EASTLEIGH’S player/assistant manager Craig McAllister has labelled tomorrow’s visit of Dover Athletic “our biggest game of the season.”

The seventh-placed Spitfires have faced some colossal challenges over the last six weeks, including monster showdowns with the entire Vanarama Conference top four.

But, with just six matches to go, they know a clean sweep of victories would guarantee them a play-off spot since they hold the trump card of a game in hand over Forest Green and Woking who are two and one point better off respectively.

And that makes every game from here on in gargantuan.

With manager Richard Hill starting a two-match touchline ban tomorrow following his sending-off at Grimsby, McAllister will either be playing tomorrow or running things from the dugout alongside coach Chris Todd.

He said: “It’s going to be our biggest game of the season because we’ve got to win every game now.

“One slip-up and another team will be waiting to take that play-off place.

“We need to win tomorrow and we could do with Dover doing us a favour on Monday by beating Woking (at Crabble), but it’s down to us.

“If we win our remaining games we’re in the play-offs, it’s a simple as that.”

With Hill feeling unwell, his two trusty lieutenants took charge of training yesterday, but such is the experience in the camp that it was a straightforward job.

“Like I said to Toddy, it takes care of itself really,” said McAllister.

“These lads go out, they’re professional and they’ve got a lot of experience.

“Sometimes when the gaffer’s not around at a club or he arrives a bit late for training you get a few people messing around but, to be fair to these lads, they just get on with it.

“We’ve got an experienced bunch who know what’s expected and they’re very professional when they have to do something. They know that if they take their foot off it, things will go backwards.”

Dover have loomed large on the Eastleigh horizon during Hill’s time at Stoneham Lane. In his first season they locked horns in the Conference South play-off semi-final and last term the pair were promoted together – Eastleigh as champions and Dover via the play-offs.

Chris Kinnear’s side had rough ride from Feburary to mid-March but have clambered up to tenth on the back of four wins and a draw from their last six.

With just five games left and nine points to make up on fifth-placed Forest Green, the play-offs look beyond them, but McAllister warned: “Dover are a decent side and they always seem to be in our way when we’re doing well and looking to push on.

“It’s never true that teams have nothing to play for. They’re pros at the end of the day and these players are still playing for contracts for next season.”

Eastleigh have Jai Reason back after a two-match ban, but Deon Burton remains suspended and Hill must take a seat in the stand after admitting two breaches of conduct at Grimsby.

The first related to his 90th-minute dismissal and the second to comments aimed at a match official in the aftermath. He was severely warned as to his future conduct and fined £750 by The FA.

Dover have injury concerns over loan strikers Dan Holman and James Poole.