Chatham Town can deny Needham Market the league title on Saturday.

The leaders arrive in Medway top of Ryman League, Division 1 North and knowing a win at Maidstone Road will see them promoted to Step 3 for the first time in their history.

But if the Chats can take points off them and second-placed Harlow win at home to Thamesmead, Needham will have to settle for the play-offs for the third time in four seasons.

Chatham manager Kevin Watson said: “It should be an entertaining afternoon. I’m looking forward to it.

“I’m sure they’ll be nervous because they’ll want to win the game and do it the right way. They’ll come at us all guns blazing.

“Needham are well equipped to play at the next level but we’ve got an opportunity to move up one place in the table, so we won’t be taking this lightly.”

Chatham are safe in the division – barring an extraordinary swing in goal-difference – following last weekend’s 2-2 draw at Brentwood.

They’re three points and three places above the drop zone going into the final day of the season.

Watson said: “For the first time in a few weeks, the pressure’s off. We’re in a much healthier position than we were or could have been.

“It’s been a while since we played a game with this amount of freedom. It’ll be interesting to see how the players react.”

The two sides also met on the final day of last season, with Needham beating Chatham 7-1 to sneak into the play-offs.

Watson said: “It’s funny – anyone who was present on that day will know we had enough chances to score as many goals as them.”

Another side to have avoided relegation are Chatham’s local rivals Cray Wanderers, who have won nine straight games under their new management team of Tommy Warrilow and ex-Chats boss Alex O’Brien.

Watson said: “I’m pleased for them because they’re good people. They’ve done a remarkable job but the club should never have been in that position in the first place, with the resources they’ve got.

“I spoke to Alex O’Brien when they first went there. He asked my opinion and I told him it was a good opportunity, that he had nothing to lose.

“People wrote them off but I always thought they’d get out of it.”