National Rugby League coaches are reaching for their calculators as one of the closest premiership races on record continues to unfold.
The combination of Melbourne's expulsion from the title race and an even spread of talent has raised the bar for this year's top eight hopefuls, with the traditional benchmark of 28 competition points unlikely to be enough to guarantee a finals berth.
It has even opened up the possibility that for the first time a team finishing on 30 points could miss out.
Teams currently fifth through seventh - Manly, Warriors and Gold Coast - all need four more wins to be assured a finals spot, with the winner of Sunday's Mt Smart Stadium clash between the Warriors and Titans earning some breathing space.
