Sunday 29 January 2012 13:42, UK
Accrington caretaker manager Leam Richardson has praised the professionalism of his players after they saw off Gillingham 4-3.
Richardson took over on a temporary basis at the Crown Ground this week following the departure of former boss John Coleman, who joined League One outfit Rochdale. And he was treated to the perfect start in his new role as Michael Smith's first-half hat-trick and Luke Joyce's strike put Stanley 4-1 up at the break. The visiting Gills rallied after the interval and Gavin Tomlin netted twice to add to Danny Jackman's effort in the opening period, but the Kent outfit could not claw back the difference. "We've worked a lot on Gillingham, where to expose them and first half it worked a treat. We're disappointed we didn't get more to be honest," Richardson said. "We've worked on a few things all week and they've just carried the momentum on as they have done for the last few months, and you could see the more the first half went on they played with freedom and caused them a lot of problems. "They deserve that win, it doesn't matter what's gone on behind the scenes - it happens everywhere in football. They've shown they are professional, they've worked hard all week coming up to Saturday and they've done exactly what they've been asked of."
