St. David's skipper Dejuan Paynter is optimistic about his side's chances of gaining top-flight status when they tackle Devonshire Colts in a two-legged tie – with the winner going to play in the Premier Division next season.

Both matches will be played National Sports Centre (NSC) with the first game scheduled for tomorrow night at 7.30 p.m.

The Islanders were agonisingly close to gaining automatic entry into the top tier, sitting in second place going into the final weekend of the season and sweating on Somerset Trojans' result to determine their fate.

Trojans' 8-0 win over Paget meant that they, and not St. David's got the second automatic spot, leaving a play-off as the only route for the side to get into the Premier Division.

Paynter believes his side has what it takes to go the distance and send Colts back down to the First Division.

"Our mentality is good right now, we need to just go and do what needs to be done and everything will fall into place," said Paynter.

"We could stand around and cry over the fact that we didn't go up automatically, but at the same time another opportunity has arisen and we must take advantage of that.

"Once we were made aware of the restructuring of the leagues, we knew that we could come up and that our most likely opponent would be Colts.

"So we have seen them play and are familiar with them but at the end of the day, it is what we do not what they do."

Sandwiched in between their play-off games is a date against Trojans at the NSC for the Shield trophy, an encounter that Paynter said will also be on the minds of the players.

No matter what happens in the next week for St. David's, the skipper has made it be known that they will fight until the very end.

"We have the Shield final on Sunday and the second leg a few days later so it won't be easy, but this is the price you pay when you are trying to achieve something. Obviously the side will have one eye of the final, but we can't let that be a distraction.

"From the outset of the first leg we will go all out.

"It makes no sense trying to sit back and defend in the first and then have to switch our style to accommodate the situation, we have to go at them from the start.

"In a sense it is three finals that we will be playing, and two of them are for the right to play against the big boys next year and we feel that is where we are supposed to be."