PHIL Dollman admits his return to fitness could not have come at a better time as Exeter Chiefs enter the most crucial period of their season.

The Welshman was thrust back into the starting line-up in the British & Irish Cup at Plymouthlast weekend when Matt Jess was ruled out in the warm-up.

After five weeks out with an ankle injury, Dollman got 80 minutes under his belt.

And as the Championship play-offs start next weekend, Dollman is eager to impress against Birmingham & Solihull at Sandy Park on Saturday to prove he is back to form and fitness.

He said: "It was a bit of surprise (last weekend) before kick-off but it was good to get some match practice, coming back from an injury. I felt a bit sore in my ankle towards the end but the fitness work I had done in the last couple of weeks with (fitness coaches) Paddy Anson and Mark Twiggs made it easy for me to slot back in there. It's perfect timing, getting two games worth of playing time before the play-offs.

"It's really important to be at a top level of fitness and form for the play-offs and hopefully I can get that back."

Dollman was yesterday named in a 25-man squad for this weekend's rearranged match at Sandy Park, which was postponed in early January because of snow.

Matt Jess and Dave Gannon return to the squad after illnesses and Ben Moon, Richard Bolt and Drew Locke also come in — the latter would make his debut if named in the match day 22. However, Bryan Rennie is ruled out after a bang to the head and Danny Gray has been rested as he has been involved in every game this season apart from the opening match at Moseley.

Head coach Rob Baxter explained: "We've given some of the other players a four or five-day break during a non-playing week, but Danny has never had that opportunity.

"We're letting him do that now before the play-offs start and we've got good cover there."

Birmingham arrive at Sandy Park without a league win to their name all season and a negative points total after going into voluntary liquidation earlier in the campaign.

They will also start the relegation play-offs with a minus tally so the Chiefs will be expected to put them to the sword in front of the Exeter faithful.

However, Dollman said the players must be patient and not try to force the game if things don't go their way early on.

"We're looking to create opportunities this weekend and I think we will with the way we're playing rugby," he said.

"Patience is a key thing we've been talking about this week in everything we do.

"If things aren't working in the first 15 or 20 minutes we've just got to stick to the game plan and trust in that."

Saturday's match is the final one in the regular season for the Chiefs, who will finish the 22-game league programme in second place no matter what happens against Birmingham.

They will then go into pool B in the play-offs, alongside London Welsh, Nottingham and the team that finishes seventh.

That will either be Doncaster or Plymouth, with the sides meeting at Castle Park on Saturday. The winner will be in Exeter's pool.

Dollman said Exeter's players were looking forward to starting the next stage of the season but said they don't mind who joins them in their group.

"It will be nice to finish off the league and then concentrate solely on the play-offs," he said. "We can really push on in training and work on what we're going to bring to the play-offs.

"We know at this stage it will be a hard game whoever we face in the play-offs so we don't have a preference."

Exeter Chiefs: (from) Alcott, Baxter, Budgen, Clark, Gannon, Hanks, Hayes, Johnson, Andy Miller, Moon, Scaysbrook, Slade, Sturgess, Tui, Bolt, Cornwell, Dollman, Foster, Jess, Jones, Locke, Sestaret, Steenson, Stuart-Smith, Thomas