GILLINGHAM boss Steve Lovell admits 'the gloves will be off' when Bradley Dack makes his return to Priestfield tomorrow afternoon.

Dack joined Rovers from the Gills in the summer for £750,000 and has quickly become a key player for Tony Mowbray's side.

The 24-year-old has 15 goals to his name this term and will hope to add to that tally against his former club.

But Lovell, whose side head into the game on the back of a fine 3-1 win at Portsmouth last time out, is out to stop the playmaker.

“He will get a round of applause but at the end of the day it is us against Blackburn," Lovell told Kent Online.

"He plays for Blackburn and we have to put one on him if you like.

“We want to win the game and he won’t be thinking ‘Gillingham was a great start (to my career), let’s let them win’, that never happens.

"He will be out there to score as many as he can against us and try and get the three points.

“As soon as the whistle goes the gloves are off, all of the niceties are gone and we will do whatever we can to try and stop Blackburn from playing and to get the three points.”