GILLINGHAM have parted company with head coach Stephen Clemence.

Former Spurs midfielder Clemence, along with assistant head coach Robbie Stockdale, have been dismissed after the Gills board felt 'a change is necessary to give the club the best possible chance of gaining promotion next season'.

Clemence took over from Neil Harris, who went on to manage Cambridge United and then Millwall.

Gillingham finished 12th in the League Two table and finished their campaign with a 2-2 draw against Doncaster Rovers.

Clemence took over at Gillingham last November but the Kent outfit say results have not met expectations set by the club.

Gillingham managing director Joe Comper told the club's website: “Stephen and Robbie are great characters and are good people.

"We have been met with a really difficult decision, whether to stick with them in the hope results turn around after changes to the playing squad in the summer, or to bring some fresh impetus to the club at a time when a new person can spend time assessing and assembling a squad that they believe can take us forward, hopefully towards League One next season.

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"Our supporters have backed us heavily over the past two seasons and we are impatient to achieve success for them, and feel that our best chance of having that success is by making a change at this point.”

Gillingham director of football Kenny Jackett told the club's website: “We now begin the process of appointing a successor to Stephen and Robbie.

"We are identifying targets we believe could take this club forward and will be looking to make an appointment as quickly as possible, so the new management team can form an integral part of the squad building process straight away."