Ragusa to riches (the toe-end of the boot)

[virtex]

Still following this Nerf, and its stil fantastic!

Are you a professional writer?

[nerf]

Of course not virtex, but thank you

Tuesday 27th January 2009

Less than twenty-four hours later and yesterday's thrilling evening seems almost dream-like. In terms of excitement the second half matched and surpassed anything witnessed in the Aldo Campo over the last six-and-a-half years. It was quite a buzz.

Although the better team in the first half was clearly Lecco, for whom Delvecchio and Selce were most impressive, we overturned that emphatically in the second half. Jess van Strattan made key saves, Simone Tamburro marshalled well from the the unfamiliar position of anchorman, Enrico Capuano and Alessandro Volpe both recovered from poor first halves to step up big time in the second, particularly the latter who worked much harder defensively while exploiting Lecco with some pin-point passing.

Massimo Costagliola had in fact come close to not playing, because Antonio and I had deliberated over picking Eddy Baggio in his place before the game. As it turned out the man-of-the-match repaid our faith by being unstoppable in the second half, winning everything in the air and feeding off Di Nicola's energy to bag an impressive hat-trick that takes him to fifteen for the season.

The crucial victory installs us as the new leaders of Serie C1/B, with a long, long way still to go. It would be easy to get carried away and start talking about 'turning points' and predictions but that's a dangerous path. Lecco will bounce back from this. What's important for us now is to ensure that we don't let a great result go to waste and squander our hard work in the remaining fourteen fixtures.

[nerf]

Wednesday 28th January 2009

I was not the only one to make note of Alessandro Volpe's role in our second half resurgance. Today we received a call from a Giuseppe Vitale, director of football for Empoli, the club currently sitting atop Serie B ahead of neighbours Fiorentina. Signor Vitale was interested to know how much Ragusa would want for the former Lazio midfielder.

How much would we want? We want to reject the offer entirely, thank you very much, and do exactly that by insisting that the player is indispensible to us. The only worry is that if Empoli were to come back with £250,000 they would match Volpe's minimum release fee. I know Alessandro is currently happy to stay, but I'm sure the prospect of a chance at Serie A football, the chance he was never really given at Lazio, would be tempting for him.

Thursday 29th January 2009

Fellow Sicilians Catania, 13th in Serie B, approach with a laughable offer of £55,000 for Volpe. Once again we take a stone to the circling vultures. Whispered rumours are now suggesting that he's also under the beady eye of Monza, who scavanged Giancarlo Ferrara from us six years ago, and Palermo are another showing interest in preying on their smaller neighbour.

[nerf]

Friday 30th January 2009

The Volpe situation has us holding our breath for the impending closure of the transfer window, but elsewhere in Europe the transfers are going through in a late rush.

UEFA Cup holders Leeds United have signed Manchester United's Kieran Richardson for £6 million, after the 24 year old cultured winger became frustrated with the lack of first team opportunities at Old Trafford. There were rumours that boyhood club West Ham were interested, but as the Hammers have recently splashed £10 million on Italian striker Giacomo Dottori from Perugia they may have struggled to match the asking price and the £45k/w Kieran will be on at Elland Rroad.

Aston Villa, currently 8th in the Premiership under the guidance of ex-Lazio boss Roberto Mancini, have signed exciting Spanish forward Gorka Larrea for £5.25 million. Despite scoring a hatful of goals for Real Sociedad B, Larrea seemed unwanted in San Sebastian and now has his big chance in England. It is believed that Sociedad's new coach Rafa Benitez found his hands tied by financial problems anyway.

No such difficulties for Manchester United, who continue their trend of spending huge on big-name central defenders, picking up Feeyenoord centre back Glenn Loovens for £21 million. The 25 year old Dutch international was a hero in his home country in 2004, when he scored an extra-time winner in the Euro 2004 quarter final to knock France out at the age of twenty. Loovens is expected to slot in alongside Rio Ferdinand, another expensive defender, and the signing also looks likely to spell the end of the Old Trafford career of temperamental Argentinian centre back Fabricio Coloccini, who was already fed up with waiting for his chance in the first team despite costing manager Steve Bruce a whopping £32 million in August. The former Roma and Milan defender has made just five starts for United at an average cost of over £6 million per game...

Saturday 31st January 2009

Chairman Giuseppe Antoci and Director of Football Marcello Pitino were both eager today to let me know that everyone is absolutely thrilled with the level of commitment I continue to show the club. The choice of words puzzled me and got my mind racing. Am I being linked with the management positions at other clubs? Have other clubs approached them about my services?

