The South Fork Cubs will host this coming weekend’s big NCS playoff football game after a switch in venue was announced early this week.

The No. 3 seed Cubs will play No 2 Branson in the eight-person bracket, but the Bulls are unable to meet the criteria necessary to host the game, forcing a switch to Miranda.

And that’s good news for the Cubs and their fans.

The minimum criteria for hosting an NCS playoff game include seating for 100 people, at least one goal post and a fully-lined field, and neither of the top two seeds — Cornerstone Christian and Branson — were able to meet those criteria, giving home games instead to South Fork and Calistoga.

“I feel it’s a win for both public schools,” South Fork head coach Karl Terrell said.

It could also mean a home championship game for the Cubs, if they can win this week’s semifinal, although Terrell says he’s just focused on the Branson game.

A young Cubs team lost to the Bulls 72-28 early in the season, but Terrell feels South Fork has matured a lot since then.

“We’ve got a big game coming up,” he said. “We lost to them early, but we’re a lot better team now than we were then.”

The Cubs (7-2) have won five straight games, including a 34-0 win over Laytonville in last weekend’s playoff opener.

The Bulls, who are 7-1, had a opening-round bye and have not played a game in three weeks.

Saturday’s game is set for 7 p.m.

All four local teams still alive in the playoffs will host their games on Saturday.

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Ray Hamill writes at humboldtsports.com, where you can read lots more about sports in Humboldt County.