At last, long last, the dreadful third quarter is almost behind us, and although this is still the most ridiculous race in SPFL history as far as the fixtures go, the script is about to be flipped in a big, big way.
We have Ibrox to visit before the split, but the worst of this run should now be behind us.
Of the eight fixtures left, we have five at home.
Ibrox, by contrast, has five away, and all but for the next one – at Dundee – they might well all be against teams in the top six. This is moment where the fixture list finally gives us an advantage of sorts, although it should be even more pronounced.
To be honest, the table is all over the place.
The top three are the only thing we know for sure. Behind them, every team down to Aberdeen in tenth has a shot at finishing in the top six. Three places are contested by six clubs.
But however it shakes out, we can only visit two of them.
They may be clubs we’ve visited twice already, but even that is up in the air.
Ross County and Dundee Utd can still finish in a top six place and we’re due to go there anyway so that wouldn’t change if they made it. St Mirren, too, are due a visit from us and ideally we’d like them in the top six to get it.
Otherwise we’re going to one or two grounds we’ve already been to twice. We’ve dropped points at Tynecastle, Livingston and Hibs out of that six … so a match against one of them would be difficult, but you’d make us favourites.
The games at home, we should be winning as a matter of routine.
Whilst not taking anything for granted as far as that goes, the toughest game we face is the one at Ibrox where even a draw would be a disaster for them and a major triumph for us.
And for the record, I think we’ll go there and win and wrap this up.
Over on the Ibrox fan sites they are looking at the fixture list with no enthusiasm whatsoever. They know their away record is a joke and they are terrified of having to play five must-win games away from home out of the run-in.
At last, at long last, this fixture list now looks like their worst nightmare instead of ours.
Joke away form or not the brethren in black will ensure points if necessary. Cheating bastards.
It is not a matter of conjecture. It is fact.
Each team must play 19 home games and 19 away games in a season.
There is nothing anyone can do about that even if it means we have to play teams away that we have already visited twice (eg Livi).
The final 5 fixtures are still to be determined for obvious reasons.
What is not in question is the fact that, regardless of who makes it into the top 6, Celtic will have 3 home matches and 2 away matches. Add the 2 home matches and 1 away match we play before the break then …. well, you do the Math as the Yanks like to say.
I seen Hateley on the news there trying to talk up the 1 nil win for sevco at the weekend there.
His klub is skating on thin ice results wise and this clown is talking them up.
They are one defeat away from losing the title I reckon it will happen before we play them.
I would never assume the fixtures come out like that. On paper aye but the SFA have a way of bending the rules to even things out.
Nothing beats rangers dropping points at home though and hearing the vitriol of the fans that stick with the players for the next game.
I’d be highly surprised if we get 5 home games though….!