Barrow boss Pete Wild hailed his players as “outstanding” after they fired themselves back into the League Two play-off places with a fine 2-0 win over Gillingham.

Goals from experienced centre-back James Chester and Emile Acquah – his first in the league since October – ended a three-game losing streak.

It was the first game the club have played in 17 days after fixtures against Bradford and Crawley were called off due to waterlogged pitches.

“I think you’ve seen three or four lads who have played the best they ever had in a Barrow shirt,” said Wild.

“They were outstanding.

“It was really nice last Saturday when I went and had a chat with the fans and the fans who have been with us through thick and thin knew we were having a blip and we would come through it and we’ve delivered for them.

“I’m really pleased that we’ve done that because some of the things they were saying was humbling to say the least.

“I keep saying this, we must remember what this squad is doing for the football club and the distance it’s travelled.

“We’ve put a pin in the ground. Where we were 12 months ago in March we were out of the play-off picture and nowhere near it. Twelve months on we’re in the play-off picture.

“I think the staff and the squad deserve so much credit for what they’re doing for this football club.”

Stephen Clemence’s side slipped out of the play-off spots after defeat.

And frustrations boiled over as Conor Masterson and Remeao Hutton were booked for squaring up to one another at the end.

On the incident, Clemence said: “It’s an emotional game, football. You have to keep your emotions in check.

“I don’t like to see that, but I’ve nipped it in the bud. They’ve shaken hands and they’re fine.

“They both just want to win and sometimes in the heat of the moment your emotions can get the better of you, but they’re fine now.”

On the game, the Gills boss added: “I felt we were off it and we didn’t hit the levels we have set recently.

“It’s difficult when you play two away games on the spin, especially with the amount of miles we have put in in the past few days.

“I don’t want to use that as an excuse, but we were a little bit flat.

“I will go to bed wondering whether that’s my fault because you don’t want to change a team that’s done well.

“We dust ourselves down and get ready to start a new run on Saturday.

“We didn’t create enough. I have to say Barrow are very well organised. It was difficult and we didn’t have that spark that we needed.

“It is what it is, we’ve been beat. It’s one game.

“The division is the division and a lot of teams can beat each other. Is it a surprise? I came here thinking we’d win the game.

“We’ve got 10 games left and we’ll be trying to win them all.”

Sheffield United cruised through to the FA Cup fourth round with a dominant 4-0 victory against League Two side Gillingham at Priestfield.

Danish striker Will Osula scored his first two goals for the Blades to put the Premier League’s bottom side in control at half-time before James McAtee’s quick-fire double late on earned last year’s semi-finalists their first away win in all competitions this season.

Blades manager Chris Wilder made five changes to his starting line-up for the game, but his side delivered an assured performance to avoid an upset and progress to round four with ease.

Osula’s opener came following a United break on 14 minutes, with his low effort going through the legs of Gills goalkeeper Jake Turner.

Turner’s fumble shortly after almost allowed Cameron Archer, one of those players who came into the United team for this game, to double the Yorkshire side’s advantage.

The Gills’ last FA Cup victory against top-tier opposition came five years ago against Cardiff, who also sat bottom of the Premier League upon their visit to Kent.

However, in front of a season-best crowd of 8,801, their afternoon went from bad to worse when Osula capitalised on Turner’s poor parry from Femi Seriki’s shot to side-foot home for his second six minutes before half-time.

Oli Hawkins wasted a brilliant chance for the Gills, League Two’s lowest scorers with just 21 goals in 25 games, when he miscued a header from Connor Mahoney’s corner 10 minutes after the break.

The Blades were also increasingly wasteful in front of goal, with McAtee and Archer flashing efforts over the bar, before the latter’s deflected shot on 63 minutes called Turner into action.

Gillingham’s best spell saw Mahoney test Wes Foderingham from distance, before Hawkins again failed to work the United goalkeeper with another header.

The hosts looked to have pulled themselves back into the tie 12 minutes from time when Max Ehmer’s glanced header crashed off the inside of the post, but the ball went back into play instead of over the line.

McAtee ended any doubts about the result on 83 minutes, as he beat the offside trap to meet Ollie Norwood’s pass and fire past the luckless Turner.

