A fine Mitchell Weiss finish was enough for Kings Langley to remain firmly in the play-off hunt and put a dent in Merthyr Town’s hopes of a top-five finish after a 1-0 victory over the Welsh side on Saturday.

The striker struck 10 minutes after the break, receiving a Dean Hitchcock through ball and shrugging off the attention of two defenders before firing into the far corner to secure the three points.

The victory means Steve Conroy’s men remain seventh in Southern League Premier Division South, three points behind fifth-placed Poole Town but with two games in hand.

One of those matches is due to be played tomorrow night when fourth-placed Metropolitan Police visit the Sadiku Stadium in what will be another stern test of Kings' play-off credentials. Although a victory for the hosts will move them level on points with Poole, the Dorset club have a goal difference of +20 compared to Langley's +2.

Dylan Switters was suspended, so Hitchcock regained his midfield position while goalkeeper Alex Tokarczyk passed a late fitness test, denying his young deputy Ryan Schmid a debut.

The stopper was joined on an experienced bench by Gary Connolly, Josh Coldicott-Stevens, Louie Collier and new signing Lewis Putman.

The first five minutes proved to be the most exciting of the first half as Tokarczyk was immediately called upon to produce a full-length save from Ashley Evans.

When play switched to the other end, the Langley keeper’s opposite number Lewis Webb blasted a clearance straight at the incoming Andronicos Georgiou, who was just unable to steer the rebound home from a narrow angle.

The remainder of the half was a dour affair, with the home side unable to find their passing rhythm on a heavy pitch, the Martyrs having slightly the better of the exchanges, but both sides cancelling each other out as defences dominated.

The second period began in the same way, with Merthyr stepping up the pace and looking more likely to break the deadlock. But then came the decisive moment as Hitchcock delivered a measured through ball into the path of Weiss and the striker shrugged off two defenders to beat Webb with an angled shot to the far side netting.

The visitors brought on the dangerous Ian Traylor, throwing everything at their opponents and thinking they had equalised when a lofted cross produced a far post scramble, with Town claiming it had crossed the line but the officials disagreed.

As the minutes counted down and the pressure mounted, the referee found an additional eight minutes of time added, but the Kings defence stood firm, limiting the number of clear chances to record a first victory over their rivals.