National League promotion and relegation issues: As his Sligo side battled it out with Shamrock Rovers for top-flight survival at one point back in the early 1990s, Willie McStay observed with a sigh that if the Dublin club lost out the league's rules would be changed during the close season to preserve them from life in the wilderness of the First Division.

When Dundalk went down a few seasons later, however, the notion that there would be any sudden reprieves when the country's biggest clubs failed to steer clear of the relegation rocks swiftly evaporated.

This year it is Derry City who know that they must save themselves and if ever there was motivation for Gavin Dykes's men to go to Waterford tomorrow and claim victory, it must surely be the plight that has befallen the Oriel Park club in the short time since they lost their Premier Division status.

City chairman Jim Roddy yesterday declined to contemplate the struggles that await his club if it is relegated, preferring instead to concentrate on the five games, tomorrow's and four play-offs, that must now be negotiated if the Northerners are to avoid the drop.

"There's still a lot of football to be played and that's what we have to concentrate on," he said. "I'm not going to start talking about where we are, how we got here or what might happen if we get relegated. If we are to stay up there are five games to be played and that's all that matters now."

Dykes will again be without Seán Friars and Liam Coyle for the game but Seán Hargan (knee) and Gary Beckett (ankle) should be okay, while Peter Hutton came through Tuesday's win over Bohemians without aggravating his ankle ligament problems.

The presence of Hutton, if he plays the way he did in midweek, could be significant but Dykes could have done with Coyle, a player who has made a habit down the years of producing something special to win important games.

Dykes's future at the Brandywell is uncertain, even if Derry do manage to survive this weekend but then Jimmy McGeough freely admits that this may be his last game in charge of Waterford.

Despite having led the team to fairly comfortable survival in the first season back in the Premier Division, McGeough is not under contract for next season and there is speculation that, in the wake of his very public spat with club chairman Ger O'Brien a few weeks back, the manager may be replaced by his assistant Giles Cheevers during the close season.

If he goes then Derry City and Shamrock Rovers are possible destinations, with the latter being repeatedly linked with a move for the northerner despite the insistence this week of Rovers' directors to their players that they have no plans to replace Liam Buckley.

Having taken over at UCD when the club's prospects of survival already looked particularly grim, Pete Mahon is more willing to contemplate relegation for the students but, he says, "we've only lost one game in this last round and we're certainly not conceding anything ahead of tomorrow".

Mahon, who has Tony McDonnell, Alan Cawley and Mick O'Donnell back from suspension for the visit of Longford, says that if his club does go down, "we'll get to work straight away but the fact is that Derry drawing and a win for us would see us right.

"They're in the better position right now, I'd admit that, but it's not exactly the most outlandish combination of results a club ever needed to stay up and we have a bit of a history here for pulling this sort of thing off on the last day so we're hopeful."

In the First Division either Dublin City or Bray Wanderers will secure automatic promotion at Whitehall this evening when the two clubs meet in a game that the visitors need to win if they are to avoid the play-offs.

They will make the short trip for the game without their leading scorer Eamon Zayed who is in the UAE for the World Youths Championship but City are without Tony O'Connor or Brendan Kelly, both of whom are injured.

Not surprisingly, City boss John Gill insists Bray will start the game as favourites due to their "experienced players and experienced manager". Despite his side needing to win Pat Devlin doesn't entirely dismiss the notion that a place in the top flight is there for the taking.

"If they do it then it will be on merit and I'll be thrilled for John and especially for Rocky (Ronan Seery) but out main problem this season has been our inconsistency and if we can overcome that and play to our potential then, while it's obviously a tough game, I'd certainly say we're capable of going there and getting the win that we need."

Premier Division

Relegation battle

P W D L F A Pts

Derry City 35 6 15 14 32 51 33

UCD 35 6 13 16 25 39 31

First Division

Promotion battle

P W D L F A Pts

Dublin City 32 19 9 4 43 25 66

Bray Wanderers 32 18 9 5 58 34 63

Finn Harps 32 17 10 5 52 24 61

Limerick FC 32 16 8 8 54 37 56

Kildare Co 32 15 9 8 49 38 54