He completed the scoring with the best goal of the tie with three minutes remaining, blazing into the top corner from 20 yards after Gustavo Hamer’s short corner caught Gillingham napping.

Wilder sent new signing Ben Brereton Diaz on for his debut 20 minutes from time, but the Villarreal loanee was denied a first Blades goal by Turner in the final minute.

Gillingham boss Stephen Clemence hailed his side’s high standards after they cruised into the third round of the FA Cup with a 2-0 win over League One Charlton.

The Priestfield Stadium came alive in the 26th minute when former Charlton man Macauley Bonne, who made a move to the Gills in the summer, netted against his former club.

Timothee Dieng caught the Addicks defence sleeping again and drilled a low effort into the bottom corner four minutes later.

With a place in the third round secured for a second successive season, Clemence pointed to his side’s relentless work rate.

He said: “I thought we were outstanding from the start, we had a game plan to get after them, how to press them and the lads carried it out fantastically.

“When you start like that you need to make sure you get your nose in front and thankfully we did and to go and score a second soon after was fantastic.

“I thought in the second half we could have gone on and got a few more so that was the message at half time.

“The boys were absolutely fantastic today and they’ve set some high standards for us to keep up to.

“I thought we were in control, we still played some good football but our pressing game was absolutely fantastic. I thought they were all exceptional.

“From my point of view and the players’ we’re happy to be in the next round and we’ll see who we get tomorrow.”

It was a rather different tale for Michael Appleton’s men, who failed to reach round three for the second year in a row.

After an underwhelming display against League Two Gills, the Charlton boss criticised his side’s lack of effort.

He said: “That was a difficult one for me, we were second best in a lot of areas of the pitch.

“Early on in the game, there was probably four or five players who were always second to the ball, always caught between positions, didn’t play forward, weren’t aggressive enough and we paid the price.

“But even coming in at half time, we gave away a couple of poor goals which is one thing, but coming in at half time I’m always positive because we’ve got 50 minutes or so to try and get back into the game.

“We’re very strong normally in the second half of games but we just didn’t do enough.

“We had a lot of territory but I can’t remember the keeper making too many saves, don’t know how many times the ball come into the box and we weren’t there getting the first contact.

“It’s not one that will live long in the memory if I’m being honest.”

Gillingham manager Stephen Clemence praised his side’s character as they overcame underdogs Hereford 2-0 to progress in the FA Cup.

Jayden Clarke’s deflected goal gave the League Two side a first-half lead before Tom Nichols’ late penalty sealed their passage into the second round.

“The boys have shown great character,” said Clemence. “I didn’t feel Hereford really opened us up, although there was pressure.

“I felt I learnt a lot today in circumstances which could have become difficult.

“The players with their character didn’t let that happen. They stood firm and I’m really pleased. The players have been fantastic with me.

“They know it’s my first time as a number one. I’ve had to do some things this week that I’ve never done.”

Clemence’s reign as Gillingham boss got off to a perfect start when Clarke’s 23rd-minute effort took a wicked deflection past goalkeeper Curtis Pond and into the net.

Paul Caddis’ side sensed an equaliser and almost found it in the second half but Ethan Freemantle fired wide twice.

However, with four minutes left on the clock Nichols hit Hereford on the break, running through on goal before being judged to have been clipped by goalkeeper Pond.

The experienced forward regained his composure to score from the penalty spot.

Hereford manager Caddis claimed the referee made the wrong decision over the late penalty.

“We’ve just had an apology for the (awarding of) the penalty,” said Caddis who was watching from the stands due to serving a one-match suspension.

“The referee has got it wrong. An EFL official and we’ve been let down. That’s not taking anything away from Gillingham. Over the course of the game they probably deserved to win.

“It’s difficult when you play against teams a level above you who are full-time. We’re a fit group, how fit we are I’m incredibly proud of as we only get four hours (of training) every week.

“I’m extremely proud of every player.”

Neil Harris ruefully admitted Gillingham missed the influence of club captain Shaun Williams as they went down to a fourth defeat in seven games.

Goals from Connor O’Riordan and Joe White secured a 2-0 win to move the Railwaymen up to third in the Sky Bet League Two table.

