As the countdown to the end of the season begins and hots up, this weeks full programme of fixtures in The Championship will bring more answers as to who will be in that top six at the end of the season.

Aside from our fixture at Hull, Saints fans will have their eyes on two other games, Reading make a tricky trip to Peterborough who you never quite know just what they will do, at home though Posh usually either win (8) or lose (7) rarely drawing (2) only we have scored more goals at home than them (34) but with 29 conceded only Forest have let in more on their own ground, in short its a tough one to call, but sadly for Saints, Barnsley had a similar record before the weekend and we all know what happened up there.

West Ham are at home to Middlesbrough, having drawn the last four at home, half of me says that there is a good chance of at least a point for Boro whilst the other half thinks that surely they cant fall down again at home, if they do then I would hazard a guess that the Hammers fans will not exactly be cheering their team off the pitch, Boro though do have something to play for in that if they were to win they would take a giant step towards a play off spot, if they lose however then they would probably drop out of the top six with only two points seperating fourth and ninth places in the table.

Brighton will be looking to despatch Derby to keep up their challenge as will leeds and cardiff who entertain Forest and Coventry respectively, both nailed on home wins, Pompey fans would hope.

Pompey themselves host Birmingham, their failure to beat Bristol City means that Michael Appleton is now unique in that he is the only man in the country who thinks thay can still escape relegation, if Birmingham dont get beaten then even Appleton will surely start to realise the game is up.

Another big game is Blackpool V Leicester, the Lancashire Club have played one more game more than most in the play off battle and know that they have to keep winning to stay in the top six, anything less and they could drop out of the play off spots, for their part Leicester should be doing a lot better but just cant seem to put a ruin together, they are getting to last chance saloon with their feint play off hopes, if they can beat Blackpool they will only be five behind them with a game in hand, they could still come good, the reality though is that anything other than that win and you have to think that their chances are fading fast.

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Fordy added 12:25 - Mar 19 I can't see Peterborough getting anything against Reading. Their form at home was better at the start of the season and in their last 5 home games they have won 2 and lost 3. Their record against teams in the top half isn't great (Won 3, Draw 5, Lost 10) so there's not much to cling to there. Middlesborough have been fairly god against the top sides and have only lost 2 of their last 5 away games, so hopefully they will at least pick up a point. They are the sort of side that will make it hard for West Ham and hopefully they will be able to keep things tight long enough for the West Ham fans to get restless. Saints have got the hardest match of the three. Hull haven't lost in their last five home games, but they have only won one of them, so a point should at least be possible and I think most Saints fans would take that with a winnable home game coming up at the weekend. I don't know what Appleton is supposed to say. Much as I don't like Pompey, I think Appleton is a good manager and I'm sure he'll be off to a bigger and better club soon.

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bstokesaint added 12:53 - Mar 19 I can see us dropping down to second tomorrow night as much as it pains me to say it, not helped by the large contingent Reading fans I have as friends and whom I have been dishing large doses of the #topoftheleague to for months now. I reckon they were ready to barrage me back this coveted hash tag at 4.45pm before being stunned into silence. I think if we take a point at Hull it's a good result and a tough game out of the way. I'm not sure what West Ham will do, but anything other than a win will cause huge unrest amongst their fans. Like Fordy says Appleton has no choice other than to think positive. Realistically he knows they are doomed and won't get the 7/8 wins quoted. The only thing he doesn't know is how doomed that may be. Doomed out of existance or long term existance having derbies with the Cherries.

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TimSaint added 15:27 - Mar 19 Are we having a guide to Hull, as you have done for similar away trips ? 5 of us travelling up tomorrow, but none of us have ever been there before. Looking for a good place to park and any recommended places for food and drink. Thanks in advance !!
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