Welcome to the last games of the regular season. There are still a few important games, as well as some interesting clashes.

LM Pirates 10 Wild Thangs 10

A straight-forward winner takes the top spot battle is the 'Game of the week', between two playoff teams with ten wins each.
LM Pirates haven't been the most impressive of teams, amongst their five losses so far have been defeats by The SQUALES of Beach, Severnside Cardinals and a recent loss to Ville Vikings. None of these teams are poor but The Pirates would not of surprised anyone with victories over these teams. On the other hand they do have a victory already over Wild Thangs (42-21), and the highly impressive victory @ Inbhir Narann (20-8).
Wild Thangs other than their defeat to LM Pirates have only really had one poor result, that was the trouncing they received @ The Green Machine (54-14). Of their other three defeats only the 18 point defeat @ Deflators was one sided. Their losses to Inbhir Narann by 4 and Hucknall Broncos by 7 were actually quite impressive, although it should be noted that Wild Thangs were at home for those two games. They have managed notable wins @ Flow Gaming by 25 points and a 7 point win while entertaining Budapest Wolves. Although good wins, neither were a shock.
Wild Thangs certainly have the more expensive team, with a wage bill more than 50% more than that of LM Pirates, and both teams are able to pull out great playbooks on occasion but it's more likely that the better conditioned team will win. I think Wild things will have an edge throughout the game but it will be the fourth quarter where we will see daylight between the teams as Wild Thangs dominate the late game.

LM Pirates 20 Wild Thangs 34

M. Divers 14 Basterds 13

As two of the three teams most likely to achieve promotion from the NC clash, it will be primarily about pride, not to mention sending a message to the opposition should these two teams meet in the playoffs.
M. Divers could theoretically claim the number one spot in the playoffs, they are currently tied with Hucknall Broncos for that spot, both on wins and points difference. They will ultimately have to settle for second place as while they battle Basterds, The Broncos will have the pleasure of a trip to Chesterton Cheese. Divers certainly haven't outclassed all their opponents this season but, with one exception, they've always got the job done. If you're looking for the low points in their season there is the 10 point loss @ Inbhir Narann or the mere 2 point win @ Bison City Nightcrew. Though that is probably more like cluthing at straws rather than finding chinks in their armour, it may give hope to their future opponents. Simply put, this may be the best team in Thunder 1:1.
Basterds need to win this game by 25 points to take the division. That won't happen but even to be in mathematical contention after fifteen games is a testament to their abilities. They too lost to Inbhir Narann (30-24) and they did lose @ Divers by 10 points but they can boast of an impressive but narrow win @ Deflators (by 1 point).
This will be a very competitive game despite the fact that ultimately nothing will change with the result, the teams are all but equal and despite the fact that Divers seem to be experts at pulling off major wins, I'll go for Basterds because of the home-field advantage.

M. Divers 28 Basterds 30

Deflators 13 Severnside Cardinals 8

Deflators were the last team to be beaten in the league this season, they've now lost two games. Their opponents in those games were Divers and Basterds, though Deflators have beaten Inbhir Narann, a team that has beaten both Divers and Basterds. A win in this game will guarantee them home-field advantage in the AC playoff games.
The Cardinals season is over.
In this game the Cardinals will be playing one of the very best teams in Thunder 1:1. Only one winner for me.

Deflators 28 Severnside Cardinals 6

Steelers 8 Amersfoort Alligators 12

Steelers season is over.
The Alligators, despite their early fears, won their division with ease. Yet they are not expected to get far in the playoffs, if they do they will not only need to out-fight their opponents, they'll need to out-think their opponents too.
Amersfoort should repeat the kind of victory they managed earlier in the season against Steelers.

Steelers 6 Amersfoort Alligators 44

Hucknall Broncos 14 Chesterton Cheese 4

Hucknall Broncos should amass enough points in their victory to put them clear as the top team in NC playoff rankings. Their 34 point loss at home against Basterds will still be a concern, but that was in week three. Not much has been of concern since.

Hucknall Broncos 84 Chesterton Cheese 7

Ville Vikings 9 Flow Gaming 8

These two teams will battle for AC South, Flow Gaming need to win by 22 points to take the division from Ville Vikings.
Ville Vikings looked out of the race for the division, before the collapse of Xu Da. Although it was ironically Xu Da that gave them the best chance of winning the title by beating Flow Gaming last game.
Flow Gaming must pick themselves up quickly and recover from their defeat to Xu Da. They have home-field advantage and a squad that is paid over than three times more than The Vikings squad.
Their is very little difference between these two teams but I will go for a Gaming victory, but by no means by enough.

Ville Vikings 9 Flow Gaming 14

Die Verdammten 12 Dayton Tornados 4

Die Verdammten are worthy winners of the NC East, overcoming the Toledo Tigers. This game against an unmanaged team is a bonus. It will be interesting to see if they can mount any sought of challenge in the playoffs.

