The last full round of Topklasse fixtures on Saturday will see three sides battling to join Excelsior ’20 in the first semi-final, with its valuable promise of two opportunities to reach the championship final.

For Excelsior’s Schiedam rivals Hermes-DVS the task is simple: they must beat VRA Amsterdam in Amstelveen to make sure of second spot. That is, of course, easier to state than to achieve, for VRA have a formidable home record, and the contest between the home side’s batsmen and Hermes’ attack will be a crucial feature of the game.

Tom Cooper apart, VRA’s phalanx of internationals did not have a happy time with the bat in Dublin, but this is an entirely different situation, and the Hermes bowlers will need to be at their most effective to contain them.

Hermes will welcome back left-arm spinner – and increasingly, key middle-order batsman – Pieter Seelaar, but much will also depend on whether VRA are able to dismiss Nick Statham and Greg Todd cheaply.

Already certain of top spot in the table, Excelsior will entertain HCC at Thurlede, and for the Haagenaars victory is essential if they are retain any hope of claiming second position. Even then, they will still have to face VRA in Amstelveen the following week, but defeat this Saturday would mean that they could not finish higher than third.

When these sides met at Thurlede on 18 July they produced a thriller, HCC winning by just two runs in a high-scoring match, and even through Excelsior can now afford to take their foot off the accelerator somewhat this one may prove equally absorbing.

There has, inevitably, been some speculation about the role, if any, of suspended international seamer Mark Jonkman, but it is to be hoped that the game will be memorable for the cricket it produces rather than any extraneous factors.

With players of the calibre of Excelsior’s Ed Cowan, Daan van Bunge and Usman Malik and HCC’s Johann Myburgh, Imran Nackerdien and Maurits Jonkman involved that should be the case, and HCC will have plenty of incentive to produce their best form and come away with the points.

Three of the teams from the lower half of the table, too, still have plenty to play for – although it may not be entirely certain what, or how much.

The ruling that the rained-off VOC-Quick match must be rescheduled has given Quick Haag the most slender of lifelines, and they will travel to Haarlem knowing that a win against Rood en Wit is essential if they are to have any chance of avoiding that relegation play-off series against Dosti.

Rood en Wit made certain of fifth place by beating VOC last week, and like Excelsior they will go into their final match with the pressure off. And there’s another similarity: their previous encounter at Spanjaardslaan was also a thriller, with Rood en Wit winning by just four runs.

So Quick, with the Mol brothers continuing to provide much of their fire-power, will go into this match determined to keep the battle alive, while VOC and ACC – depending on one’s interpretation of the rules, even the Amsterdammers may not be completely safe – will doubtless be playing their match at the Loopveld with one eye on events in Haarlem.

And it’s equally likely that the administrators, facing two potential areas of dispute and litigation, will be fervently hoping that the issue can be settled on the field rather than in the committee room.

Having both failed narrowly in their run-chases last Sunday, ACC and VOC will be determined to make amends this time, and much may depend on the fortunes of their respective player-coaches, Ryan Maron and Michael Dighton. Neither side has been able to perform consistently this season, and there can be no doubt that VOC have greatly missed international Bas Zuiderent, who has been available for only a handful of games.

But with Chris Smith, Chris Free, Maarten van Ierschot and brothers Daan and Koen van Everdingen the Rotterdammers should in theory be able to provide plenty of support for Dighton, while ACC have a potential matchwinner in Mudassar Bukhari and a reasonably balanced attack.

Since a win here effectively means safety, it seems certain to be the most keenly-contested match of the day.

Predictions? Who knows, but I’ll go with: VRA, Excelsior, Quick, VOC. And if I‘ve got two right I’ll think I’ve done well!