There's a great deal more certainty about the training injury to Giancarlo Di Nicola, unfortunately. He'll be looking at two weeks on the sideline with a damaged neck.

[nerf]

Sunday 1st February 2009

Our first match as divisional leaders takes us to, ironically, the team bottom of the table. Teramo sit in 18th position but have in fact won their last two fixtures convincingly; a 5-0 defeat of struggling Forli was followed up by a 2-0 win at Messina, with veteran Moroccan striker Abdellah Boudouma netting twice in each game. Fortunately for us Boudouma is missing from the teamsheet today.

As is Giancarlo Di Nicola, obviously, whereas Gaspare Pellegrino has passed the physio's tests this week and returns to the bench. Luca Orlando and Carlo Mignani both come straight back into the team following their suspensions, bringing a sense of normality back to our midfield again. These are the games we have to avoid slipping up on between now and the end of the season.

Serie C1/B Fixture #21

Teramo v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Santos, Fumagalli, Capuano, Sabellini; Volpe, Orlando, Mignani, Tamburro©; Marino, Costagliola.

We have spent all week talking about how important it is to retain our focus after Monday's win, how crucial it is to not let it go to waste. Today's game started off perfectly, mainly thanks to the red-hot Costagliola, who has been on a high all week since his hat-trick. In the ninth minute Tamburro played a one-two with Orlando and fed Marino pulling wide left, who whipped in a cross to the near post where Costagliola rose above both Zanolla and Borghi to head home in typical fashion. In the 21st minute his right boot then made it five goals in two matches, converting Tamburro's well measured long pass with great confidence.

Perhaps it was complacency or loss of concentration, or both, but after the second goal we switched off. Nicola Marino should have extended the lead before half-time. Twice he had difficult headers saved by goalkeeper Roberto Mancinelli, but when put clean through by Costagliola just before the whistle he sliced a golden chance horribly wide; weaker foot or not, it should have been three.

Immediately after the break we conspired to invite Teramo back into the game. Two minutes in, Simone Tamburro, who had had a good first half, played Stefano Fumagalli into trouble with a poor pass that allowed Andrea Bartolini to dart in for an easy chance in the penalty area. Fortunately for our captain, Enrico Capuano came out of nowhere with a perfect block tackle to deny a certain goal and the danger was cleared.

On the hour mark we did it again. Bartolini this time nipped around Santos in the right channel and crossed from the byline, Capuano and Foggia challenged in the air at the near post, and referree Giorgio Ciampi declared that, according to his assistant, the ball had struck Capuano's hand. Penalty. Once more we got out of jail, as Cristian Mortari thumped the penalty kick off van Strattan's right hand post and substitute Gaspare Pellegrino was there first to scramble it clear.

Despite the miss, Teramo's tails were now up. In the 75th minute they finally punished us for our mistakes, this time when substitute Marco Locatelli, under no pressure at all, tried to play it across the back line to Capuano. Teramo striker Foggia intercepted the loose pass and burst through to curl a neat right-foot shot around van Strattan; a good finish, but again caused by our own lapse.

In the 84th minute we were made to regret those errors. Bartolini's early high ball was challenged for in the air by Capuano and Foggia, a challenge in which Capuano seemed to lose the flight of the ball and stumbled as the two players clashed. Leaving his marker sprawling in his wake, Foggia turned and was off towards goal as the entire half of the pitch suddenly opened up for him. Sabellini raced desperately across to try and cover but had no chance, left to watch helplessly as Foggia repeated the same neat finish to beat van Strattan for a second time.

Final score: Teramo 2 - 2 Ragusa

[nerf]

Monday 2nd February 2009

What were we saying about not squandering hard work just days ago? We defied Lecco and then went two goals up against Teramo, only to just chuck it all away with a very sloppy and disappointing second half. A commanding position at half-time was wasted by gifting the goals to our hosts late on.

To make things worse, two impressive Marco Delvecchio strikes carried our rivals to their expected win over Mantova, and the result is that we have already relinquished the top spot that we had earned on Monday. Third-placed Spal also won 2-0 to bring them to within three points of us.

Other news from Mantova reveals that long-time transfer target Giacomo Domizzi has signed a new £1,500 per week contract extension, further pricing himself well out of our range and extinguishing any remote possibility of him donning a Ragusa shirt any time in the near future. There's a more encouraging report from Pesaro, however, where our new signing Massimo Del Prete was voted man-of-the-match in Lanciano's away victory yesterday.

[Pred]

I'm only on page 12, and I had to post.

This story is freaking amazing Nerf. You've brought a life and vigor to what is, basically, a 2D spreadsheet manager (I mean this in a good way! )that is absolutely stunning. I hope my story can come near this one.

