fans were revelling in him being injured and taken off.
 
Colburn said:
Those 2 goals at home against Shrewsbury (1979?) I was convinced we were going up
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In my top 5 best ever Gills games, that one. That first Price goal on about 85 minutes was something else - swivelled and put it in the far top corner from about 20 yards. I was right behind it in the old Gordon Rd "stand". 14,000 Gills fans went mental. We'd have gone up if we hadn't blown a two goal lead at Colchester shortly after.
 
I was only 8 at the time, but I think I was at that Shrewsbury game. All I can really remember is the pitch invasion at the end and my brother explaining that we were almost certainly getting promoted.

My first Gills games were that season. It wasn't easy to see much of the pitch from the front of the old Rainham End where you're eight, but my two favourite players were Ron Hillyard when Gills were attacking the Town End and Ken Price in the second half.
 
Colburn said:
Those 2 goals at home against Shrewsbury (1979?) I was convinced we were going up
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Exactly the same for me too Colburn. Still gobsmacked that we never went up. Obviously the infamous game at Swindon straight after and then chucking a 2 goal lead at Colchester did for us.

Final table -

Shrewsbury 61
Watford 60
Swansea 60
Gills 59
Swindon 57

1 win between 1st and 4th. What a season that was.

Happy Birthday Ken 👍
 
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