The Gills have dropped out of the top seven and their current form is in stark contrast to the blistering start they made to the campaign when they led the table in mid-August.

Harris rested midfielder Williams and felt others did not step up to the challenge to show the type of leadership exhibited by the missing 36-year-old.

“We went behind to the softest of goals and I’ve got to look at that and see if I’ve got the right players out there or whether I need to change the way I want to play,” said Harris.

“We’ve fallen short and it wasn’t through not creating chances. But whether the mentality was right in the group or whether there was enough leadership and desire out there without Shaun Williams, I don’t know.

“Shaun was missed badly tonight, but I rested him because of the way he carries himself when he plays 90 minutes at the weekend, which means he struggles to make a Tuesday night squad.

“He is such an important player for us, but people have to step up and take responsibility. We have to find it in ourselves to make sure that we come to places like Crewe and be harder to beat than that.

“Crewe have been excellent at home and are 13 games unbeaten. You have to give them credit for that, but this was a game we should still be winning.”

O’Riordan’s far-post header edged the Cheshire side ahead in the 30th minute after Gillingham had threatened early on when Ethan Coleman thumped against a post and George Lapslie fired over.

Defender O’Riordan finished off a Zac Williams cross as Crewe worked the ball back into the box following a corner.

Macauley Bonne should have levelled soon after when Robbie McKenzie’s shot was pushed into his path by goalkeeper Harvey Davies, only for the striker to fire the rebound wide with the net gaping.

Crewe held firm in the second half and the closest Gillingham went to levelling was when Coleman headed a corner wide.

The home side sealed victory when substitutes Aaron Rowe and White combined, with the latter netting his first goal of his loan spell from Newcastle with five minutes remaining.

Crewe boss Lee Bell said: “We had to work hard for that as Gillingham are a good team with an excellent manager. We rode our luck a couple of times in the first half and Harvey Davies made an outstanding save.

“But our shape was excellent and we really nullified them in the second half, and took our chance to seal it on the break. It was good to see Joe White tuck that away.

“I was really pleased with our defending against a team that can really hurt you. That is 13 games unbeaten at home overlapping from last season.

“We want to make the place a fortress and a hard place for teams to come to. But we also played some decent football tonight and we had some dangerous moments.”

Luton boss Rob Edwards knew the result was all that mattered as the Hatters went through to the third round of the Carabao Cup by beating League Two Gillingham at Kenilworth Road.

The hosts led 2-0 at half-time thanks to goals from Jacob Brown and Alfie Doughty, before Jayden Clarke pulled one back early in the second period.

Cauley Woodrow then put Town 3-1 in front before Tom Nichols scored late on, only for Luton to hang on.

Edwards said: “We could only win by winning the game, the expectancy was obviously on us, it’s a little bit different to the last couple of games we’ve had, so I feel very pleased.

“We had quite a lot of changes, tweaked the shape a little bit, and I liked a lot of what I saw.

“It was a good start and I thought we built on it as well.

“We controlled pretty much all of the first half, going 2-0 up was great, a brilliant goal from Alfie and we spoke at half-time about the next goal.

“The next goal was really important and the game could really hinge on that.

“They got it, they probably had five or 10 minutes then when we had to deal with it, but we still looked OK.

“Cauley’s goal settled us down but then we controlled it again until the very last couple of minutes.

“There’s probably a reason we lacked a bit of fluency tonight, but there were a lot of good things I saw.”

Brown opened his Luton account after just two minutes with a low drive into the bottom corner, before Doughty hammered in a brilliant 25-yarder following a clever free-kick routine.

After the break, Clarke raced away to pull one back, as Ashley Nadesan and Macauley Bonne missed great chances to level the scoring.

Woodrow’s terrific volley restored Luton’s two-goal lead after 66 minutes, before Nichols’ header led to a nervy finale, Jonny Williams denied an equaliser by Tim Krul in stoppage time.

Gills boss Neil Harris said: “I’m really proud of the group, that was a fantastic second half against a Premier League side and to put them under pressure shows the character and personality as at 2-0 down after 35 minutes, teams may have crumbled against this level of opposition, but we didn’t.