KUTGW.

[nerf]

Thanks Pred , I hope you enjoy the other ten as much. Best of luck with Wrexham.

Wednesday 4th February 2009

The bad news keeps on rolling in. The week did not start very well and is intent on continuing along that theme, claiming two sacrifices for the pyre in the form of Massimo Costagliola and Luca Orlando; Massimo's streak of five goals in two games is ended by a damaged knee cap suffered in training this week, which looks likely to keep him sidelined for four weeks, while Luca's fractured ribs will do the same for three. At this crucial point we will now be without our most in-form striker and most in-form central midfielder for the rest of the month, though it offers some reassurance to know that Gaspare Pellegrino and Eddy Baggio can slot in as direct replacements.

[nerf]

Sunday 8th February 2009

On our previous meeting with Fano at the end of September we were able to turn three goals into three points with a convincing away win, but today they come to Ragusa on a recent surge in form. Like Teramo they may be down the wrong end of the league table, currently occupying 15th position, but three consecutive victories will have lifted their spirits considerably. Regardless, as Antonio's pre-match talk stressed, it's time for us to prove that Teramo was a blip and get back on track.

Serie C1/B Fixture #22

Ragusa v Fano

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Santos, Fumagalli, Capuano, Sabellini; Volpe, Pellegrino, Mignani, Tamburro©; Marino, Baggio.

With those sentiments in mind and another full house behind us, we once again set off on the right foot. Or perhaps that should be left foot, as it was Nicola Marino's favoured side that fired in his fifth goal of the season as early as the eleventh minute.

Eddy Baggio then went close with a header in the 23rd, shaving the outside of the post from Volpe's pacey cross, but that was to be the veteran's only contribution - he overstretched, felt his groin go, and was forced to withdraw. In his place I was briefly tempted to put young Gabriele Catania on, who could claim he earned his chance with his two goals for the Under-20s on Friday, but chose not to risk it. Deciding that we needed determined experience rather than impetuous youth, I offered fellow substitute Claudio Gallicchio the opportunity to rediscover his old position of striker.

It was defender Enrico Capuano who had the biggest impact on the remainder of the first half. He looked certain to score when Carlo Mignani's free-kick was parried into his path by the goalkeeper, but Saul Santarelli got up off the ground quickly to make the double save and the ball was cleared. Minutes later Capuano was back in his own area, tracking, harrying, challenging and ultimately fouling Fano's Nicola Vitali. The official agreed with the cries of the visiting players, and Vitali himself smacked an emphatic penalty kick into the top corner to equalise.

At half-time all of our play was forced and lacking invention, but all subsequent attempts to rectify this fell weakly against an up-beat Fano, who were doing a good job of preventing service from the midfield. Without Di Nicola, Costagliola or Baggio we perhaps understandably lacked any cutting edge in attack; Gallicchio forced a save from Santarelli and blasted another effort over the bar, Catania finally got his big chance late on but was unable to make an impact, and those vital extra two points went begging for the second week in a row.

Final score: Ragusa 1 - 1 Fano

This is not championship form! We also wasted a chance to go straight back into first position in the table, as Lecco stumbled to a surprise 0-1 defeat at Viterbese and Spal were held 1-1 by Lanciano. A win today would have put us back on top by a point - I hope we don't regret this come June.

[BobBev]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Pred:

I'm only on page 12, and I had to post.

This story is freaking amazing Nerf. You've brought a life and vigor to what is, basically, a 2D spreadsheet manager (I mean this in a good way! )that is absolutely stunning. I hope my story can come near this one.

KUTGW. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

You're so right Pred. A great mix of depth and readability that just draws the reader in. There aren't many as good as this one but it's a great target to aim for.

[nerf]

Thanks BobBev

Sunday 15th February 2009

It's a depleted Ragusa squad that makes the trip to Terni in central Italy, squatting amongst the western foothills of the Appennino Abruzzese mountain range. Those to not make the trip are the injured quartet of Massimo Costagliola, Luca Orlando, Eddy Baggio and Carlo Mignani, the latter of whom sprained an ankle in training during the week, as well as Giancarlo Di Nicola who is still days from full fitness and will not be risked this weekend.

With three strikers missing a little tinkering is necessary. Antonio and I agree on a 4-5-1; a central line of three sandwiched by the holding Tamburro and the free-roaming Marino. Claudio Gallicchio, for so long a converted central midfielder, continues his return to the attack as the lone forward today.

Serie C1/B Fixture #23

Ternana v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Santos, Fumagalli, Capuano, Sabellini; Tamburro©; Volpe, Pellegrino, Chiavarini; Marino; Gallicchio.

