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Gills defender Ian Cox gives his views on the 3-0 win over Port Vale, Manager Ronnie Jepson and his future.


The win was the Gills second in five days at Priestfield and Cox is delighted with the result, he said: "It is a welcome three points. It has been a while since we got back-to-back wins. We needed to continue where we left off on Tuesday. All credit to the boys who applied themselves in the right manner, and the good man above, as we got the three points. It is difficult to say what the changes have been. The new Manager has come in and everyone is trying to prove a point. I think everyone wants to play. The Manager has shuffled things and the boys that have come in, they want to keep their place."

Cox played alongside Ronnie Jepson at Burnley before the current Gills Manager retired and joined the coaching staff at Turf Moor. Cox revealed he always thought Jepson would make a good coach: "Without a shadow of a doubt. I spent two or three years playing with Ronnie at Burnley, and in my last season he was the reserve team coach, and I spent a bit of time in the reserves. He had the potential then, and it is now there for everybody to see. It is still early for people to say that we have turned the corner as there is a long way to go. We have to make sure that come the Bournemouth game next week, we apply ourselves in the right manner."

The win takes the Gills up to 16th in the table and Cox is delighted the Gills are back in the pack: "That is the most important thing. Being down at the bottom and languishing, it is not a nice thing. Back-to-back wins make such a big difference. To get six points in the last two games, it will push us on a bit further up the table."

Neil Harris and Matty Jarvis were the heroes with the three goals and Cox thought they were all fantastic, he said: "I think they were three great goals. We are all happy for the lads. It doesn't matter who scores the goals, we are over the moon. It makes our job easier at the back. All credit to them, as they defended from the front."

The Gills travel to Bournemouth next Saturday, a place where Cox made 209 appearances in four years, and the defender cannot wait for the match, he said: "I am looking forward to it. There are a lot of good people down there and I left a lot of good friends behind. It will be nice to renew old friendships, but we still have got a job to do and we want to continue the run that we are on at the moment."

Cox's contract expires at the end of the season and he revealed he is going to enjoy the rest of the season: "At the moment, I haven't thought about it. At the end of last season, it was quite difficult. I made my mind up that whatever happens this season, I would just go out and enjoy it. If it is to be my last season playing football, then whatever experiences come my way, good or bad, then I am going to take it for what it is and just enjoy it. We'll see what happens at the end of the season. I think I have a bit left in me, but the majority of the time, it is not really in your hands. It is getting harder and harder to get contracts. I am just going to enjoy this season and make the most of everything that comes my way."