With the first set of matches in the qualifiers on this weekend, a cohort of games that is now of more than academic interest to us, it’s as good a time as any to provide a quick update on how things stand in this year’s championship prediction mini-league, hosted as ever by Facetheball.com.

My hopes are already in the gutter for this summer (that’s not a prediction, by the way, my poor form in the opening few weeks guarantees this outcome) but the young lad is keeping the home fires stoked in his bid to claim back-to-back championship prediction titles. He hit a few speed bumps last weekend, though, so will need to have a serious think before committing himself in relation to the matches this weekend.

There’s a long way to go in this particular race but Tony Phillips has already opened up a nice gap of close to 30 points at the top, thanks to three steady opening weeks. How about yourself: are you riding high or, like me, already thinking about what might have been? Latest leaderboard below.