Fifth-placed Ternana were led out by veteran captain Sandro Cois, once a mainstay of the competitive Fiorentina team of the mid-to-late nineties. Nothing on offer in today's first half was comparable to the Batigol era, however, as the only thing in danger of enlivening a dour game was David Mazzoli's shot that shaved the outside of Van Strattan's post on a late counter-attack.

The second half failed to yield much of an improvement for us, as for the second match in a row we struggled to get anything going in the attacking third. The home side fared a little better, and Jess van Strattan responded with arguably his best performance yet in the Ragusa jersey. Mazzoli was disappointed again in the 55th minute by Jess' fingertips, in the 72nd minute a breath-taking double save kept out Gallo and Pastore when both looked destined to score from close range, and ten minutes from time he was out quickly to deny substitute Francesco Diana when through on goal.

Final score: Ternana 0 - 0 Ragusa

When our eye is on the title it's surely wrong that we should feel fortunate to come away from Terni with a point. The injuries are an excuse but the fact is that we simply weren't good enough going forward, though not through lack of effort; Pellegrino and Tamburro took to their tasks in midfield with great relish and Gallicchio chased endlessly up front, but there was never a point where we really threatened to make the breakthrough.

We've now won once in the last five games, and after Lecco's 3-1 victory today we're back exactly where we were before Christmas, which is three points behind. One bit of good news is that Spal's defeat at lowly Forli means they failed to gain any more ground on us.

[nerf]

Sunday 22nd February 2009

A week of glancing anxiously at the league table is also a week spent healing wounds and renewing optimism. The return of both Giancarlo Di Nicola and Eddy Baggio is a boost for the visit of Vis Pesaro, though Eddy only makes it as far as the bench as we return to a more familiar 4-4-2.

Serie C1/B Fixture #24

Ragusa v Vis Pesaro

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Santos, Fumagalli, Capuano, Sabellini; Volpe, Pellegrino, Gallicchio, Tamburro©; Marino, Di Nicola.

Another capacity crowd crammed into the Aldo Campo spurred their much brighter boys in blue to another quick start; Volpe's clever ball sent Marino wide for a crossing opportunity, Di Nicola's header was deflected by the quick reflexes of De Juliis, and Marino followed up to stab the rebound home for an eleventh minute opener.

Re-installed in the position of central midfield today, Claudio Gallicchio's solid first-half performance was proving why he had made the switch from striker in the first place. Unleashed to make regular forays forward while Pellegrino played the holding role behind him, it was Claudio who arrived in the right place at the right time to double our lead before the break. Sabellini's ball up the right wing sent Di Nicola away, his cross curled dangerously behind the defence was cut back by Marino, and Claudio followed up to thump the ball first time into the roof of the net.

It's clear that Vis Pesaro are not a team in harmony at the moment. Heading towards a seventh defeat in nine and without star midfielder Michele Palmieri through injury, the away side's frustrations finally boiled over in the 68th minute over the award of a simple free-kick. Renzo Nonis and his younger strike-partner Riccardo Stefani both went ballistic at referee Cesare Di Cintio, furiously chasing him across the pitch to violently express their disapproval and claim bias. After a warning for Nonis failed to calm him down, Signor Di Cintio's cards soon came out; a yellow for Nonis, another for Stefani, and when the aggressive tirade still did not stop there was a second yellow and a red for Nonis.

The pair may have been angry but it was nothing compared to the venom of Pesaro coach Paolo Dal Fiume, who roasted Nonis on his way off the pitch and immediately hauled Stefani off onto the bench in substitution. The incident ended the contest and we were allowed to see out the rest of game without breaking sweat.

Final score: Ragusa 2 - 0 Vis Pesaro

What a difference a proper strikeforce can make - Di Nicola's movement made us much more fluid and unpredictable in attack for the hour that he played, while Gallicchio, Pellegrino and particularly Volpe took advantage of the extra space to put in a commendable midfield display. Unfortunately Lecco also won at home, yet another brace from the unstoppable Delvecchio contributing to a 3-0 win over Teramo.

[Stuart Johnston]

great stuff, enough writing here to make a book, and you've been working on this for nearly 2 years. Like I said Great Stuff

[Hank Warbler]

I'm almost embarrassed at how much I'm enjoying this - a report on a fictional football team! Keep it up nerf.

