SOUTH Lancashire/Cheshire Division Two has thrown up another big Manx derby game this weekend when the once promotion-chasing Douglas make the short trip to Ballafletcher where they meet old rivals Sure-sponsored Vagabonds.
Douglas were frontrunners for much of this season but a recent slump in form has pushed them to the very fringes of the promotion race and if results go against them this weekend, their campaign will be over for good.
They are 16 points off the lead and if they don’t win this game their mathematical chances of sneaking in are over. The promotion chase was in reality ended a few weeks ago with defeats away at Moore and Dukinfield.
Vagas very much still have the carrot dangling. Not the promotion carrot mind you, the finishing ahead of Douglas carrot, which some may argue is more important!
A total of 11 points separate them in the standings and a Vagas’ bonus-point win could trim that right down.
Douglas won the earlier meeting 32-16 in emphatic style, but the loss of Bryn Snellgrove and Will Latta has hit them hard though.
However, the Port-e-Chee outfit is still very fit and may have an edge over Vagabonds who were blowing very hard at the end of last week’s game against Ramsey.
Vagabonds will hope to welcome back number eight Akkie Van Den Berg who is due to have a fitness test late in the week. They will, however, be missing the raw pace of Andy Pease who is unavailable.
Expect the final score to be a bit closer than 32-16 with maybe Vagas just sneaking it.