Die Verdammten w/o Dayton Tornados

Wolflings 8 The SQUALES of Beach 8

This game may not matter this season but both teams only need to improve by a couple of wins or so to reach the playoffs next season. This game, though, I'll go for the high spending Wolfings.

Wolflings 24 The SQUALES of Beach 16

UNTOUCHABLES 4 Budapest Wolves 11

Budapest Wolves will be heading to the playoffs full of confidence. Despite only beating Steelers by a point last match, they seem to be aiming to peak for the playoffs. They'll take this match without much thought.

UNTOUCHABLES 6 Budapest Wolves 48

Parma Horses 2 Inbhir Narann 12

Inbhir Narann may have to take a wildcard slot but few teams can claim the scalps this team has taken. They've beaten Basterds and Divers, but Deflators did manage to do the double over them this season. Inbhir Narann may be the team with the most potential in the league, but potential doesn't win games. To impress in the playoffs they'll need to be more consistent. They can beat the best teams, but at the moment they can be beaten by the lesser playoff teams - just ask LM Pirates.

Parma Horses Inbhir Narann w/o

Toledo Tigers 12 Texas Tech 1

Toledo Tigers will have to take the playoffs from the visitors' position. It's not an easy task. In truth they are not the best team in the playoffs, but their performances have been good enough to at least get them there. They've only lost three games, and all of those have been against superior playoff rivals. They have beaten good opposition, Die Verdammten probably the most impressive, although Ville Vikings, The Green Machine and Flow Gaming are also noteworthy. They will get the chance of a rest before the playoffs with this match.

Toledo Tigers w/o Texas Tech

The Green Machine 8 Ramsey Raiders 4

The Green Machine continue to impress, Totoras Patriots being their latest victim. Whether this impressive team can continue their current form next season remains to be seen. If they can, they will be a handful.
Ramsey Raiders would love a victory here to avoid the relegation game. With The Broncos heading for the top seeding in the playoffs, The Green Machine winning both games and admirers and Chesterton Cheese's spectacular fall from competitiveness The Raiders are probably the overlooked team in the division. In reality they are a newly promoted team, that if they can avoid relegation will also have achieved something special. A win here would secure Thunder 1:1 games next season.
The Green Machine are achieving more than most thought they would this season and have impressed in their last twelve games, by big wins, surprise wins, or simply avoiding thrashings that are, more often than not, expected. The Raiders winning would be a romantic way to end their first season. I'm not romantic - ask my poor, poor girlfriend.

The Green Machine 38 Ramsey Raiders 6

Bison City Nightcrew 9 Shropshire Swifts 1

Bison City's win here will confirm them as the best team in the NC not to make the playoffs.
Shropshire Swifts will be hoping to bounce back to Thunder 1:1 as soon as possible. They are not yet a competitive team but aren't over-spending for a short term win. Hopefully, that is an indication of a long term strategy that will see them reap rewards.

Bison City Nightcrew 29 Shropshire Swifts 0

Jac Team 3 Xu Da 6

Jac Team look set for a relegation game. They may prevail, if not they should be strong enough to return to Thunder 1:1 with minimal improvement. They be concentrating on that game and the draft.
Xu Da's horrific six game losing streak has ended and they look set to finish the season with consecutive wins. A disappointing season but not an embarrassing one.
Xu Da should be too strong for Jac Team.

Jac Team 13 Xu Da 30

SimKonville Fraggles 2 Pittsburgh Steelers 4

Pittsburgh Steelers will finish their season on a high, avoiding the relegation game.

SimKonville Fraggles Pittsburgh Steelers w/o

Totoras Patriots 5 PGI Andorre Solutions 1

Totoras Patriots will look at this season as a mis-step. One of the best teams, potentially - they too often forgot how to win. They lost a host of close games and, despite being in the toughest division in Thunder 1:1, will certainly be worth keepin an eye on for next season. I'm sure a lot of managers will be hoping to avoid this sleeping giant when the fixtures are announced.
PGI, hampered by being in the toughest division, didn't do themselves justice this season and relegation is the result. They certainly weren't the weakest team in Thunder 1:1 and could well be back, come season 25. Improvements will be made to the team but I get the impression that until significant improvements are made to their playbook they won't be able to compete in this division.

Totoras Patriots 33 PGI Andorre Solutions 6

By the way, if my maths is good and Raiders lose they will join Jac Team in Relegation Matches. If they win it will be Jac Team and Chesterton Cheese. The other two spots going to bot teams. Unless Jac Team and Cheese both lose in which case it will be Untouchables. If all three teams manage the win then it will be Jac Team again!

As for what happens if Swifts or PGI win, I'll let someone else work it out!

Nice write up again mate. As for what will happen in the basement, I'll just see after the games have finished