WHO will be this year’s Christmas number one? I’m not talking about some Simon Cowell-hyped talent show warbler or the annual social media campaign to send Anthrax, Einstürzende Neubauten or whoever to the top of the charts, but the more important matter of who will lead the Championship on Christmas Day.

It’s been precisely 10 years since Town fans have enjoyed their Christmas turkey (or vegetarian alternative) with their side sitting at the top of the table.

That lunchtime glass of wine tastes that little bit sweeter (or drier), the crackers go off with a slightly bigger bang and the jokes seem marginally less unfunny when your team is topping its particular footballing tree.

If Town are to be in with a chance of hitting that coveted number one spot when the wrapping paper’s ripping then they’ll have to be at their best tomorrow when fellow promotion challengers Middlesbrough are at Portman Road.

Second-placed Boro are currently a point ahead of the Blues in fourth and are on a run of form remarkably similar to Town’s.

The Teessiders have lost one in their last 16 compared with the Blues’ one defeat in 17 and both teams are unbeaten in eight.

Nobody has won more home games than Town’s seven and no one has achieved more away victories than Middlesbrough’s six. What’s that they say about an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object?

If Town are going to be genuine top two contenders come May they need to be beating their fellow challengers at home.

I’m sure Boro would consider a draw at Portman Road a very decent result, winning themselves a vital point while perhaps just as importantly denying one of their rivals two home points, just as Town did at Derby and Bournemouth.

But the Blues have been very strong at home this season, and seem to be getting stronger.

Although a significantly lesser side than Boro, Leeds were somewhat steamrollered on Suffolk soil a fortnight ago and I’d fancy Town to claim another three-point haul.

It’s likely to be a buoyant, noisy and larger than usual Portman Road crowd full of the Christmas spirit, and besides, the Blues have got the ideal man to go looking for goals at this time of the year in loanee Noel Hunt.

The Blues should probably have claimed all three points at Bolton last week. It was unfortunate that the best chances fell to the otherwise excellent Jay Tabb rather than either of the two main strikers.

To make that Christmas number one spot, Town will also need a couple of Christmas miracles with leaders Bournemouth at table-propping Blackpool and third-placed Derby at home to mid-table Norwich City.

You’d fancy both the Cherries and the Rams to pick up all three points, but the Championship throws up the odd surprise result every week.

Not sure we can really be seen to be advocating a Norwich win anyway, not even at this time of the year. This goodwill to all men business has to stop somewhere.

The Blues have another tricky game on Boxing Day when they make a rare trip to Brentford to take on the high-flying Bees.

Then Charlton visit Portman Road for a tricky but very winnable home fixture on December 30, before an FA Cup interlude away against, appropriately enough for the time of the year, the Saints.

A tough Christmas-New Year period all in all, particularly with Derby visiting on January 10 for what hopefully by then will still be another top of the table clash.

While not make or break – there would still be scope for a revival if the festive period doesn’t go to plan – the games over the next couple of weeks should give a good indication of whether the Blues are genuine automatic promotion contenders.

A haul of around seven or eight points from the next four league games – and maybe a confidence-boosting FA Cup victory over Premier League opposition – should see the Blues remain very much in the hunt.

More than that and Town will put themselves in the driving seat as they move into the second half of the season.

Victory over Boro, even if it doesn’t quite send them to the Championship’s top spot, will give Town fans the merriest Christmas they’ve had for quite a while as they dream about promotion and the very happiest of new years.