Playoff places to be confirmed in last premier round
THE last round robin games of the 2018 Central Otago premier competition play out this weekend, with just the playoff places to be decided as the top four is finalised.
Wakatipu, Upper Clutha, Arrowtown and Cromwell are all set to take part in the business end of the competition, as signs have pointed to for some time.
Maniototo has been snapping at the heels of the top dogs, but has just not been able to catch them, sitting clear in fifth place for much of the season.
Clyde Earnscleugh, Matakanui Combined and Alexandra have been at the bottom of the table for most of the season, and will be a little disappointed in the way they have performed at times.
The Clyde and Omakaubased sides have defaulted games due to insufficient front row numbers, and this must be of concern to the administrators of the game.
The Wakatipu basin, Wanaka and Cromwell are the strong growth areas and have good playing numbers, whereas the others, although historically very strong clubs, are struggling.
Wakatipu will make the long trek to Maniototo to take on the home side, which will want to finish the season on a high by knocking over the tabletopper.
The defending champion side has lost just two games this season (and drawn one), and has an impressive positive 414 points differential.
Wakatipu is guaranteed a home semifinal with a win, while a loss raises the prospect of coming up against either of the teams that have beaten it in the second round, Cromwell or Arrowtown. Maniototo at home is a dangerous proposition.
Upper Clutha hosts Alexandra at Wanaka, and should bag the five points and be set to take top place if Wakatipu stumbles.
Upper Clutha was given a timely reminder last week against Cromwell that any of the top four sides in the competition are capable of beating each other on any given day, and Alexandra could very well cop the backlash. It has been a tough season for the Alexandra team and its new coaching group, and they will be looking to finish with a quality performance to bank for next season.
Matakanui Combined travels to take on Arrowtown for the White Horse Cup and make a statement in its final game of the season, one of struggles for the proud club. There is not a club with a more successful White Horse Cup record than the Omakaubased side, but it comes up against an Arrowtown side on top of its game after beating frontrunner Wakatipu last week. Arrowtown though has the worst defensive record of the top four sides, having lost four games and had 302 points scored against it.
Cromwell travels to take on Clyde Earnscleugh in what should be an interesting clash. It is well known that Cromwell gave the Clydebased side a number of players to help keep it afloat this season, a winwin for both sides.
Cromwell will be keen to follow up last week’s very good win over Upper Clutha with a complete performance going into the semifinals, and Clyde Earnscleugh will be going hard to finish its season on a high.