What could be the fifth and most crucial west Cumbrian derby of the season will be played at the Zebra Claims Stadium.

Whitehaven and neighbours Workington Town finished in the Championship’s two relegation places, ahead of the Championship Shield version of the Super 8s which starts a week on Sunday.

Both the Cumbrian clubs have three home games and four away to play, and the dates will be announced at a Super 8s launch on Wednesday, at Old Trafford.

Workington will have home advantage in the latest derby clash, having recently collected their first win of the season over Whitehaven in the most dramatic of circumstances with a try two seconds from the end and subsequent touchline conversion.

It was Town’s 32-30 win at Oldham on Sunday, which followed Haven’s 32-14 home defeat by Sheffield on Saturday night, which hoisted the Zebra Claims Stadium side off the bottom for the first time in months.

It meant that the Recreation Ground outfit finished the regulation season bottom of the pile on points differential – and that was enough to cost them home advantage in the derby clash.

There is a formula for working out who goes where from the finishing positions.

Whitehaven will have home matches against Swinton, Halifax and Bradford and will travel to Town, Oldham, Dewsbury and Sheffield.

For Town there will be home games with Dewsbury, Bradford and Whitehaven whilst travelling away to Oldham, Swinton, Sheffield and Halifax.

Whitehaven general manager Amanda Hewer said: “We are quite comfortable with our Championship Shield fixtures. Eleven players could not be selected on Saturday and we are hopeful that most of those should be back in action for the start, or very soon after, of the Shield fixtures.”

Winger Elliott Miller and prop forward Carl Forster have been recovering from shoulder operations and are very close to resuming training, while several of the others will greatly appreciate this coming blank Sunday.

John Paul Brocklebank might be the one struggling to get much game time in the Shield, having just had an operation on a broken thumb.

Workington Town’s assistant coach Jonty Gorley said: “We’ve got to go away four times, but it’s nice to take a bit of form into it rather than being desperate for wins.

“Whitehaven at home is good for the fans and it will be a good gate.

“Bradford brought good support with them and we ran them close at home.

“There are no bad sides in the league, but they do have off days. You can’t take anybody for granted.”