[nerf]

Thanks Stuart and Hank, very kind of you. It is indeed coming up to two years next week - scary

Sunday 1st March 2009

March kicks off with a bang - it's a clash between second and third in the table as we travel to face Spal. Champions of Serie C2/B in 1998, Spal spent several years in Serie C1/B before finally winning through the promotion playoffs, but two very difficult seasons in Serie B ended with automatic relegation last year. Having lost both of their previous two matches, if they want to keep their hopes alive of an immediate return then they need to get back on track today.

Recovery from his ankle injury allows Carlo Mignani to return to the bench, though neither Costagliola nor Orlando are deemed fit enough to do the same and will again miss out. Danilo Sabellini's one-game suspension means that we are without our reliable right-back for the first time this season; Simone Tamburro drops back to fill the void, allowing Antonio Matera to return to the starting lineup just a week before his 18th birthday.

Serie C1/B Fixture #25

Spal v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Santos, Fumagalli, Capuano, Tamburro©; Volpe, Pellegrino, Gallicchio, Matera; Marino, Di Nicola.

A crowd of over 7,000 inside the large 20,000 seater Paolo Mazza would have been hoping to see their team turn around their waning title challenge by defeating a rival. Unfortunately for them, inspired by some strong defending from Capuano and lively play from Volpe down the left, it was the visitors who edged an even first half and indeed went into the break a goal up. Marino again did the damage, converting Di Nicola's 31st minute cross by ensuring he was first to the bouncing ball ahead of goalkeeper Domenico Fontana.

Marino should have doubled the lead on the hour. In a sloppy piece of play reminiscent of us against Teramo, the Spal defence allowed Di Nicola to intercept a loose pass and unselfishly square it for Marino unmarked in the middle of the penalty area, but with most of the goal at his mercy his sliced, mis-hit effort spun harmlessly into the grateful arms of a very relieved Fontana.

In the 74th minute Carlo Mignani replaced Antonio Matera, allowing the tiring youngster to rest and giving us a bit more tenacity, and Carlo immediately made an impact within five minutes of appearing. His well-timed pass through the right channel split the home defence to send Di Nicola clear, and this time when the ball was clipped across Marino would not make the same mistake twice. A controlled sidefoot volley and the day was won.

Final score: Spal 0 - 2 Ragusa

A neutral observer would have been a little disappointed in Spal, who have been chasing hard for much of the campaign but were quite limp today, deepening the dip in form they are currently experiencing. I felt we did well, however, as our midfield refused to allow them space to create - we seem to be more solid with Pellegrino holding deeper - and our two young attackers were too quick and nimble for them to cope with. Most importantly we didn't lose any ground on Lecco, who won 3-1 at Fano with, you guessed it, two more from their former Italian international striker.

[nerf]

Wednesday 4th March 2009

Almost forgotten due to the odd timing of his contract expiry date, Massimo Del Prete's arrival in Ragusa today was quiet and straight forward. The nineteen year old defender, who signed on the dotted line for us two months ago, will provide some interesting competition for Fumagalli and Capuano. He has played twenty-one games for Lanciano this season, earning an impressive ten man-of-the-match awards in that time, so clearly he's in good enough form and sharp enough to go straight into the squad for Sunday.

[nerf]

Sunday 8th March 2009

No sooner did we deal a blow to one of the chasing pack, another has stepped up to take their place; Trento profited from our defeat of Spal to take the position as leader of the playoff contenders who refuse to leave Lecco and ourselves alone. Seven points behind us and ten behind Lecco, if Trento have any hope of mounting a late bid for automatic promotion then they will be desperate to win this one.

Del Prete's arrival could not have been better timed. Santos twisted a knee on Friday, giving me the perfect excuse to shift Fumagalli to left-back and immediately integrate Del Prete alongside Capuano in the centre of defence. Sabellini comes straight back into the side, as does fit-again Luca Orlando, because Gaspare Pellegrino suffered a bruised thigh in training and will not be risked unless absolutely necessary.

Serie C1/B Fixture #26

Ragusa v Trento

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Fumagalli, Capuano, Del Prete, Sabellini; Volpe, Orlando, Gallicchio, Tamburro©; Marino, Di Nicola.

We've scored early in three of the last five games and today we threatened to do it again. Volpe's 6th minute free-kick was launched deep into Trento territory, Orlando got a run at it and leapt high to connect with a powerful header that I was sure had looped over the keeper, only for Armando Pantanelli to twist and reach a long arm back to somehow claw the ball out.

Instead it was Trento striker Filippo Breschi who drew first blood with his tenth of the season. Massimo Del Prete had only spent twenty minutes on the pitch with his new teammates when a moment of confusion between Jess van Strattan and himself caused them both to think each other was going for the high ball. Breschi no doubt had a chuckle about the embarassing mix-up as he swept the ball casually into the empty net.