“We regrouped at half-time and had a right go second half.

“I’m disappointed with the first goal, the second goal is a worldie, Premier League standard from Alfie, and the third one is against the run of play, again Premier League standard.

“To get back it at 2-1, 3-2, having pressure at the end, we just didn’t have that next goal in us.

“We could have scored but they’re the margins that you need when you go against the top sides.”

Alfie Doughty scored a screamer as Premier League Luton knocked League Two side Gillingham out of the Carabao Cup with a 3-2 second-round victory at Kenilworth Road.

The Hatters, who are still searching for a first top-flight point of the season, were ahead after just two minutes. Summer signing Jacob Brown was fed by Luke Berry and arrowed an unerring left-footed shot beyond Glenn Morris into the bottom corner.

He had another go after seven minutes, unable to repeat the feat from further out this time, as Gills did not threaten a great deal during the opening stages, Jayden Clarke firing well over from range.

Berry’s shot was easy for Morris, but Luton had a second after 28 minutes when a clever free-kick routine saw Doughty unleash a truly magnificent 25-yard strike that flew into the top corner, giving Morris no chance at all.

After the break, the Gills tried to pull one back, Max Clark’s long-range effort straight at Tim Krul, before the visitors did halve the deficit with 55 minutes on the clock.

Clarke escaped Luton’s defence on the left and went through to sidestep a tackle before lofting into the net.

Gills should have levelled moments later, Amari’i Bell failing to deal with a high ball forward, as Ashley Nadesan out-muscled the Jamaica international to be faced with Krul, denied by the trailing leg of the Dutchman.

The corner led to another glorious chance as the ball dropped to Macauley Bonne, who skied his inviting half-volley well over the bar.

Luton brought on summer signings Ross Barkley and Issa Kabore to try and regain the ascendancy and it worked in the 66th minute.

A ball forward was headed out to Cauley Woodrow who, with Morris slightly out of his goal, was able to power an effort over the backpedalling keeper for a first goal of the season.

Kabore saw his calls for a penalty waved away by referee Jeremy Simpson, before the Gills made it 3-2 with two minutes left, sub Tom Nichols’ stooping header going in despite the best efforts of Krul.

Nichols’ shot was saved by Krul, as midfielder Jonny Williams went close to a stoppage-time leveller, his snapshot flicking off a covering defender and going behind.

Ross Barkley almost wrapped up victory even later, a four-on-one break seeing the midfielder’s effort beaten away by Morris, as the Hatters edged their way through.

Russell Martin criticised his Southampton players for “feeling sorry for themselves” and entering “self-preservation mode” after a shock 3-1 Carabao Cup defeat at Gillingham.

Last season’s semi-finalists were stunned in the opening round of this year’s competition as Robbie McKenzie’s double and Ashley Nadesan’s early strike propelled Neil Harris’ League Two side to a memorable triumph on home soil.

Martin made 11 changes to the team that beat Sheffield Wednesday in the Saints’ Championship opener on Friday night and was unhappy with his second-string side’s attitude after a dismal night at Priestfield.

“It definitely wasn’t the result I was expecting, but the performance was more surprising,” he said.

“Tonight I just saw too much stuff I didn’t like, things we haven’t worked on, with people trying to write their own script.

“Players entered self-preservation mode – they were doing stuff they wanted to do.

“It was a case of ‘as long as I’m doing my own thing I’m OK’, but it shouldn’t be like that.

“Some people had too much pity, too much feeling sorry for themselves, and they’re probably the ones who don’t see their futures here in the next three weeks.

“I understand that, it’s difficult to deal with, but they should have showed off what they can do on the pitch.”

Gillingham went ahead after just 12 minutes when summer signing Nadesan slid in to poke Ethan Coleman’s cross past Alex McCarthy.

McKenzie stabbed home from close range six minutes after the break to double the hosts’ advantage before then capitalising on more lacklustre Southampton defending to net his second.

Substitute Carlos Alcaraz curled home a fine consolation goal late on but that did little to improve an otherwise miserable night for the south coast side in Kent.

Gills boss Harris said: “It couldn’t have gone any better. It’s a great result, and the performance was excellent.

“If anything, the win should have been by more than two goals.

