Super Championship Sunday

Ask anyone who has actually watched any of the Championship this year and they will tell you that it has been far and away the most exciting in recent memory, maybe even ever, with literally any team capable of beating any other on the day, and the top spot changing hands almost weekly. The nay-sayers will give you the standard line about West Brazil Albion being the only team out of the 24 who can actually pass a ball, everyone else just hoofing to a big man up top, but throughout the year we have seen some fantastic stuff from virtually every team in the division, and enough passion to put the Premier League to shame. With just the one game left to play this Sunday then, we thought it would be fitting to give everyone a summation of the state of play as things stand, with promotion, play-offs and relegation all coming down to this vital 46^th. All games take place at 14:00 Sunday, with Stoke and Hull being shown live on Sky TV, so we urge you to tune in, because basically anything could happen.

1	West Bromwich Albion	45	22	12	11	86	55	31	78	Promotion to Premier League 2008-09
2	Stoke City	45	21	15	9	69	55	14	78
3	Hull City	45	21	12	12	65	46	19	75	League Championship playoffs 2007-08
4	Bristol City	45	19	14	12	51	53	-2	71
5	Watford	45	18	15	12	61	55	6	69
6	Crystal Palace	45	17	17	11	53	42	11	68
7	Wolverhampton Wanderers	45	17	16	12	52	48	4	67
8	Ipswich Town	45	17	15	13	64	56	8	66
9	Sheffield United	45	17	15	13	54	48	6	66
10	Plymouth Argyle	45	17	13	15	60	49	11	64
11	Burnley	45	16	14	15	60	62	-2	62
12	Charlton Athletic	45	16	13	16	59	57	2	61
13	Cardiff City	45	15	16	14	56	55	1	61
14	Queens Park Rangers	45	14	16	15	60	64	-4	58
15	Preston North End	45	15	11	19	50	53	-3	56
16	Norwich City	45	15	10	20	48	55	-7	55
17	Barnsley	45	14	13	18	52	62	-10	55
18	Blackpool	45	12	17	16	58	63	-5	53
19	Coventry City	45	14	11	20	51	60	-9	53
20	Sheffield Wednesday	45	13	13	19	50	54	-4	52
21	Leicester City	45	12	15	18	42	45	-3	51
22	Southampton	45	12	15	18	53	70	-17	51	Relegation to League One 2008-09
R	Scunthorpe United	45	11	12	22	43	66	-23	45
R	Colchester United	45	7	16	22	59	83	-24	37

At the top of the pile then, West Brom and Stoke City are currently tied on points with 78, but the Baggies’ superior goal difference gives them the edge at the moment. They are basically guaranteed promotion after their point on Monday night against Southampton; it would take a miracle for Hull to superceed them from third given the goal difference, as I seriously doubt the Tigers have a 13 – 0 win in their locker. Stoke then need just a point at home to Leicester to keep their fate in their own hands, but they might not even need that should Hull fail to get 3 points against play-off outsiders Ipswich. Looking at those teams currently occupying the third to sixth places, what we see is probably a fair reflection of the year as a whole, with early pace-setters Watford and Bristol City holding down spots alongside current form teams Hull and Crystal Palace. Wolves are just outside the qualification zone, despite playing some nice stuff and scoring plenty of goals, with defensive leaks costing them a higher finish this year. Along with Ipswich, Sheffield United are still mathematically able to finish in the top 6, but after a poor season which has seen them rely almost solely on James Beattie for goals, they would be perhaps punching above their weight.

Down near the drop-zone, Norwich and Barnsley have managed to turn things around in recent weeks to ensure their safety. Overall, relegation for either of these teams would certainly have been unfair given the talent they each have and their desire to play attacking football, but awful starts to the campaign made it look like a reality at Christmas. So with Colchester and Scunthorpe already resigned to their fate, we are left with five teams on the bubble, with just two points separating Southampton, Leicester, Sheffield Wednesday, Coventry and Blackpool. On the final day, all five teams face tough challenges however: Southampton face Sheffield United at home, Leicester are away at Stoke, Sheffield Wednesday host Norwich, Coventry are at Charlton, and Blackpool have Watford visiting. Wednesday and Coventry perhaps have the edge, since they face teams with nothing to play for, but the other three all face stern tests against sides vying for promotion in one way or another. It’s too close to call, but STT’s money is on the Southampton, currently occupying that dreaded 22^nd spot, to be relishing League One football next year.

Finally we turn our attention to the Championship PFA awards, that also took place this past weekend when Ronaldo was crowned big cheese for the second successive year, but no-one heard about it. Understandably, title rivals Stoke and West Brom dominated the side, with three players from each club earning selection. Impressive Potters trio Ryan Shawcross, Liam Lawrence and Ricardo Fuller were all rewarded for their fine form, and a goal-scoring record of 38 in total between them, by making the PFA's best XI. Albion meanwhile were represented by Paul Robinson, Jonathan Greening and Kevin Phillips, with unsung heroes Carl Hoefkens and Robert Koren also surely in contention. Bristol City duo Bradley Orr and Marvin Elliott figured as well, alongside Wolves goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey, Barnsley captain and FA Cup hero Brian Howard, and finally hulking Watford centre-back Danny Shittu.

PFA Championship Team of the Year:

Wayne Hennessey (Wolves)

Bradley Orr (Bristol City)

Ryan Shawcross (Stoke)

Danny Shittu (Watford)

Paul Robinson (West Brom)

Brian Howard (Barnsley)

Marvin Elliott (Bristol City)

Liam Lawrence (Stoke)

Jonathan Greening (West Brom)

Ricardo Fuller (Stoke)

Kevin Phillips (West Brom)