The lead not only lasted through to half-time, five minutes after the break the visitors increased it. Danilo Sabellini was harshly judged to have jumped unfairly in the box with Trento's Bonura, the referee signalling elbows, and gangly Nigerian midfielder Kelechi Francis Ibekwe stepped up to thrash the penalty kick into the roof of the net. 0-2, and five minutes later a powerful strike from Breschi rattled the crossbar - it could have been three.

It could have been three... Trento would be made to wish that it had. Despite the scoreline we had never been out of the contest, and after Volpe had linked with Di Nicola to force another good save from Pantanelli we clawed a goal back. 70 minutes, substitute Costagliola beat a defender and crossed from the left, and this time Di Nicola used his head to better effect at the near post.

Speaking of posts, that's exactly what Ibekwe hit moments later when his long range effort rebounded off van Strattan's woodwork. Again the third goal never came and again we punished the visitors for it. With just six minutes remaining, a corner was won on the right and Di Nicola's ability to find his strike-partner's head from the set-piece resulted in Costagliola glancing home the equaliser. The wind was in our sails now, and if it wasn't for Pantanelli's continued heroics then Orlando would have stolen a late winner from another Di Nicola corner, only for the Trento 'keeper to frustrate him with a miraculous goal-line stop.

Trento then applied some late pressure of their own as the match crept into the second of two minutes of added-on-time. The first cross was headed clear by Fumagalli, the second was driven low to the edge of the area where Massimo Del Prete stuck out a leg and collided with Simone Basso, upending the opposing striker. The official pointed to the spot, leaving Massimo aghast, head in his heads... it's his debut and he's just thrown the game away... for reasons I shall never know, substitute midfielder Samuele Parrini placed the ball on the spot rather than the previous successful Ibekwe, and promptly wished he'd let the Nigerian take it as he saw his penalty kick crash off the crossbar. We survived.

Final score: Ragusa 2 - 2 Trento

Drama, drama, drama... and ultimately disappointment at another game drawn. If you conveniently ignore the calamitous mix-up for the first goal and the misjudged lunge for the penalty that nearly cost us even a point, Massimo Del Prete actually had a decent game at the back. For the rest of his debut he had been dominant in the air and had marked Simone Basso out of the game entirely.

Despite the name of Delvecchio being absent from the scoresheet, Lecco still had enough firepower to overcome Ternana 3-0 at home. With 8 matches left, the five point gap isn't looking pretty...

[-Xenon-]

Plenty of time to turn that around mate! Keep up the outstanding work! Fantastic stuff!

[nerf]

Happy 2nd Birthday

Sunday 15th March 2009

This weekend's journey is a relatively short one, as Crotone is a harbour town in the most southernly part of Italy, facing out onto the Ionian Sea. The port has been well defended of late by the home guard; no goals conceded in the last three home matches at the Ezio Scida.

That same task will be assigned to Giuseppe Lenea today, who ends a long, impatient wait for a return to the starting lineup due to Jess van Strattan's broken toe. Santos has recovered from his knee injury to make it as far as the subs bench, whereas Gaspare Pellegrino steps straight back into the first eleven.

Serie C1/B Fixture #27

Crotone v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Fumagalli, Capuano, Del Prete, Sabellini; Volpe, Pellegrino, Orlando, Tamburro©; Marino, Di Nicola.

Making his first league appearance of the season, Giuseppe Lenea would be pleased that all he had to deal with in the first half was a couple of long range efforts. We had the better of the first period, Giancarlo Di Nicola coming close to scoring on three separate occasions only for Lenea's opposite number Felice Ceravolo to deny him each time, the most impressive of which came after Volpe had linked with Marino in the best move of the game so far. We had edged it but we still needed that goal, so at the break Costagliola and Mignani were brought on to try and introduce more urgency.

Lenea was called into action early in the second half by two efforts from Crotone striker Bernacci, tipping the first over the bar and diving to his right to parry the second. As the home side pushed forward we then caught them on the counter and should have taken the lead; set-up by Orlando's surge and Di Nicola's cross, Costagliola took one touch to control and a second to spoon the ball horribly over the bar. Typically, after throwing away such a gilt-edged chance, Crotone went up the other end and scored when Bernacci finally found success in his attempts to strike the ball past Lenea.

Fifteen minutes remaining and another dent to our title hopes looking likely, we sacrificed a defender to add Eddy Baggio to the attack. The gamble paid off. With 80 minutes on the clock, Baggio was released down the left and looked to the centre where Costagliola and Di Nicola were sprinting in support. That telepathic understanding kicked in, Costagliola's decoy run to the back stick dragging the defenders away to allow his teammate a free header at the near post, and Di Nicola darted in to net for the 25th time this season.

