How about four defeats on the spin !
Seriously wouldn't write you off but don't people realise how difficult it is to do the double I think fatigue might catch up with you, by the way how does Peacock keep going !

Leeds can't catch us now so for us to finish outside the top 4:

Warrington need to beat us.
Castleford need to win one game against either Wakefield or Catalans.
Huddersfield need to win two games against Bradford and St Helens.

There's every likelihood that Castleford and Huddersfield will do enough IMO - I think we'll need to avoid defeat against Warrington to avoid finishing 5th.

It may also be a take your pick scenario - Saints beat Huddersfield, win a trophy and we finish in the top 4 or Huddersfield beat Saints, Saints end up empty handed again and we finish 5th!

I'd take 4th and Saints winning the LLS. They can celebrate it all they want but it's a nothing prize as we know only too well.

Finishing outside the top four will really reduce our chance of getting to and winning at Old Trafford IMO.

I'd take 4th and Saints winning the LLS, as it makes it better when we go there and beat them the week after.

Even better, let them lose and Cas take the hub cap. We beat the Dire to finish 3rd and still play them in the 1st round of the play-offs.

Why wasn't that offered as an option in the first place



I'll choose that one.

Now that's a plan !

Four league defeats on the spin if you please



I agree with you btw , which makes last year's double by your team a real achievement .

What I meant was league positions are becoming largely irrelevant whereas form and momentum and play-off experiences are paramount , which makes home advantage etc.. less of a straightforward pass to OT .

If any two of Wigan, Leeds or Warrington finish 5th and 6th they could still have a very good shot of reaching Old Trafford. A home game to Widnes or Catalans followed by an away game to a week one loser. That route could even be better for Wigan than coming 4th!

It's abit of a catch 22 situation. 4th is a better route, but only if you hammer it home and win the first game thus getting the week off. If you lose the first game, then it's a worse position than 5th/6th. Finishing 5th/6th gives you a better chance of winning the first game than finishing 4th because you are playing a much lower ranked team and playing at home. You then go into week 2 with a good win and some momentum, against a beaten up team who's just lost.

That's always been my problem with this top 8 format. An 8 team playoff series was always too many for a 14 team league, but I can see why it was brought in when P&R were scrapped, otherwise the majority of the league would have had nothing to play for for the last 3 months. But there were much better ways of structuring an 8 team playoff that would've rewarded finishing position.

Wigan have shown they don't perform well after a week off. A momentum building game against Widnes/Cats could well provide a better route to OT for us.

I think as long as the team is mentally and physically fresh enough, that is the better route. I don't think the week off is any real advantage to a team that doesn't really need it.