The six results that can see Pompey can sneak a play-off spot
Thursday, 26th Apr 2018 22:24 by Steve Bone

I'll get straight to the point (for a change). No-one else (as far as I have seen) has been brave enough to do a piece along the lines of how Pompey can sneak into the play-offs, so I'm going to.

Yes I know. Straws, clutching, etc etc. Bob Hope or No Hope. I can imagine what most of you are saying. But this is Pompey we're talking about - the team who blow situations all other teams would never blow, and pull off things no other teams could.

You do remember May 6 last year don't you?

What may surprise some is Pompey only need six results of the games that remain for Scunthorpe, Charlton, Pompey and Plymouth to go their way.

The first factor here, of course, is that Pompey need to win their final two games. If they win one and draw one, they will not catch Charlton and would need a spectacular implosion by Scunthorpe too. So forget that - it's two wins, or bust.

But given that Kenny Jackett didn't give up on the play-off bid even in mid-March, when most Pompey fans wondered where the next win would come from, it's unlikely he will have hoisted the white flag up the pole just yet either.

He and his players know they have to keep on fighting all the time there's a chance - and at the moment, however much some will laugh at the likelihood, or unlikelihood, there is.

Here's what needs to happen for Pompey to sneak into sixth place and line up against Shrewsbury in a play-off semi-final.

At present the table from fifth to eighth looks like this...

Charlton 68 points Scunthorpe 67 ---------- Plymouth 65 Pompey 63

This Saturday the key games are Bury v Pompey and Charlton v Blackburn, and we need wins for Jackett's men and Blackburn - both of which are quite possible. A Plymouth defeat to Rotherham would also be handy, thank you very much, and with the Millers having been going well, it's also more than possible too.

Also on Saturday, Scunthorpe go to MK Dons, but the little 'model' I'm constructing allows for Scunny to finish fifth, so they can do what they like in the town of concrete cows. So let's hand them the win.

That gives us a table reading - from fifth place downwards -

Scunthorpe 70 Charlton 68 -------- Pompey 66 Plymouth 65

Then we move on to next Tuesday when Scunthorpe and Plymouth play their games in hand... against each other. Scunthorpe can win that too, keeping Plymouth behind the Blues going into the final day.

Our table then looks like this Scunthorpe 73 (fifth place confirmed) Charlton 68 -------- Pompey 66 Plymouth 65

On we go to the final day and after the drama we witnessed last year, who's to say what could unfold this time?

For the near-impossible to be completed, we need Charlton to lose to Rochdale and Pompey to beat Peterboro. If those two results happen, and the ones detailed above have also occurred, it won't matter what Plymouth do at Gillingham. So let's be nice to them for a change and hand them a win just to add to the tension.

Our final table, from fifth to eighth, then looks like this...

Scunthorpe 73 plus Pompey 69 -------- Charlton 68 Plymouth 68

Unlikely? Highly. Impossible? No. You're Pompey aren't you? Keep the faith.

STEVE BONE @stevebone1

Read Steve Bone in the Sports Mail and the Pompey programme throughout the season