THE nominees for the PFA Scotland championship player of the year award are gathered in a luxurious penthouse. This is somewhat ironic, considering at least one of them, and so many of their contemporaries, have spent all season dwelling in a squalid and crowded basement.

With two matches left to play, no fewer than six of the league’s ten teams are still at risk of automatic relegation to League One – let alone the purgatory of the play-offs. With just six points separating Dunfermline in fifth from Falkirk in tenth, if you are not going up the way you are at risk of going down.

No-one encapsulates this maelstrom better than Stephen Dobbie. Any other season, plundering 40 goals in 41 appearances would make you a shoo-in and most likely put your team in line for promotion. This year, the 36-year-old may be the first recipient of this award who also ends up relegated.

At one point, buoyed by Dobbie’s exploits, Queen’s were entitled to consider themselves contenders for the title. Now they sit eighth, with only goal difference separating themselves from Alloa in the play-off spot.

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Dobbie is a play-off specialist, who has scored at Wembley in the richest game football has to offer, and triumphantly taken Blackpool and Swansea City into the Premier League by the back door. But having to battle it out with the second, third and fourth teams in League One to preserve the vital lifeblood of his hometown team’s second tier status is something that doesn’t bear thinking about.

And as for those in Dumfries and farther afield still nervously sweating over updates on their talisman’s injured hamstring, Dobbie has no chance of featuring in tomorrow night’s long journey to the Highlands to take on champions elect Ross County but he does have half a chance of taking part in what could be a frenzied last-day shoot-out with Partick Thistle.

“This is one play-off I definitely don’t want to be a part of,” said Dobbie. “Even though I would be confident for us to get through it, I believe getting safe would be the priority so we can go on holiday quicker.

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“It [the hamstring] is coming along okay, it’s more precautionary,” said Dobbie. “I tore it during the season and we may have a chance of being in the play-offs. But I may be okay for the Partick game next week so we will see. It’s more about the recovery and my age. But hopefully the boys can get a win on Friday and they might not need me. I will be quite happy with that as long as we are safe.”

Dobbie has seen most things during a 14-year career which has taken him to 13 different clubs, but nothing like this. “I’ve never known a league like it,” said Dobbie. “We were obviously hoping for Partick to either draw or be beaten against Ayr on Tuesday night. Now with them winning there is six points between Dunfermline in fifth place and Falkirk at the bottom.

“If we are in the play-off then we must prepare right and make sure we are in this league next season,” he added. “I learned in the play-offs down south that you need to try and keep your head and treat as just like any other game.

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“That’s what I’ll be telling the young boys if we are in it. It’s about making sure you take care of your business yourself. If you do that then the result will take care of itself. I looked forward to those bigger games, I don’t get nervous as it’s more about the enjoyment and if you win it it’s about realising what you’ve achieved.

“I scored in the final for Swansea at Wembley against Reading and the feeling doing that was amazing. But the priority is to get Queens safe, if we are in the play-off then we’ll take it. Obviously the money involved for the team going up to the Premier League is huge but the importance for us is to keep Queens in the Championship and not going down to League One.

With time remaining on his contract Dobbie will be staying at Queens regardless. But this means a lot. “I’m fine with my contract, as far as I’m concerned I’ll be at Queens next season. Unless I hear anything different from the chairman or the manager then I’m fine for next season and I fully intend to be here. But it means a lot to me, personally it’s been a good season but for the team it hasn’t been. For us to be relegated would be a disaster for myself.”