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Final round gives fans chance to show true colours

Round 25 is the perfect time for fans to get behind their teams – no matter how well they are playing or where they sit on the competition ladder.

After a week of controversy surrounding fans criticising their own teams, the final round is a great opportunity to show your true colours as there are plenty of reasons to get behind your club.

Yes, there are a handful of top-eight teams that are struggling to find form at the back end of the season and fans have reasons to be disappointed and frustrated. But there's no point turning on your club.

Even if your club is limping into the finals, don't give up. Four straight wins in the finals and the trophy follows.

In the past, we've seen struggling teams make a late charge in September.

Take last year's North Queensland side as an example. They just qualified for the finals with just one win from their final six games and had one of the biggest injury tolls in recent memory.

When the final round arrived their fans were disheartened as they expected to their side to miss out on the finals completely or to be knocked out in the first week of the final.

But they did what they needed to and reached the grand final, surprising fans along the way.

Eight clubs have already qualified for the finals but no exact position is locked down, meaning they all have something to play for.

The race for the minor premiership is still alive. It's highly likely Melbourne will be lifting the J.J. Giltinan Shield on Friday night, however, a slip up against the struggling Panthers can open the door for the Roosters to strike 24 hours later.

Home finals and positions in the top four are also up for grabs this weekend. It's pretty amazing that heading into the final round, all eight teams are mathematically capable of finishing in the top four.

There are several different scenarios for week one of the finals and it’s going to be thrilling to watch this weekend.

If your club is out of contention this year, don't worry, there's always next year and there are still plenty of reasons to support your team this weekend.

After all, it's the last chance you get to watch your favourite players go around until March next year.

Coaches Corner: Young Broncos forwards

There's also an opportunity to farewell the game's retiring players. The retirees list for 2018 could be the greatest ever with over 4000 games of experience hanging up the boots.

The game is set to lose several stars including 300-gamers Johnathan Thurston, Billy Slater, Ryan Hoffman, Chris Heighington, Luke Lewis, Sam Thaiday and Simon Mannering.

Whether your side is still alive in this year's title race or not, there are plenty of reasons to show your true colours in Round 25.

Acknowledgement of Country

National Rugby League respects and honours the Traditional Custodians of the land and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and future. We acknowledge the stories, traditions and living cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on the lands we meet, gather and play on.

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