Six teams and five games; that's all that is left in this A-League football season as the regular season has finished and the finals now begin.
Sydney FC goes into the finals as the favourite to lift the trophy after finishing first on the ladder and accumulating a record number of points doing it.
But if it thought that would gain it some deference from its opposition, it was wrong.
The Melbourne Victory have finished second behind their old rival, securing a bye along with Sydney FC in the first week of the finals.
If both Sydney and the Victory win their semifinals in a fortnight, they would meet in the grand final on Sunday, May 7.
But speaking to Fox Sports, Victory coach Kevin Muscat has cast doubt over whether Sydney will even make it to the title-deciding match-up.
"Sydney's irrelevant at the moment, because they might not make the grand final. We've just got to concentrate and worry about ourselves and give ourselves the best opportunity to be in the big dance. And if it happens to be Sydney, well, great. We owe them one."
The first weekend of the finals will be fought out between the Brisbane Roar, Melbourne City, the Perth Glory and the Western Sydney Wanderers.
Meanwhile, in the AFL, it is a long way to the top, and Melbourne City knows that better than most.
Almost perennially downtrodden in recent years, City is trying to move up the ladder under new coach Simon Goodwin.
His reign started well, with two wins in his first two games.
But last week, City lost to Geelong.
And, after looking good in the first half this past weekend against Fremantle, City failed to kick a goal in the third quarter.
Fremantle kicked seven, and that formed enough of a buffer to hold off a strong City finish in the final quarter.
Goodwin laments that even short lapses are costing his team as it tries to become a genuine championship contender again.
"We're shattered as a footy club in general. We've had two quarters over the last two weeks which haven't resembled anything about us. Those two quarters in two weeks haven't resembled what we want to be as a footy club."
If analysts had guessed what the National Rugby League standings would look like seven weeks into the season, few would have put Saint George anywhere near the top.
Indeed, the main question going into the team's 2017 campaign seemed to be at what point coach Paul McGregor would be sacked.
Yet, seven rounds into the season, the Dragons are first on the league ladder.
Their latest triumph, a 28-22 victory, came as they took advantage of the absence of North Queensland Cowboys superstar Johnathan Thurston.
Dragons halfback Josh McCrone has told Fox Sports the team's unexpected turnaround is due to keeping things simple, using their size in attack and teamwork in defence.
"We've said it a lot, but I think we've just simplified our game plan. We're just letting the big boys roll forward, get the ball in their hands early and just go. And, defensively, we've been turning up for each other."
In rugby union, it is a rare moment of joy for the Melbourne Rebels.
There has been a frenzy of speculation that either they or the Perth-based Western Force will be one of the teams culled as authorities pare back the Super Rugby competition.
Their cause has not been helped by losses in their first five matches this season.
But this weekend produced perhaps the rugby equivalent of an Easter miracle.
The Rebels have picked up their first win of the season, beating the top team in the Australian conference, the A-C-T Brumbies, 19-17.
It was a triumph heavily savoured by the weary Rebels players, as captain Nic Strizaker is happy to admit.
"You probably saw it on the field, celebrating a bit hard for a regular-season win. But I think it just shows where we've been with the results, and also off the field, just a combination."
As they wait to hear their fate, the Rebels now head to South Africa for a fortnight for matches against the Durban-based Sharks and the Port Elizabeth-based Kings.
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