Newcastle and Brighton to canter to promotion? That is what super-computer SAM is predicting

Promotion to the Premier League for Newcastle United and Brighton, play-off nerves for Leeds, Sheffield Wednesday, Derby and Reading, and relegation for Burton, Wigan and Rotherham.

These are the conclusions of SAM (Sports Analytics Machine), the super-computer built by Ian McHale, professor of sports analytics at the University of Salford, together with his colleague Dr Tarak Kharrat.

SAM was tasked with predicting the result of every Championship match between now and the end of the season on 7 May. The results indicate that Championship leaders Newcastle and second-placed Brighton will build their lead and cruise to promotion with 98 and 94 points respectively.

The programme suggests that the two clubs are near certainties to win automatic promotion, with Newcastle having a 99% and Brighton a 96.5% chance of going straight up.

SAM also calculates that the Magpies, relegated last season, have a 67% probability of winning their fourth second-tier title, while the Seagulls' chances of topping the table to reach the top flight for the first time since 1983 are 32%.

A total of seven teams are viewed as the most likely challengers for the play-off spots: Leeds United, Sheffield Wednesday, Derby County, Reading, Huddersfield Town, Norwich City and Fulham.

However, SAM rates the Whites and the Owls as having the best chance of claiming a place in the play-offs, with a probability of 72% each.

Will your team finish in the play-offs? % probability calculated by SAM Leeds United 72% Sheffield Wednesday 72% Derby County 56% Reading 53% Huddersfield Town 41% Norwich City 31% Fulham 23%

And Aston Villa, who finished bottom of the Premier League last season, are given only a 6% chance of reaching the play-offs.

But is SAM right? Do you think you can do better? Pick how you think the top 20 will finish and share your final table with your friends.

Pick your final Championship table There are 20 full rounds of games left in the Championship but how will the table look when the season finishes? Will Newcastle remain on top? Will Rotherham still be stuck at the bottom? Pick how you think it will look at the end, placing all 24 teams in order. Have a go then share with your friends. First 1 Second 2 Third 3 Fourth 4 Fifth 5 Sixth 6 Seventh 7 Eighth 8 Ninth 9 Tenth 10 Eleventh 11 Twelfth 12 Thirteenth 13 Fourteenth 14 Fifteenth 15 Sixteenth 16 Seventeenth 17 Eighteenth 18 Nineteenth 19 Twentieth 20 Twenty First 21 Twenty Second 22 Twenty Third 23 Twenty Fourth 24 Confirm selection

SAM's final table in full

SAM predicts that the positions of the top three will remain unchanged between now and the end of the season, but that Derby will edge out Huddersfield to finish in the play-offs.

There is plenty of minor movement in mid-table, with only Barnsley and Wolves predicted to finish in their current respective positions of 10th and 16th.

At the bottom of the table, Blackburn's chances of surviving are estimated to be higher than those of their key rivals, with Owen Coyle's side given a 28% probability of going down.

The likelihood of bottom side Rotherham being relegated is rated at 99%, while Wigan (78%) and Burton (54%) are predicted to join the Millers in League One next season.

Pos Team P Pts 1 Newcastle United 46 98 2 Brighton & Hove Albion 46 94 3 Leeds United 46 76 4 Sheffield Wednesday 46 76 5 Derby County 46 73 6 Reading 46 73 7 Huddersfield Town 46 71 8 Norwich City 46 70 9 Fulham 46 68 10 Barnsley 46 67 11 Preston North End 46 67 12 Aston Villa 46 64 13 Brentford 46 63 14 Birmingham City 46 61 15 Ipswich Town 46 59 16 Wolves 46 58 17 Cardiff City 46 56 18 QPR 46 56 19 Nottm Forest 46 53 20 Bristol City 46 51 21 Blackburn Rovers 46 49 22 Burton Albion 46 46 23 Wigan Athletic 46 43 24 Rotherham United 46 33

SAM takes into account a wide range of factors to work out match results, looking at average performances so far and calculating what that means for the remaining fixtures. It is based on players remaining fit and continuing with their average performance levels, so an injury to Newcastle striker Dwight Gayle or Brighton forward Glenn Murray, for example, would have a significant impact on these predicted outcomes.