“Southampton are a top side, even with the changes – I wanted to play on the front foot.

“We dominated the first 15 minutes, during which we could have scored more than one, and ultimately for 75 minutes we bossed it.

“The cup competitions aren’t the priority, but that doesn’t mean we don’t want to win. We want to be competitive, we want 8,000 people to appreciate that, and we’ll do the same in the next round.”

Last season’s Carabao Cup semi-finalists Southampton were stunned in the opening round of this year’s competition with a 3-1 defeat at Gillingham.

Ashley Nadesan’s early strike and Robbie McKenzie’s double helped Neil Harris’ League Two side spring a shock against their Championship opponents, with Carlos Alcaraz’s strike proving nothing more than a consolation at Priestfield.

Saints boss Russell Martin made 11 changes to the team that beat Sheffield Wednesday in their Championship opener on Friday night.

And Gillingham went ahead after just 12 minutes when summer signing Nadesan slid in to poke Ethan Coleman’s cross past Alex McCarthy.

Martin almost saw his recently-relegated side’s night get worse when Coleman rose to meet Max Clark’s corner but the Gills midfielder headed narrowly off-target.

The visitors improved as the first half progressed, with Sekou Mara firing an effort against the bar and Moussa Djenepo testing Glenn Morris with a curling shot.

Gillingham beat Brentford en route to the last 16 last season and all-but sealed victory when midfielder McKenzie poked home from close range six minutes after the break.

McKenzie scored his second of the night in the 67th minute, capitalising on more lacklustre Southampton defending to shoot low past the helpless McCarthy.

Substitute Alcaraz curled home a fine consolation goal for the visitors with a minute of normal time remaining on an otherwise dismal night for the south coast side in Kent.

Manchester City will face Chelsea in the pick of the FA Cup third-round ties, while Manchester United meet fellow Premier League side Everton.

Pep Guardiola's top-flight champions visit Graham Potter's side in the league on January 5, just a matter of days before hosting the Blues at Etihad Stadium in the prestigious cup competition.

Everton will be another side travelling to Manchester as Frank Lampard's side face Erik ten Hag's United, with current holders Liverpool drawn at home to Wolves in another all-Premier League tie.

Arsenal make the trip to League One's Oxford United, while the in-form Newcastle United visit another third-tier side in Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough.

Tottenham will also face League One opposition when they host Portsmouth, with Brighton and Hove Albion going up to Middlesbrough and Bournemouth facing a home tie against Championship leaders Burnley.

Two more all-Premier League clashes see Brentford at home to London rivals West Ham and new Southampton manager Nathan Jones will have to get past an away game against top-flight rivals Crystal Palace.

Aston Villa will welcome Stevenage, who are second in League Two chasing promotion, with Fulham and Leeds United visiting Championship sides Hull City and Cardiff City respectively.

Dagenham and Redbridge will invite Leicester City to Victoria Road if the National League side can defeat Gillingham in a December 6 replay.

All ties are scheduled to be played between January 6 and January 9.

FA Cup third-round draw in full:

Preston v Huddersfield Town
Middlesbrough v Brighton and Hove Albion
Chesterfield v West Brom
Manchester City v Chelsea
Charlton or Stockport County v Walsall
Boreham Wood v Accrington Stanley
Tottenham v Portsmouth
Derby County v Barnsley
Cardiff City v Leeds United
Brentford v West Ham
Bournemouth v Burnley
Coventry City v Wrexham
Norwich City v Blackburn Rovers
Aston Villa v Stevenage
Luton Town v Wigan Athletic
Oxford United v Arsenal
Fleetwood Town v Queens Park Rangers
Liverpool v Wolves
Grimsby Town v Burton Albion
Blackpool v Nottingham Forest
Dagenham and Redbridge or Gillingham v Leicester City
Forest Green Rovers v Birmingham City
Bristol City v Swansea City
Hartlepool United v Stoke City
Hull City v Fulham
Crystal Palace v Southampton
Millwall v Sheffield United
Shrewsbury Town v Sunderland
Sheffield Wednesday v Newcastle United
Manchester United v Everton
Reading v Watford
Ipswich Town v Rotherham United