The game was pretty low on quality, aside from a brilliant first half goal from Luke Molyneux. Gillingham, playing their first game under new boss John Coleman, dominated the first half-hour with Rovers penned into their own half for much of the time.
But completely against the run of play Molyneux opened the scoring when he dashed onto a poor header back towards his own goalkeeper by Armani Little. Molyneux got it under control and produced a classy, chipped finish over the onrushing Glenn Morris for his second goal in as many games.
Billy Sharp then produced a horror miss from a few yards out just before the break. The hosts peppered efforts towards Ted Sharman-Lowe's goal in the second half but never truly troubled him as Rovers held on for a much-needed away victory.
Here's how we rated the players in Kent:
5. James Maxwell 6
Not one of his best outings but defensively he was decent enough to stub out any real threats and clear the danger. Not as many buccaneering runs forward as we're used to seeing. Photo: Liam Ford/AHPIX LTD
6. Owen Bailey 7
Won lots of headers and is starting to enjoy a prolonged period of more consistent performances. Some nice, snappy tackles chucked in. Photo: Andrew Roe/AHPIX LTD
7. Joe Sbarra 6
Might be surprising to see he registered five tackles as he put in a good shift defensively. Not too many moments that were noteworthy in an attacking sense. Important contribution to the opener though as he pressed Little into rushing his header back towards goal, which Molyneux pounced on. Photo: Howard Roe/ahpix.com
8. Charlie Crew 5
Handed a quickfire debut. Some things came off, others didn't. Was always going to be a tough gig. Important to put it all into context though: this was only the third senior appearance of his fledgling career. Photo: Tom Smith/AHPIX LTD