with the play offs confirmed we are now looking over our shoulder to see who we play,
bar for massive scores from both the cats and cas we have booked a home tie, cas look a cert as they have to play celtic who have suffered losing players and catalan have us and saints to play so can't see either catching us up

teams that we might play

catalan
castleford
=redwarrington
harlequins

bradford will lose out through cas beating celtic IMHO

my choice is in red who I think we will get cas will sneak the other last place and will play wigan

I think Casteford & Catalans will make it with us playing Castleford at Belle Vue although I'd rather play Catalans.

As stated before if Cats beat us it will more than likely to play them again in the play-offs @ home.
So we have an interesting conundrum in the way we approach the Cats game.

points diff is there down fall they will either sneak 8th or just miss, I don't think we can pass wigan due to the same points diff but at least we can relax,
one thing that came to mind that we can play a part in who plays who in the top 4 with our last game

Round 26
Wigan Warriors v Hull FC
Catalans Dragons v Wakefield Wildcats
Harlequins RL v Castleford Tigers
Hull Kingston Rovers v Warrington Wolves
Bradford Bulls v Salford City Reds

Round 27
Hull FC v Bradford Bulls
St. Helens v Catalans Dragons
Huddersfield Giants v Wigan Warriors
Wakefield Wildcats v Hull Kingston Rovers
Warrington Wolves v Harlequins RL
Castleford Tigers v Celtic Crusaders

If my predictions turn out to be correct

=redWigan 30pts +135pd
Wakefield 30pts +50pd
Castelford 28pts -60pd
Catalans 26pts - 60pd
Warrington 24pts
Bradford 23pts
Quins 22pts
Hull 22pts

So i think points difference will be crucial as to whether we play cas or catalans at home. For the record we'll finish 6th.

I fancy us for 5th now with 2 wins just get the feeling Leeds will be minor Champions come the end of round 26 ans Sts will field a weakend team V Catalan

Wakey V Catalan
Wigan v Cas

Just hope we dont get Catalans away.

Very unlikey with how results panned out over the weekend.

Everything points to Trinity v Cas at Belle Vue. It will be almost three years to the day of that fateful day when both clubs met for that relegation ‘play off’ so it is a remarkable turnaround for both clubs.

I just hope that Wakefield improve upon their dismal performance against the Tiggers last time out.

Can somebody explain to me how the play off work this year? I read that certain teams can choose who they play????

[url=http://wigan.rlfans.com/fusion_pages/index.php?page_id=878This is a pretty good attempt at explaining it[/url.

If we got Cas down at Belle Vue it really would highlight how far both clubs have come since the relegation "Judgement Day" down at Belle Vue a few years ago.

The highest placed winner of the first round of matches between the top four get to choose who they play in week 3. On current form you would have to say Leeds will get the option to choose.

The "choice" will be broadcast live on TV. It will provide a psychological boost to the side that is chosen. A good idea I heard is to take a bag with three balls in, and just draw someone from a bag, taking away the psychological advantage. It would work particularly well if all three balls had the same name on, but no one else knew!

Yeah, not sure I would like to be the team doing the choosing or the person/people who are actually going to make the choice.

Out of interest who do people think will make the choice, the coach, the chairman, the players or a combination of those?

As the weeks go by I'm beggining to think that Bradford will snatch 8th with 25pts and Cas will get 7th on 26pts.

If a choice has to be made then it has got to be the coach and the senior players. No one outside of the playing staff should have a say.

If the choosing side is to follow the obvious form and chose the perceived weakest opponent left in the comp then there is every chance that Wakefield will be that choice. I can think of no coach better suited to get his team up for that game then Kear.

Warrington play Quins in the last game, and points difference should mean that the winner pips Bradford. I think.

I want Les Cats at home (or Harlequins) would be very wary of Cas at home TBH.

Happy with a home game but those are my preferred choices.

Just checked again, and they are closer than I thought. It's possible, but only if narrow a win for Wire. I think. And it would mean that the Bulls would have some real momentum. Would rather play a fading Catalan.

I might be reading it wrong, but I'm not sure how points diff come into it with Bradford. They're on 21 as they've drawn one. Assuming they beat Hull and Salford, they're then on 25. If two of the following clubs do the following then Bradford cannot make it:
- Cas or Cats win one of their last 2
- Wire or Quins win both of theirs,

For Bradford to make it, they need to win both theirs (put them on 25), and then a scenario like Cats losing both theirs (to end up on 24), Warrington and Quins losing at least one (to end up on no more than 24) and Cas win both theirs (28 ). That would see Cas in 7th and Bulls in 8th - a situation I'm sure Wigan would rather not see.

Cas in the 1st game, Hudds in the 2nd, Leeds in the 3rd and then whoever is left in the final. Sounds bang on to me! Hows that for a route to glory.

Sounds good to me!

Hopefully well get Catalans at home if we finish 6th which is a probably better route than finishing 5th... After that could be Huddersfield then the Rhinos for a place in the Grand Final !!

I wouldn't bet against Hudds beating either Leeds or Saints in the first round.

You're right. I was talking rubbish.