One round is left and two teams are still battling for the final semifinal spot.
University A and Harbour are already through. Technically, Dunedin could still miss out, but there is no way it will lose to Pirates this weekend.
That leaves Kaikorai and Southern scrambling for the remaining spot.
Kaikorai kept its playoff prospects alive with a crucial 30-27 win against Taieri.
Southern scored late in the game to beat Harbour 23-20 in a tense match.
Dunedin more or less secured its playoff berth with its 32-19 win against Green Island.
University A pummelled Zingari-Richmond 61-0. Winger Gavin Stark scored four tries to take his season tally to 19. Only three other players have scored 19 or more tries since the Otago Daily Times began keeping detailed statistics in 1976.
Alhambra-Union dispatched Pirates 41-8 in the other match.
Kaikorai 30
Taieri 27
You do not see too many pushover tries these days but Kaikorai secured two of them against Taieri in a crucial match at Peter Johnstone Park.
The visiting side needed the win to remain in the hunt for a semifinal spot and the front row led the charge.
But it was the home side which started the stronger of the two teams.
Winger Glen Beadle scored in the second minute of the game when he danced through some suspect defence.
That woke Kaikorai up but it spent most of the opening 20 minutes defending its line.
Fullback Michael Collins added a second five-pointer for Taieri when he went over in the corner following a long build up.
Taieri left winger Mitchell Scott had a terrific game, scoring three tries.
But before he got on the scorecard he made a poor decision.
He took a quick throw, lobbing the ball up for himself.
That part worked well but he fumbled the catch and conceded a scrum five metres out.
Kaikorai marched Taieri's scrum back and No 8 Lee Allan rolled the ball over the line and scored.
Trailing 17-10 at the break, Kaikorai responded through prop Jonah Aoina.
After battering away at the line, he scooped the ball up and dived over.
Kaikorai added another pushover try but Taieri got back in the match thanks to a snipe down the blindside by impressive halfback Kurt Hammer.
Josh Casey made a good carry as well and Scott was on hand to score.
A penalty to Kaikorai with five minutes remaining sealed the victory but Taieri added a consolation try, when Scott scampered 95m.
Alhambra-Union 41
Pirates 8
Centre Poasa Cama sparked Alhambra-Union into life with a sizzling break into the 22m area early in the second half that took the wind out of Pirates' sails at the North Ground.
Wing Adam Simpson scored to start a five-try and 31-point scoring spree as Alhambra-Union turned a narrow halftime 10-8 lead into a commanding 41-8 win.
The game had been stop-start and full of mistakes in the first spell. Pirates, with its strong scrum, looked capable of taking command after the break.
But Cama and the other Alhambra-Union backs had other ideas and ran the ball back at Pirates from all parts of the paddock.
First five-eighth Jona Nareki scored a brilliant individual try when he dodged left and right with his dancing feet to score close to the posts.
Solid midfield back Rhys Morgan scored the first try and kicked five goals from seven attempts to take his season's points tally to 149.
Lock Ryan Dawson made nine clean takes in the lineout and was the best Alhambra-Union forward. He was backed up by props Liam Coltman, who threw accurately to the lineout, and Bevan Bolger and flanker Max Aitkenhead.
The skilled front row of Craig Millar, Hamish Boult and Richard Ford helped Pirates dominate the scrums to put Alhambra-Union on the back foot.
The best Pirates back was centre Paul Tupai who burst down the centre and put in a kick that led to Pirates' only try by wing Will Scorgie just before halftime.
Dunedin 32
Green Island 19
Dunedin needed five points from this game to guarantee a spot in the semifinals and achieved this but that was about the only highlight at Kettle Park.
There was also a thunderous tackle from Dunedin prop Will Henry which almost ripped off the torso of the tackled player but it was a match which drifted along.
The game was willingly contested but there were innumerable penalties at breakdown time and countless discussions between referee Rob Wells and players over the finer points of body position.
Green Island had good periods in the game, especially the last 20 minutes of the first spell where it dominated territory and possession.
It only had two penalties to show for its industry.
Dunedin had managed the same and it looked like a stalemate at the break.
But right on halftime Dunedin finally got a long line out to work in the 22m area and No8 Morgan Reedy strolled over.
Dunedin scored three tries in the first 20 minutes of the second spell and two more came from lineout drives to one of the game's best performers in flanker Hame Toma.
Visiting second five-eight Sam Eriepa got the obligatory late consolation try off some inept Dunedin tackling to put some respectability into the score.
For Dunedin, lock Mark Grieve Dunn and Toma were far and away their best, as per usual. Blindside flanker Jamie Mowat and powerhouse prop Will Henry supported them well.
Halfback Will Cosgriff and Henry Scott at fullback were the best backs.
Lock Jackson Hemopo was outstanding for Green Island and kept it in the game with his powerful surges.
He was ably supported by fellow lock Tim Heller and prop Richard Te Nahu. Eriepa was its best out wide.
University 61
Zingari-Richmond 0
University's ability to score from opposition mistakes saw it run away with a convincing 61-0 victory over Zingari-Richmond at the University of Otago Oval.
While territory and possession honours remained on par for most of the match, it was the ever-present danger of the University A backline that pounced on mistakes and turned them into points.
The mid-field pairing of Shae Tucker and Tim Murgatroyd proved a lethal combination in cracking open Zingari-Richmond's defensive line.
The danger man for University A was right wing, Gavin Stark, who bagged four tries to take his season's tally to 19.
Stark now sits in equal second place for most tries scored in a season, with former University players Hayden Reid, who achieved the feat in 1999 and Roy Hawker (2000).
The only player ahead of them is Steve Dunn (Southern), who bagged 26 in 1997.
As the record books open for Stark, not many could fault his general all round play, as he searched for work, ran aggressively with ball in hand and helped set up the overlap.
The University pack was inspired by captain Sam Sturgess in his 103rd game, Damien Scott and prop super-sub Angus Williams.
Unfortunately, the scoreline does not reflect the passion with which the Zingari-Richmond forward pack played. Tom Rowe, Chris Bell, Chris Preddy and Marcel Taani all featured.
Southern 23
Harbour 20
Southern scored a try in the dying minutes at Bathgate Park to finish ahead of Harbour in a match which ebbed and flowed throughout.
Harbour looked to have secured the victory when halfback Tala Fagasoaia dived over with just five minutes left.
That came after a long stint of pressure by Harbour on the Southern line.
Both teams enjoyed sustained periods on attack but were rather one-dimensional in trying to get the ball over the tryline.
The match was marred by an ugly fight at the end of the first half between Southern hooker Junior Sala and Harbour loose forward Iloa Lihau.
They traded several punches and were rightly red-carded by referee Mitch Will.
The game did not lose its structure after they left, although many players struggled on the rather puggy surface.
Harbour led 12-10 at the break after a nice break by the Harbour backs put Fagasoaia over.
After he scored his second try, Southern managed to get the ball back and piled into the breakdown.
Following several phases, the ball went to the left and fullback Josh Buchan dived over.
Southern had Mike Mafi back at No8 and he made plenty of metres with the ball in hand while lock Axel Hohneck was industrious.
Halfback Josh Walden linked well and Josh Ioane outside him kicked well and was good with the ball in hand.
Harbour lock Hale T-Pole was into everything, prop Aidan Spence got round the field, while first five-eight Joe Collins showed some nice touches.
