SO ... how good's your math?
The final round of Wanganui Premier club rugby has thrown up multiple startling scenarios that have Taihape, Marton and Kaierau all caught up in the maelstrom.
With just four competition points separating the three for fourth spot, Marton's journey to the Country Club to face Kaierau is crucial because while Taihape face wooden-spooners Utiku Old Boys, anyone thinking the cellar-dwellers won't give it everything in the local derby at Memorial Park will be kidding themselves.
Coming off the bye, Taihape still have two players sitting out a suspension and will remember their 17-17 draw with Utiku, who now have nothing to lose.
Therefore, depending how Saturday afternoon plays out, either Taihape or Kaierau may need to play their postponed June 22 match - which has been pencilled in for 2pm on Sunday less than 24 hours after what are guaranteed to be bruising encounters for both.
"The call won't be made till about 5pm on Saturday," said WRFU club liaison JB Phillips. "If Taihape win and get five points, and Kaierau get beat or draw, it won't be played because Taihape will have qualified."
However, Marton with a bonus-point victory could potentially go ahead of Taihape come Saturday evening, which in a cruel twist straight out of the Survivor reality TV show, means they would need the team they knocked out to save them by beating Taihape at home.
However, if Kaierau beat Marton, they also want the Taihape game because they could still be a chance remote of toppling the men in red and earning a most unlikely comeback story.
"We'll be waiting for that blimming phone call," said Marton coach Cornel Mason.
"If we were to beat [Kaierau] on Saturday, are they going to go to Taihape? I think they're looking for a bloody big one [with us]."
Marton can only control their own destiny Mason has said their focus is just to earn two wins in a season over Kaierau after the 47-20 victory in May. His guys are excited, but he told them at training to be "realistic", even if they do win.
"Let's finish the round off and finish the season on a high. We had [fourth] in our hands, but I think back to the Ratana [loss], for instance."
The team are without injured playmaker Taukiri Manawatu, so Mason will again play this time at No10 because Heartland coach Karl Hoskin is eager to see how Tyler Rogers-Holden fares at halfback against Kaierau's Josh Edwards.
Kaierau coach Keith Savell could not say if losing to Marton would mean they still fronted on Sunday if Taihape needed to play.
"It will be depending on squad numbers. Obviously, we went up to Taihape with 15 last week," Savell said.
"Saturday that's the only thing we're worrying about at the moment. We need to win both games to have a chance. It's a big ask, but the guy's have got big hearts."
With Michael Horrocks still hurt and Brendan Lawrence gone for the year, again Kaierau could well be looking to their senior team to plug the line.
In other matchups, Marist play Border at Spriggens Park and Ratana travel to Ohakune to face Ruapehu.