Final score: Crotone 1 - 1 Ragusa

[nerf]

(...and thank you Xenon )

Monday 16th March 2009

Admittedly it could have been worse, but yet another draw did not make for a happy trip home yesterday. Meanwhile, the Delvecchio show left it late before adding his 31st goal of the season in the dying seconds of another convincing 3-0 win for Lecco at Vis Pesaro. While they are in scorching hot form, we are stumbling over blocks that we should really be hurdling clearly if we're serious about wanting this automatic promotion. The gap, which was worrying enough at three points, now stands at seven points.

Each draw is making our task ever more difficult as the close of the season hurtles nearer. Since that win over Lecco at the end of January, we have drawn five of seven matches and dropped ten potential points in the process, whereas Lecco have won six of those seven and dropped just three. Their response to that set-back has been admirable and such consistency is rapidly eroding our ability to keep up.

[nerf]

Friday 20th March 2009

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">

National call-up for Marino

When Marco Tardelli's national Under-21 squad gathers to jet off to Trondheim next week to face their Norwegian counterparts, protégés from Juventus and Milan, from the Rome clubs or from the production line at Atalanta, all bred in the highest acadamies and some already hardened by top flight experience, will form an assembled representation of the future stars of Serie A.

Amongst them will be a seventeen year old Sicilian. Born and raised in Ragusa, about as far away from the traditional hotbeds of Italian football as you can get, Nicola Marino learned his football scuffing his shoes on the yard of the Scuola di San Giorgio. Scouted playing for his school, his home town club quickly snapped him up at the age of fifteen. Twenty months later he will be rubbing shoulders with the best that Italy has to offer.

"It will be a learning experience", says Ragusa assistant Antonio Ranucci, credited as the man who spotted Marino. "A valuable learning experience for Nicola. Even if he doesn't play, just being part of the squad and travelling and training with more experienced young players will be of great benefit."

Marino's club Ragusa, who play their home matches in a stadium with a capacity of just 3,500, are currently challenging for promotion from Serie C1/B. The young forward will be the only one on the plane to Trondheim registered with a club outside the top two divisions. "We have to be realistic. Ragusa is a small club", Antonio admits, when asked if he thinks that situation will last. "We're fortunate to have a good crop of young players coming through at the moment. The reality is that some young players grow faster than the club that they play for."

The call-up highlights a vertigo-inducing rise from anonimity for the teenager, who has scored over twenty-five goals in less than two seasons as a professional. Is he good enough to make the grade at the highest level? Antonio shrugs. "He was the most naturally talented boy of that age I have ever seen. But he still has a lot to learn and a long way to go. This could be the first step."

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[nerf]

Sunday 22nd March 2009

Just in case Nicola Marino needed anything to nail his feet securely to the floor following the call from Signor Tardelli this week, he finds himself on the bench today. Joining him is fit-again Jess van Strattan, because Giuseppe Lenea keeps his place between the sticks as our old friends Varese come to town.

Serie C1/B Fixture #28

Ragusa v Varese

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Santos, Capuano, Del Prete, Sabellini©; Volpe, Pellegrino, Orlando, Mignani; Di Nicola, Costagliola.

Struggling in thirteenth position and managerless after Gianni Bortoletto was sacked two weeks ago, Varese could probably have done without a trip away to their bogey team, particularly when we are desperately needing a win of our own and unlikely to do them any favours. We did not start very convincingly, but Massimo Costagliola made sure that didn't matter when he latched on to Di Nicola's flick and raced away to make it 1-0 in the 19th minute.

Perhaps the front pair were keen on proving a point after hearing of their younger teammate's news; this was going to be Massimo Costagliola's day and his partner in crime was helping him to it. Five minutes before the break, Giancarlo Di Nicola pulled wide with three Varese players at his heels yet still managed to dig out the cross to the near post, where Costagliola did the rest by bundling the ball beyond defender and goalkeeper into the net. On the stroke of half-time Massimo had his hattrick, this time with his head after he exchanged passes with Giancarlo and powered the return ball in off the base of the near post.

In truth, demoralised Varese were already beaten and that was the game won at half-time. All that remained was for Costagliola to take one step further and add his fourth, pouncing hungrily on the rebound when Di Nicola was denied by Michele Tardioli, shortly before departing to a standing ovation when Baggio and Marino replaced both strikers.

