After a three week break, Super Rugby is to start up again this weekend. The competition resumes at a crucial time with just three rounds left to play and a somewhat congested looking table, leaving a handful of teams fighting it out for the last spot in the top six.
And logically that's all there is left for the taking. The Chiefs, Stormers and Bulls all look to have all but secured their spots, the winning Australian team will take a place, while the Crusaders should grab the fifth spot.
This leaves the Hurricanes, the Sharks, the Highlanders, plus the lower qualifier of the Reds and Brumbies to fight out for the final spot.
It really is a case of do or die, and teams that win all of their remaining games will certainly give themselves every chance to feature come playoff time.
For the Highlanders it isn't an easy task, having to face the table-topping Chiefs and travelling to play the Reds who were beginning to find their stride in the weeks prior to the break.
They finish with a bye, a guaranteed four points which could be crucial, but it will require more than this for the Highlanders to make their first playoff appearance since 2002.
But there's no point getting ahead of ourselves. Taking it one game at a time is the way to do it, so let's shift our focus to Friday night where the Highlanders will host the Chiefs in their final derby game of the season.
The Chiefs have been red hot this year, possessing a lethal backline and a generally very good forward pack. It's hard to pick out a weakness in their play. But don't panic, the Highlanders have shown they are capable of beating this team, as a very under-strength team showed in the first game of the season.
In this game they laid down the blue-print for how to beat the competition front-runners. The key came in being physical in the contact situations, looking to literally smash their opponents at the tackle and breakdowns. It is this that has become a trademark of Highlanders teams over the past two years, but is something that began to fall away as the season progressed.
The break, though, has given them three weeks to refresh, so expect an energetic Highlanders team to bring this physicality back to their game this weekend.
By doing this, they limit the quality of ball the Chiefs will have to work with. On the front foot their backs are lethal and will be hard to stop once in space.
But if the Highlanders can apply pressure at the breakdown, the backs won't be able to let loose in the way they can and become much more containable.
It will also force the Chiefs' outstanding loose-forward trio to commit more to the tight, preventing them from ranging the way they can do so dangerously.
The set piece will need to be strong too. This was a real positive when the two sides met last, with the Highlanders getting the better of both the scrums and the lineouts, providing the backs with good ball.
However it must be remembered that this is a much improved Chiefs team, particularly in this area and the Highlanders have struggled at set piece time for the most part this year.
Both sides have been positive on attack all year, so expect plenty of running rugby.
The only danger here is that the Highlanders will get drawn into going wide too early, as they have done at times this season and did during the middle stages of their round one battle against the Chiefs.
They must look to take a direct approach, draw the forwards in and then attack through the midfield, or the wingers if it's on.
It's when they've done this that they've looked the best this year, and to beat the Chiefs they will have to be at their best in everything they do.
But ultimately it will come down to attitude. The next two games will decide the fate of the Highlanders campaign.
It's been a while, but this is a team on the up and if they bring their A game, there is no reason why they aren't capable of featuring in the top six in four weeks time.