Coca-Cola League Two

Gillingham 0 (0) Luton Town 1 (1)

Battling Luton lived a charmed life as they somehow clung on to secure an invaluable victory at Priestfield today.

Town were forced to dig deep, but survived some heavy second half pressure from Gillingham to get their league campaign up-and-running.

Super Sam Parkin scored the decisive goal with an excellent third-minute header, but it was Hatters' determined rearguard action that made victory possible.

Town made only one change from their starting line-up that did so well to beat Championship side Plymouth Argyle in the first round of the Coca-Cola Cup on Tuesday night. With Lewis Emanuel ruled out through injury, Keith Keane started in the unusual role of right midfield with Rossi Jarvis switching to the left flank.

And Luton got off to a blistering start, taking just three minutes to take the lead. Jarvis' through ball was deflected into the path of Chris Martin who chipped delightfully to the far post for Parkin to power his header home.

The visitors went close again three minutes later when a stretching Jarvis could only poke Keane's fine first time cross wide at the far post.

Gillingham were looking dangerous on the break and Sol Davis entered the referee's notebook on nine minutes for an ungainly challenge on Tyrone Berry.

Some of the officiating in the first half at times was quite questionable and Parkin was inexplicably shown a yellow card on 18 minutes after winning a seemingly fair challenge.

Sloppy defending from the Town almost allowed Gillingam to level on 22 minutes. Luton's backline were asleep to Mark McCammon's flick on, but Simeon Jackson could only fire over from the edge of the area.

Claude Gnakpa became the third Luton player of the day to be booked on 26 minutes, while Asa Hall flashed a long range effort well wide on 36 minutes as the game lulled.

But the Gills should have equalised five minutes before the break. The lively Berry evaded Chris Martin and a lunging Davis on the left before bursting into the area and squaring for Jackson, but Dean Brill was alert to save with his legs.

And McCammon was inches away three minutes later when his clever flicked looped just wide with a stranded Brill well beaten.

The second half began with the Gills on the offensive and Davis had to be alert to clear McCammon's header of the line on 54 minutes.

Tackles were beginning to fly in from all angles as the racheted up through the gears and threatened to boil over.

Town were having to defend raggedly at times and Jackson should have probably done better when he lashed over the bar on 61 minutes.

And the Hatter somehow survived the mother of all goalmouth scrambles on 71 minutes. Three times the hosts looked destined to score as they rained in shots from close range, but a combination of some fantastic saves from Brill coupled with some desperate defending remarkably kept the ball out.

And seconds later Chris Martin almost took advantage of a defensive mistake when he burst into the box and flashed a shot across the face of goal, but Alan Julian somehow got a telling touch to turn it behind.

With seconds left Hall almost sealed victory when his sizzling effort fizzed over the bar and, despite four minutes of injury time being played Town clung on for a hard earned win.

Gills: Alan Julian, Barry Fuller, John Nutter, Simon King, Andrew Crofts (C), Mark Bentley (Curtis Weston 73), Simeon Jackson, Dennis Oli (Gary Mulligan 69), Leigh Mills, Tyrone Berry, Mark McCammon. Subs not used: Chris Kiely, Adam Miller, Sean Clohessy.

Hatters: Dean Brill, Claude Gnakpa, Sol Davis, Keith Keane (Kevin Watson 58), George Pilkington, Kevin Nicholls (C), Asa Hall, Michael Spillane, Rossi Jarvis, Sam Parkin, Chris Martin (Tristan Plummer 90). Subs not used: Ian Roper, Richard Jackson, Paul McVeigh.

Referee: Steve Tanner.

Assistant referees: Andy Halliday and John Stokes.

Attendance: 5,339.

Booked: Sol Davis 9; Sam Parkin 18, Claude Gnakpa 29; Simeon Jackson 54.

Star Hatter: George Pilkington. Defensive linchpin reads the games so well.