End of long season in sight for embattled Gisborne Thistle

Gisborne Thistle host Taradale in Central Fed League football tomorrow. As of yesterday, Thistle had 10 fit players Photo / Getty Images

Three more games. Gisborne Thistle have struggled the whole season with injuries, sickness and conflicting commitments, and the end is in sight.

Two of those games are in Central Football’s Federation League, the first of those being against Taradale at Childers Road Reserve tomorrow at 2.45pm.

The second comes the following Saturday, at the same time, same venue, against Havelock North Wanderers.

And win, lose or draw those two games, Electrinet Thistle’s last match of the season will be in the playoffs for a place in a reintroduced Central League 2 competition next year.

Thistle are sixth in the league and are assured a playoffs place.

The top three teams in both the Federation League and Capital Premier competition automatically qualify for Central League 2. The other four places in the 10-team league will go to the winners of crossover games between the fourth to seventh-placed teams of the Federation League and Capital Premier/Capital 1 competitions.

Second teams of clubs do not qualify for the playoffs, so the competition immediately below Wellington’s top flight will have to make up the numbers from the Capital leagues.

It is in clubs’ interests to keep striving for the highest possible placing this season, it determines the ranking of their opposition in the playoffs. Fourth in one league will play seventh in the other, fifth will play sixth, sixth will play fifth and seventh will play fourth.

Thistle’s opponents tomorrow, Taradale, are fourth but if FC Western lose or draw their match against Whanganui Athletic in New Plymouth, Taradale could finish third by beating the Jags.

Meanwhile, the Jags have New Plymouth Rangers breathing down their necks, two points behind with a game against bottom-placed Peringa United. It’s a local derby, so anything could happen, but Rangers have the greater incentive.

Waiting in the wings are fifth-placed Havelock North, hoping that FC Western and Taradale both slip up, giving them the chance of claiming third place by beating Thistle in the last game of the season.

Thistle, meanwhile, are travelling true to form. As of yesterday, coach Tam Cramer had 10 fit players in his first-team squad. This one’s sick, that one’s injured, he’s not available . . . Cramer must dread the phone ringing.

Still, just three games to go.