It's squeaky bum time as protagonists in the country's elite provincial rugby competition start rummaging in the drawers for remedies to fix that twitch in the left eye.
Into the last week of the ITM Cup competition, it's time to ask who's your daddy in the Premiership or Championship tiers.
Teams who have already secured a spot aren't necessarily sitting on their laurels. Pitching a tent on the home turf becomes a priority.
Those who aren't in the equation will love nothing more than to spoil someone's party because myriad permutations suggest some teams are relying on the results of other matches to make the playoffs.
But the prudent know the second you start banking on others you might as well kiss your aspirations goodbye.
In the case of the Hawke's Bay Magpies v Southland Stags' Championship encounter at McLean Park, Napier, on Saturday there's also the Ranfurly Shield up for grabs.
Come 5.35pm, the Brendon O'Connor-skippered Magpies will definitely have a clearer picture of what their quotient will be in the number-crunching game.
Sitting second on the table, the Craig Philpott and Danny Lee-coached Magpies are somewhere between the devil and the deep blue sea.
It seems facing a rampant Northland Taniwha, who beat them 23-21 in Whangarei early last month, is somewhat unavoidable.
The smart money must go on Premiership campaigners Auckland beating the Taniwha at Eden Park to keep their playoff hopes alive after the Magpies game because the Counties-Manukau Steelers embarrassed them 41-18 last night.
The Steelers are nipping on the heels of Auckland but face Premiership leaders Tasman Makos in the last match of the season on Sunday with Sonny Bill Williams to boot.
Northland, who are a point behind the Magpies on the Championship table, can't slip below the third rung with an eight-point lead above the Stags and North Harbour.
Whether the Magpies will go hell for leather in thumping the Jamie Mackintosh-captained Stags on Saturday will, of course, depend on whether the Championship leaders, Manawatu Turbos, put the sword to the Otago Razorbacks in Dunedin tomorrow night.
Frankly, letting go of the Log o' Wood isn't going to be an option because that could potentially derail the Magpies' campaign in winning the Championship to gain promotion to the Premiership.
One more win and the shield will be locked up at the Bay union trophy cabinet until next year.
Yes, tango with the devil it shall be.
That is not to say Southland lack any motivation.
Perched precariously on the fourth rung of the Championship table, the Stags are locked on 17 points with late bloomers North Harbour.
Southland will know the result of the Wellington v North Harbour clash in the capital in the first game on Saturday, praying the latter won't add bonus points to victory but the win-less Lions look like they can't buy a win if they tried.
Like the Magpies, the Southerners are coming off a 24-10 loss to Counties-Manukau in Invercargill last Saturday.
At first glance one can argue it's indicative of the gulf between the tiers but look closer and it commands respect against a Premiership side who lost the shield to the Bay.
One, they didn't have the cup's most productive pivot, Lima Sopoanga, and two, they dominated passages of play against the bolshy mood the Steelers were in last night with players stretchered off the park.
"Lima wasn't available in the last game because he was away in Australia attending a wedding," Southland team manager Mike Mannix said yesterday after "Whopper" Mackintosh didn't return calls because of a rest day.
Mannix said Sopoanga would definitely start on Saturday in what should be a humdinger against Magpie Ihaia West.
Mackintosh last hoisted the shield in Christchurch, helping the Stags break a 50-year drought as they snuck into the 2009 NPC semifinals.
Southland have had one challenge since losing the shield to Taranaki in 2011 - an unmemorable one against the Steelers last year.
The Bay beat Southland 23-15 this week last year in Invercargill but the Stags thumped the Magpies 35-7 at Rugby Park Stadium the year before.
Overall, this NPC is an organiser's dream.
Final fling
Some of the permutations in the ITM Cup Championship competition in the final week:
Bay of Plenty v Waikato
• Current position: Seventh. A win for the Steamers would be a great way to end the season. There's a mathematical chance of a playoff match if they secure a bonus point win and Southland, North Harbour and Otago results go their way.
• Best case: Fourth.
• Worst case: Seventh.
• Who to cheer for: BOP, Manawatu, Wellington and Magpies.
HB Magpies v Southland
• Current position: Second. The Magpies are safe in the semis but Saturday's match will have a bearing on who plays who and where in the Championship - not to mention where the Ranfurly Shield spends its summer.
• Best case: First.
• Worst case: Third.
• Who to cheer for: Magpies, Otago and Auckland.
Manawatu v Otago
• Current position: First. The Turbos have a home semifinal secured but won't know who they're playing until Saturday night and a loss could make them vulnerable with the Magpies leapfrogging them to the top of the table. A tie with Northland will keep Manawatu ahead.
• Best case: First.
• Worst case: Second.
• Who to cheer for: Manawatu and Southland.
North Harbour v Wellington
• Current position: Fifth. North Harbour are in the hunt for the fourth playoff spot in the Championship. They'll need to earn one more competition point than Southland to overtake the Stags and for Otago and BOP to lose their matches.
• Best case: Fourth
• Worst case: Seventh
• Who to cheer for: North Harbour, Magpies, Manawatu and Waikato.
Northland v Auckland
• Current position: Third. The Taniwha are safe in the semis regardless of results. They can't overtake Manawatu at the top but the shield changing hands could mean they're playing for home advantage on Saturday night - if tied with Hawke's Bay on points, Northland will go ahead.
• Best case: Second
• Worst case: Fourth
• Who to cheer for: Northland and Southland.
Otago v Manawatu
• Current position: Sixth. Otago could take the fourth playoff spot if they win and the Southland and North Harbour results go the right way for them. A loss and a Bay of Plenty win could see them end up with the wooden spoon.
• Best case: Fourth
• Worst case: Seventh
• Who to cheer for: Otago, Wellington, Magpies and Waikato.
Southland v Magpies
• Current position: Fourth. The Stags could lock the Ranfurly Shield in the cabinet and secure a playoff spot if they win in the Bay. A loss and they will be vulnerable to being overtaken by any of the teams below them and ending up in last place, especially if they don't get a bonus point.
• Best case: Fourth
• Worst case: Seventh
• Who to cheer for: Southland, Wellington, Manawatu and Waikato.