Can Wrexham still win the title? We still believe, but circumstances have pushed that belief further into the realms of hope than we’d like.

This has been an incredible season, and since the fixtures were announced we knew it was all leading up to this epic encounter with ancient rivals Stockport County. What we didn’t realise at the time was that a quirk in the rules meant battle would only fully be joined in the second half of the season.

Having been restricted to transfer windows while other clubs have been able to build their squads throughout the campaign, we were unable to piece a full side together until the arrivals of Ollie Palmer, Callum McFadzean and Tom O’Connor in January.

They first played together in the FA Trophy tie against Boreham Wood, and since the final pieces of the jigsaw were added we’ve been in title-winning form. We’ve played 19 games, winning 15 and losing just 1.

It should have been 16. Sadly, that late penalty at Boreham Wood has made a substantial difference to the circumstances of this match.

Had we not handed The Wood a lifeline, or indeed if we’d been more ruthless in front of goal, we’d face Stockport knowing a win would put us two points clear at the top of the table.

Admittedly, Stockport would still hold their fate in their own hands, but they’d know that only two wins this week would guarantee the title. The squeeze would be on.

As it actually stands, we can only hope to keep the title race alive into the last week and hope Stockport slip up. A win would put us level with County, meaning 4 points out of 2 home games would do the job for them. A draw would require a cataclysmic collapse on their part, and defeat would, unthinkably, turn what we’ve been hoping would be a great day for us into Stockport’s coronation.

This team doesn’t deserve this. These fans don’t deserve this. We’ve enjoyed a remarkable renaissance over the last nine months, and it would be wonderful if, at the very least, we could enjoy a statement performance which would make it clear that we head into the next challenge in glorious shape, whatever that challenge might be.

We have important players returning from injury and, despite the continuing absence of a couple of mainstays, have lots of quality and experience in this squad. We’ve been preparing for this game since the fixtures came out, and have been finding ways to win all season. This game is what we’ve been building for.

The stage is set. Perhaps the stakes aren’t quite as high as they might have been, but we have a job to do, and we need to do it. What happens afterwards we can’t control, but we can take the initiative in this game, and we must.