AFC Wimbledon player with 185 Championship apps has all the nous to steer Dons past Notts County | OneFootball

Sam Hutchinson played a crucial role in AFC Wimbledon's victory over Grimsby Town, a now his experience could help them reach the final

AFC Wimbledon's final day victory over Grimsby Town to secure a place in the League Two play-offs this season was aided by some great individual performances.

Among them was Sam Hutchinson in a midfield trio consisting of himself and the duo of Jake Reeves and Alistair Smith.

And with midfield being a problem position for the Dons this season, his return to top form and his experience in the divisions above, is going to make getting past the challenge of Notts County in the play-offs an easier task.

Sam Hutchinson forms the perfect trio with Jake Reeves and Alistair Smith in midfield

As mentioned, Johnnie Jackson has struggled at times to find the best players to play in his preferred setup in the middle of the park.

At the beginning of the season, when he was wanting players to advance and join the attack from a midfield position, Jackson had the likes of Callum Maycock, Miles Hippolyte and Smith all as candidates for that position, with Reeves sitting deeper.

However, thanks to injuries and necessary tweaks to avoid tactics from being completely found out, there has not been a consistent and well-performing midfield setup in the starting XI, even with the best attempts of Smith and Reeves in a 3-4-3 formation which saw the Dons experience a fairly poor run of form post-January.

And even when Reeves was banned for three games due to a red card picked up against Doncaster Rovers, which saw Hutchinson step in, there was not much improvement, and the midfield was just as easily bypassed as it had been at times since the end of January.

But thanks to a reversion back to the very system that got the Dons into their lofty position in and around the promotion contenders at the start of this season, the three joined forces in midfield against Grimsby, and looked to have finally solved the issues.

At times, in the cagey first half, Hutchinson and Reeves formed a defensive midfield pair that allowed the silky Smith to advance forward and become another attacker, but in the second half, which opened up much more, former Chelsea youngster Hutchinson sat deeper while allowing Smith and Reeves to advance forward in attack and supply killer passes that started to hurt the Grimsby defence and get the likes of Marcus Browne, Matty Stevens and the wing-back duo of James Tilley and Josh Neufville into play.

It was this exact setup and tactics that fans had been crying out for, having watched with their own eyes the struggle that a two-man midfield had against certain types of opponents, so for Jackson to have finally unearthed the magical trio with Hutchinson deeply involved, prayers seem to have been answered.

Sam Hutchinson will bring vital experience in a play-off run for Johnnie Jackson

Not only does Hutch, as he is affectionately known, complete the difficult jigsaw of creating the perfect team, but he also adds much more behind the scenes, as a very experienced head.

Having departed Chelsea following a few loans and a lengthy injury lay-off, Hutch made his name at Sheffield Wednesday, going on to make 185 Championship appearances and complete spells abroad and at home, too, with Reading.

And it is this brilliant experience that is going to be of great benefit to Wimbledon, who, apart from Reeves, do not have a lot of nous to call upon.

The likes of John-Joe O'Toole and Ryan Johnson do have previous promotion experience, but neither have excelled at higher levels like Hutchinson has, and perhaps that could be the difference maker within this team.

When the former Owls cult-hero initially signed for the club for a month and then extended his deal until the end of the season, it did feel as though his experience and his higher-level talents showed right away with a good combination of passion and calmness displayed on the pitch, and a great character that highlighted him as a leader off of it.

He will be called upon to keep younger heads up if Saturday's first leg away at Notts County does not go as the Dons hope it will, and even if things do go well, his experience of the game and all that he has seen in it will be utilised to coach the more youthful members of the squad through each and every emotion felt.

There is no doubt that pressure will still be on the Dons coming into these play-offs, with the team not carrying the best of form and knowing what they have missed out on through dropping points, but with Hutchinson in and around the squad playing a huge role tactically too, the Dons have more than enough to guide themselves to the hallowed turf of Wembley.