Whoever said this division is predictable must have been watching a different league, maybe one where the grass is always greener and the bottom of the table isn’t a pit of nerves and nightmares. On a brisk Sunday at Complex De Velodroom, Torhout and HO Kalken are set to meet, and if you’re only looking at the standings, you’d think it’s a foregone conclusion. Fifth-place HO Kalken, eyes on the playoff spots, marching in to face a Torhout side wedged in sixteenth, sporting a run of form that would make even the most loyal supporter wince. But football’s charm, and occasionally its cruel joke, is that the table only tells you who won yesterday, not what might happen tomorrow.

Torhout, you’d think, would be too tired to bother. Five consecutive losses, goals as rare as sunshine in a Belgian winter, and the sort of attacking impotence that would make a corner flag blush. Their last five outings have produced just three goals and conceded fifteen. Confidence is in such short supply, it’s barely a rumor in the locker room. Yet, relegation has a funny way of sharpening the focus, and nothing wakes up the soul of a club like the fear of slipping through the trapdoor.

There’s something about desperation football. Sometimes, it’s beautiful. Sometimes, it looks more like a five-alarm fire drill—but you can’t question the effort. Torhout may not have found a recipe for goals, but if there’s pride left in the jersey, this is the week to show it. Names like Tibo Van Eeckhoutte and the young winger Lennert Van Acker have flashed promise in brief moments. Now, those flickers need to ignite into something more: a bit of guile in the final third, a touch of ruthlessness on set pieces, and a willingness to run, close down, and make HO Kalken uncomfortable. If this sounds like wishful thinking, well, that’s all Torhout supporters have left right now—but that’s been enough before, and football’s short memory is full of days when the underdog bites.

For HO Kalken, the story is one of momentum tempered by caution. Four wins in their last five, finding the net with the regularity of a Swiss train schedule. The one slip—a 0-4 gut punch at Zulte Waregem II—serves as a cautionary tale: this team is good, not invincible. They do their best work with the ball at feet, orchestrated by midfield maestro Thomas De Coster, a player whose vision is matched only by his knack for showing up in big moments. Up top, Sam Verhoeven has been quietly efficient, poaching goals and keeping defenders honest, while the defense has looked organized, marshaled by captain Nick De Wilde, whose last name might as well be “Immovable Object” most weekends.

Expect HO Kalken to play to their strengths—patient buildup, dominance in midfield, stretching the pitch wide and waiting for space to open behind Torhout’s nervy back line. But here’s where it gets interesting: sometimes, matches like these don’t care about form sheets and tactical diagrams. Sometimes, one early chance, one defensive slip or a red card tilts the entire afternoon. Torhout, for all their struggles, have nothing to lose. They’ve watched the safety line recede week after week; if ever there was a time for a kitchen-sink performance, this is it.

Tactically, Torhout’s best hope is to bottle up the midfield and force Kalken wide, betting big on center-backs who, lately, have been more sieve than steel. They’ll need to press, frustrate, and maybe—just maybe—catch a counterattack or fumbled clearance for a goal that could change the mood not just of the match, but maybe the season. If Van Eeckhoutte and Van Acker can get on the ball in dangerous areas, if the home crowd still has some faith to lend, then this one could be uncomfortably close for the visitors.

HO Kalken, meanwhile, will look to kill the suspense early. Get the ball to De Coster, let the playmakers do their thing, and pounce if Torhout gets stretched looking for a miracle. This isn’t a team that lets points slip easily, but complacency is the oldest enemy in the game, and nothing breeds it faster than facing a wounded opponent with little to lose.

So what’s at stake? For Torhout, it’s survival—not mathematically, but spiritually. It’s about showing they aren’t done yet, that there’s still a pulse beneath the bruises. For HO Kalken, it’s the dream of climbing higher, proving their credentials aren’t just a matter of luck and good fixtures. It’s three points, yes—but it’s also the story of a season teetering between despair and hope.

My prediction? Logic leans toward HO Kalken, but logic sometimes takes the day off at the Velodroom. Expect drama. Expect nerves. Maybe even expect a moment of magic from a Torhout side running on empty but refusing to quit. After all, if you already know how it’ll end, why watch at all?