The Sharks suddenly find themselves in fourth position and back in the Pascoe Cup finals hunt after being awarded the three points from last month's loss to Henwood Park.

The Pascoe Cup ladder was given a major shake up last weekend after it was ruled that the Hawks played a disqualified player in their win over Lake Albert.

Lake Albert, who enjoyed the bye, gained six points and suddenly leaped from seventh to fourth.

The Sharks can now all but guarantee a finals spot with a win over fifth-placed Young on Sunday.

Lake Albert coach Mitch Tinnock said the three points were a pleasant surprise.

"We were probably resigned to playing Pascoe Plate. We didn't really do the maths super hard but we figured that would probably be the case," Tinnock said.

"Now the boys are back up and about and that keen to do their best to make finals because I think if we beat Young this week we're pretty much in somehow.

"Everyone's keen. We know on our day that we've got the people that can defeat any team in the comp so our goal is just to make finals then anything could happen, sort of thing."

Lake Albert have only played three games in the past six weeks due to the bye and games being rescheduled.

Their last effort was a 3-0 win over South Wagga and Tinnock believes the Sharks are certainly heading in the right direction.

"Before we got these three points for the Henwood game, and we were out of the finals race, we thought if it was a full-length season we'd still be pretty confident because we're just starting to click and get into our element because we have had a lot of people changeover and change positions," he said

"It always takes that time to gel. So we would have been confident had it been a longer season but now it looks like we're suddenly back in the hunt again."

Lake Albert defender Jackson Manton will return from a calf injury for Sunday's game against Young.

Tinnock is fully aware of the opportunity that presents itself against the Lions.

"We're not really focusing too much on the other teams, we're just focusing on ourselves, just trying to get that win," he said.

"We know if we win our games from now on, we make finals now. That's just what we're focusing on.

"We've got to beat Young, and we know they're always a really difficult team to play against. They're solid all over the park and never give you any easy goals or anything. It's going to be a tight one and we've had a rivalry over the years with them now."

In a revised ladder from Football Wagga, only two points separates the top six teams heading into the final two rounds.

While the clash between Lake Albert and Young will play a huge part in the finals make-up, Tolland will also be out to keep their season alive against Wagga United at Rawlings Park.

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