Crucial Day For Northumbria, Sheffield And Nottingham In Race For D1 Playoffs

Today Will See Three Games In Three Conferences That Could Make Or Break The Seasons Of Three Third-Placed Teams...

As the regular season draws towards its climax, eyes turn to the post-season, and today will see some key match-ups in Division 1. There are 16 play-off places up for grabs – the top two from each of the six conferences plus the best two third-placed teams from the North (Scottish/Northern 1A, Yorkshire 1A, Midlands 1A) and from the South (Western 1A, South 1A, South-East 1A).

This is where things get interesting. In the North, two of the 3rd placed teams have identical records - Sheffield Sabres, of Yorkshire 1A, and Northumbria Mustangs, of Scottish/Northern 1A - with one game to go. Meanwhile in Midlands 1A, the 3-3 Nottingham outlaws still have two games to chase down the 5-3 Warwick Wolves, but realistically are in more direct competition with Northumbria and Sheffield. Most of the other conferences across the three divisions remain up in the air with two or three match days to go, but for these teams, the entire season could hinge on what happens today.

Northumbria V Glasgow (Scot/Northern 1A)

After racking up a 50-0 victory over rock bottom Lancaster last weekend, the Northumbria Mustangs come up against the remarkable Glasgow defence, which is yet to concede a single point this season. The seemingly impenetrable Tigers are eager to preserve this record through their final two games and charge for the Division 1 title, but have only put up 8 points in their two away games this season – including their bizarre 2-0 win at Newcastle – so if Northumbria can find a way to surprise their defence, they may have good chance to cause an upset and finish 4-4.

Sheffield V Huddersfield (Yorkshire 1A)

Sheffield Sabres would appear to have the upper hand over Northumbria. While the Mustangs look for a way past an immovable object, the Sabres will look to cut down an apparently very stoppable force in the Huddersfield Hawks, who have had a torrid time this season, shipping 281 points and scoring only 36 in their 6 defeats.

Sheffield won 40-12 in the return fixture back in November, but they are yet to win an away game this season, so their short trip to the Hawks could prove to be a trip hazard.

NTU V University Of Nottingham (Midlands 1A)

The University of Nottingham Outlaws still have an outside chance at an automatic play-off spot if they win their final two games and hope Warwick slip, but it’s more likely that they will get drawn into the third-place quagmire. Should all three teams finish 4-4, the high-scoring Outlaws will most likely better the records of Sheffield and Northumbria, but if they fail to beat their conference-leading neighbours at Nottingham Trent today, they could face an all-or-nothing game against Worcester, who are hot on their tails in fourth, next weekend.

Not only are they watching each other, but all three of the aforementioned teams are looking over their shoulders in their respective conferences - Hull (Yorkshire 1A), Worcester (Midlands 1A), and Sunderland (Scottish Northern 1A) all also have a chance to go 4-4 and clinch third place - so any slip ups could see them lose any claim whatsoever to a playoff spot. The race is on.