 Gillingham 's fortunes on the field gradually improved and the team finished in the top half of the Third Division South on three occasions , helped by the goals of Ernie Morgan , who in 1954 – 55 set a new club record by scoring 31 league goals . In 1956 – 57 and 1957 – 58 , however , the Gills found themselves once again rooted firmly to the bottom of the table , and this meant that with the restructuring of the league system for the 1958 – 59 season , the team was placed in the newly created Fourth Division – a top @-@ half finish would have led to placement in the new national Third Division . 1958 also saw the departure of long @-@ serving manager Archie Clark , who had held the post since before the Second World War , with Harry Barratt taking over . 
