Judgement Day is less about a final verdict this season and more about opportunity. Either the Ospreys or the Cardiff Blues will take a European side-door pass, although the bouncers still have to be won over. For Robin Davey, the outcome depends on three initials – AWJ.

It’s the end of season Judgement Day showdown on Saturday – but this one will be like no other.

The Dragons aim to end their abysmal record against the Scarlets when east meets west at the Principality Stadium, followed by a likely rip-roaring clash between the Ospreys and Cardiff Blues.

The big difference this time is that the winners of the second game will be in a play-off with the fourth placed finisher – either the Scarlets, Edinburgh or Benetton – from Conference B for the last place in next season’s Heineken Champions Cup.

The losers will be unable to qualify, so there’s plenty to play for.

And the game goes ahead against a controversial backdrop with Gareth Anscombe, Wales’ match-winner in the Grand Slam clincher against Ireland, switching sides next season, leaving the Blues for the Ospreys.

There are some who, on that basis, believe Anscombe should be left out of the Blues side – one of those being Lee Jarvis, who faced a similar situation 18 years ago.

Then, he had agreed to leave Pontypridd to join Neath and when the rivals were due to meet in a key clash Ponty took the decision to leave Jarvis out.

Be that as it may, Anscombe is expected to feature on Saturday, but at full back with the promising Jarrod Evans at outside-half.

And that is one of the reasons behind Anscombe’s decision to move because it is understood he was looking for a guarantee that he’d be considered at 10 rather than 15, something the Blues couldn’t provide.

From an Ospreys’ point of view, the key will be getting inspirational Wales captain Alun Wyn Jones and George North on the field.

Neither has played since Wales’ game against Ireland – Jones out with a knee injury and North suffering a broken bone in his hand. Both have returned to training, but a decision on their fitness will be left as late as possible.

Results between these rivals have been pretty close, lately. In the last two Judgement Day games, for example, it’s been one victory apiece.

Last season, the Ospreys edged it 26-23 while the year before the Blues won 35-17. And earlier this season in the Pro 14, the Ospreys won 20-11 at the Liberty Stadium.

There’s little to choose between the sides and much will depend on whether Jones takes the field. With him the Ospreys could edge it, but if he fails to make it, the Blues will be the likely winners.

There’s no such thing as a one-man team and Jones has not played enough this season for his region to consider him irreplaceable. But his character, his influence on others, the reassurance of his sheer presence, makes a whole world of difference to his region and their chances of success.

It’s likely to be nowhere near as close in the other east-west clash with the Scarlets heavily favoured to put one over on the hapless Dragons again.

In the six previous Judgement Day encounters between the rivals the Scarlets have won every time and it will be a major shock if the outcome is any different this time.

It’s classed as a home fixture for the Dragons, though on ‘away’ territory and it’s now 43 games and more than four years since the Dragons won away in the league.

It’s an astonishing statistic – unless you happen to watch the Dragons on the road.

They almost won a game recently when they drew 18-18 with Southern Kings in South Africa, but that’s as close as they’ve got.

The only time the Scarlets have been beaten by the Dragons in the last 21 occasions in the league occurred in 2013 at Rodney Parade when the Dragons won 23-16. The Scarlets defeated their rivals 22-13 at home back in January.

The Dragons have endured another dire season and sit uncomfortably at the bottom of their Conference with just one final shot at some kind of redemption on Saturday.

The Scarlets have fallen from their previous heights this season and are way off their achievement levels of reaching the semi-finals of the Champions Cup last season.

But they’ve been decimated by injuries – the Dragons have been hard hit, too -but Wayne Pivac’s men have far more depth and a bigger budget than their opponents.

It will be Pivac’s final game in charge of the Scarlets after a pretty successful record until he takes the reins for Wales after the World Cup in the autumn.

So there’s plenty of incentive for the Scarlets who have also been boosted by the decision of players of the calibre of Johnny McNicholl and Dan Jones to stay with them.

The Dragons, on the other hand, are losing Wales international Hallam Amos to the Blues next season while there is speculation Wales No.8 Ross Moriarty is a target for the Ospreys.

The Dragons have been interviewing for the post of head coach, with Ceri Jones taking on the role on an interim basis for the second half of the season following the removal of Bernard Jackman.

An announcement is expected next week and that will be key for the Dragons going forward. There is a great deal of restlessness among supporters with a number not renewing membership, waiting to see who the head coach will be and what kind of recruitment is planned.

Despite promises of ground development at Rodney Parade, yielding greater revenue as they try to catch up with their rivals, there has been little improvement on the field.

Victory over the Scarlets on Saturday would provide hope for the future, but it’s a tall order and is unlikely to happen.

So it’s the Scarlets and probably Cardiff Blues – if Jones is a spectator – for an east-west split on Saturday, in my judgement.