It's the final round of the regular season in the American National Rugby League and there are some very competitive match ups on tap this weekend as teams roll the dice.
Everything is on the line with the postseason looming and apart from qualifying for the playoffs; the most important prize of all will be home field advantage.
(Marvin Dangerfield photo)
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Perhaps the tastiest match of the lot is the Jacksonville Axemen at the Aston DSC Bulls in Philadelphia.
The second-placed Axemen (5-0) have been red hot since the season began and will be looking to continue their scintillating form to ensure another home game in the quarterfinals on August 14.
The fourth-placed Bulls (3-1) have a game in hand against Philadelphia, which is set to be played next Wednesday, July 28, but will want to erase the memories of their only loss so far at the hands of Jacksonville earlier in the season.
Another good test sees the first-placed New Haven Warriors (5-0) on the road at the fifth-placed Wildcats (2-3) in Norwalk, CT.
Like Jacksonville, New Haven has been putting up some impressive numbers while sweeping aside all comers - the flipside is that the Cats have been in good form of late and will be looking to end the regular season at .500.
Another enticing contest pits the eighth-placed Philadelphia Fight (2-2) at home to the ninth-placed Boston 13s (2-3).
Only the top eight teams go through to the postseason so one of these teams could miss out and given that Philly has that game in hand, it's a must win match for Boston because if they lose it’ll be the end of the road for them in 2010.
There's also a replay of last week’s rivalry game between the seventh-placed Washington DC Slayers (2-3) and sixth-placed Fairfax Eagles (2-3).
Not much separated them last Saturday and not much is likely to change this week so look for this one to be another tight tussle.
The final matchup sees defending champs and third-placed New York Knights (3-2) taking on the winless Northern Raiders (0-5). The Knights are assured of a playoff berth, the only question is whether they'll be at home.
Round 7 (home team listed first):
Washington DC Slayers v Fairfax Eagles
Connecticut Wildcats v New Haven Warriors
Philadelphia Fight v Boston 13s
Aston DSC Bulls v Jacksonville Axemen
New York Knights v Northern Raiders
