After the latest round of games, Otago finds itself fourth in the Mitre 10 Cup Championship division, the bottom playoff spot.
It has 15 points, just one behind Northland while Hawke's Bay is on 18 points.
Waikato sits top of the division on 23 points, although it has played seven games as opposed to all those below it which have played six games.
Usually teams which win at least four games qualify for the playoffs in the Championship.
Otago has won three games so needs to one of its last four games to give itself a realistic chance.
Only the top four teams at the moment and Bay of Plenty, which sits fifth on nine points, can make the playoffs.
Manawatu, which has won just one game and has three games left to play, has a mathematical chance only while Southland is winless.
With not many points between teams the draw comes into the equation and that is where Otago has struck out somewhat.
In the crossover games against the teams from the higher Premiership division, Otago has well and truly drawn the short straw.
Its four games have been or will be Wellington, Canterbury, Auckland and Tasman, the four sides which are leading the Premiership and look likely to make up the semifinals.
Compare that to Bay of Plenty which drew Taranaki, Counties-Manukau, North Harbour and Canterbury, the four bottom sides in the Premiership.
Bay of Plenty beat Taranaki and Counties-Manukau in its first two games but has not had a win since.
It may look out of the running on just two wins from six games but its remaining four games are all against opposition from the Championship, starting with a game against Manawatu on Thursday in Rotorua.
Bay of Plenty comes to Forsyth Barr Stadium on October 3 - a Wednesday night - to take on Otago.
That is shaping up to be a key game.
Bay of Plenty heads to Invercargill after that for a match against Southland on October 7 and then finishes with a match against Northland back home in Tauranga.
Otago starts its tough week with a game against unbeaten Auckland at Eden Park this Friday.
It then has Bay of Plenty before taking on Tasman in its last home game of the season on October 7.
That will mean three games in 10 days, a tough ask for a side which has picked up injuries along the way.
Southland sits dead last in the competition and is winless after six games. Its has to play the final three games of its campaign inside eight days with a tough match against Auckland in the middle.
Southland has the lure of a Ranfurly Shield challenge this Saturday against Waikato, but it is at long odds to win the game.
The TAB has the odds of Waikato winning at just $1.03. Southland is paying $10.