Southern Counties East Football League First Division play-offs start in Chatham on Monday evening when SE Dons entertain Croydon.

It can’t be often that a team only loses two league matches all season and doesn’t win the title but that’s exactly what befell The Dons. They ended the regular season with eighty-four points from thirty-four games but finished as runners-up, two points behind AFC Greenwich Borough. Meanwhile, Croydon finished fifth, twenty-three points behind the Dons.

On Saturday, Antonio Gonnella’s Dons won their third league game in a row when trouncing Sheppey United seven-nil away. Joshua Bohul gave them a fifteenth minute lead and Femi Akinwande’s brace, either side of Billy Crook’s low finish, put them in command by half time. Ryan Palmer’s penalty, along with goals by Joedon Gugas-Cowin and Andre Coker completed their magnificent seven.

While that match was taking place, Croydon were being held one all by Welling Town, a point that meant that the Boots didn’t finish bottom. The Trams went ahead nine minutes after the half time break but Shae John’s equaliser with four minutes remaining may prove invaluable for Welling.

There have been three meetings between the Dons and Croydon this season. Aaron Watson and Zak Ansah scored braces when for SE Dons in their home game in August with Cameron MacMillan scoring for the visitors. Then, in October, they met in Croydon in the London Senior Trophy. It was goal-less at half time but MacMillan was dismissed early in the second half and Eric De Melo, Paris Francis and Junior Aikhionbare were all on target for the Dons.

When they met again in Croydon in December, it was the tightest match of the three and looked to be heading for a nil-nil until Adrin Tajik scored for the Dons in the third minute of stoppage time. Although the visitors then had goalkeeper George Hill sent off one minute later, there wasn’t time for Croydon to find an equaliser.

Those games will count for nothing in the play-off eliminator and the two teams will start level in a game that means so much to whoever comes out on top.