Live Premiership final round – race for play-offs: Teams and latest updates in battle for top four
It is a case of five out of three in today's final round of the regular Premiership season.
Leicester, Sale, Bristol, Gloucester and Saracens will all be looking over their shoulders this afternoon knowing that one slip up could see their hopes of joining table-toppers Bath in the play-offs kicked into touch.
The five could all still finish anywhere from second to sixth with just five points separating them after 17 matches.
For these play-off hopefuls it is very much a case of squeaky-bum time, something that is very much the opposite of what Bath have been going through. The West Country giants secured a home tie in the semi-finals with three rounds of matches still to go –underlining a season of dominance that sees them head into today's fixtures a mammoth 15 points of their nearest rivals, Leicester.
The Tigers will likely be the most confident of the five hopefuls. They have a home clash against the Premiership's basement dwellers Newcastle to negotiate this afternoon. They know a win over the Falcons will secure both second place and a home semi-final.
Third in the table are Sale. They head to Exeter to face a side with nothing to play for. Victory would guarantee them third place regardless of other results. Defeat with two bonus points would still be enough for a spot in the play-offs.
Bristol Bears and face Harlequins. A win would guarantee a top-four finish but anything less and they'll be biting their nails with Gloucester and Saracens ready to pounce.
For Gloucester nothing less than a win will do. They come up against reigning champions Northampton. Even if they do secure the victory they need Sale to lose without any bonus points or Bristol just to lose to sneak into the top four.
Saracens host Bath in north London knowing they, too, need a helping hand and Lady Luck on their side in their bid to avoid missing out on the top four for the third time since 2009. They need to win by a lot and hope other results go their way.
All the matches kick-off at 3.05 so please stay here for all the action, twists and turns on what should prove to be a nail-biting afternoon.
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