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NEWS Wednesday 12th September 2018, 12:00pm
Edinburgh Monarchs
There are just 4 and a half days - 108 hours - to go until the door slams shut on the 2018 Championship Play Offs. We've got the latest on what needs to happen to see the Staggs Bar Monarchs progress.
In order of current Championship standings.
Peterborough
The Panthers took an expected home victory over Berwick last week to cement their position at the top of the table. With 41 points on the board, only Workington, Lakeside or Glasgow can match or exceed Peterborough's tally so they are now guaranteed a spot in the Play Offs regardless of how they perform over the next few days.
Still to race
Workington
Workington were able to successfully complete a double header last Saturday which fired them right into contention for a Play Off place. They haven't been able to reschedule their match against Lakeside before the cut off date, but assuming they're able to pick up some points in their remaining fixtures, progression should be within reach.
Still to race
Edinburgh
Edinburgh's chances of progression were dealt a blow on Tuesday night when they left Glasgow empty handed. With just one match to go, a home win is not enough to guarantee progression. It is, however, essential to win at home and it is then down to Glasgow to not pick up enough points on the road on Thursday and Friday to snatch 4th place.
Still to race
Glasgow
Glasgow's finely balanced hopes were given a shot in the arm last night after seeing off the challenge from Edinburgh. The Tigers have two remaining away fixtures to complete and will still need to pick up at least three points from them to be sure of progression. A Play Off place is entirely in their hands.
Still to race
Lakeside
Lakeside have an extremely busy weekend ahead of them, racing three fixtures in two days as well as departing their Arena Essex home and moving to Rye House. They'll need to hit the ground running and find their home advantage quickly to ensure they pick up enough points over Newcastle and Peterborough to put themselves comfortably back into the top 4.
Still to race
Ipswich
Ipswich's chances of qualification rely on not only taking the maximum points available from their remaining two matches, but also on how other teams perform over the coming days. A guaranteed Play Off spot is now out of their hands.
Still to race
Berwick
Although mathematically possible to qualify, it will be an uphill struggle for Berwick to take a top 4 place. The Bandits would need to go to Edinburgh and Ipswich and leave with all of the available points to give them any realistic chance at all.
Still to race
The Others
Newcastle have now joined Scunthorpe, Redcar and Sheffield in the list of teams which now cannot progress to the Play Offs. However their last two fixtures could prove pivotal for Lakeside and Workington.
This unprecedented run in to the Play Offs is at fever pitch. Even the 13 out of 28 fixtures raced since last Wednesday have only given Peterborough a guaranteed spot in the Play Offs. With 15 fixtures still to go, 14 of which are scheduled for the next 4 days, it's still all very much to play for.
Edinburgh now need to win on Friday against Berwick and hope that Glasgow are unable to pick up any additional points from their remaining away fixtures. Assuming there are no rain offs and there are home victories for all teams concerned, anything up to two additional points for the Tigers would likely see the Monarchs go through on points difference. Any more than that would knock the Monarchs into 5th place.
Just a single home loss or rain off for any team in contention could spell the end of their Play Off hopes.
There's no doubt this is still going to be one of the most exciting conclusions to the SGB Championship in years - make sure you're a part of it!
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