Final score: Ragusa 4 - 0 Varese

The unspectacular second half ended on a relatively sour note when new signing Massimo Del Prete was hurt in a full-blooded fifty-fifty challenge with Varsese's uncompromising striker Stefano Brognoli, suffering as yet unknown damage to his shoulder, but today was all about Costagliola. Four goals, three directly and one indirectly assisted by Giancarlo Di Nicola, and the Varese fans have been given yet another reason to despise all things Ragusa.

News filtered in shortly after the match that Lecco had been held to a goalless draw at home to Spal. The point is sufficient to make Lecco the first side to seal a playoff berth as a minimum, but the gap between us is now back down to five.

[Trigz]

I can only echo other comments on this thread - a flabbergasting read. If I can make a suggestion it would be including the tables in the posts themselves rather as external links. Oh, and which formation do you use?

[nerf]

Thanks Trigz . Truthfully, I chose not to put the tables in the posts in order to avoid fiddling about with formatting, it made life easier. The formation we're using is a fairly standard 4-4-2.

Apologies for the lengthy break, now we're back...

Friday 3rd April 2009

It should have been a restful fortnight, a pause for breath before the final six match push. Oh to be so lucky. Instead, our preparations for the trip to Tuscany this weekend exclude four first-teamers, two of whom managed to collect substantial injuries in the two-week break.

Added to Massimo Del Prete's damaged shoulder and Alessandro Volpe's suspension for accumulated bookings, Luca Orlando and Giancarlo Di Nicola are both set to miss at least this weekend and possibly the Biellese game next week. Two injuries we could really have done without.

Nicola Marino returned from Norway in good health, as expected considering he wasn't even featured on the bench while Italy's youngsters beat their hosts 1-0 thanks to a second half header by promising Juventus defender Pasquale Moro.

The good news this week is that Antonio has agreed a new contract with the club, extending his role as assistant manager until 2014. He's deserved it; in fact one wonders whether he may be presented with bigger opportunities before that date arrives.

[nerf]

Sunday 5th April 2009

Stefano Fumagalli, Simone Tamburro, Antonio Matera and Nicola Marino all benefit from the absentees to slot into the starting eleven today to face 7th-placed Arezzo.

Serie C1/B Fixture #29

Arezzo v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Santos, Fumagalli, Capuano, Sabellini; Tamburro©, Pellegrino, Mignani, Matera; Marino, Costagliola.

On a breezy afternoon in spring-time Tuscany, we may as well have not bothered to turn up. A dreary first half rendered home goalkeeper Giovanni Proietti a spectator, no doubt as bored as the five thousand that had bothered to acquire tickets. In truth, Arezzo barely troubled Giuseppe Lenea to any greater extent.

The wind picked up further as half-time approached and we took a gamble, sending Eddy Baggio on to replace Marino at half-time with the intention of getting the ball up high in the gusting wind for the twin towers of Baggio and Costagliola to contest, hopefully giving fellow substitute Claudio Gallicchio something to burst onto from midfield.

That was the plan. Unfortunately, Arezzo beat us to the punch. Six minutes into the second half, Arezzo fullback Moreo launched a similar ball into the box that dipped and drifted in the wind, Fumagalli and Capuano failed to deal with it under pressure from Pazzi and Pinamonte, and the result was that the ball dropped elusively into the far corner via the post and Capuano's anatomy. Own goal, 1-0 Arezzo.

And appropriately so it stayed, despite our increasingly desperate efforts as the game wound down. For a moment we almost rescued a point when Eddy Baggio got his head onto a late, swirling corner, but Proietti maintained his concentration and saved well, preserving his team's seventh win in eight.

Final score: Arezzo 1 - 0 Ragusa

A poor, poor defeat. Without Di Nicola and Volpe, and to a lesser extent Orlando, it's clear that we lack any sort of creativity whatsoever. A dash of irony was provided by the fact that Enrico Capuano was probably our best performer today, yet the own goal had been the deciding moment.

[nerf]

Monday 6th April 2009

After Lecco were held 0-0 at Trento and eased the gap open to six points - another opportunity thrown away by us - the Serie C1/B table looks like THIS with five matches remaining.

Fixtures:

Lecco - Crotone(H), Varese(A), Arezzo(H), Lanciano(H), Biellese(A)

Ragusa - Biellese(H), Lanciano(A), Forlí(H), Martina(H), Messina(A)

In all honesty, I can't see Lecco losing a single one of those matches, never mind the two defeats that we need them to get as minimum. For us, Lanciano and Messina away are potential banana skins, but we simply must win all five to cling on to our slim hopes of the title, hopes that have faded disappointingly thanks to our rocky form over the last couple of months. I have to say that the lottery of the playoffs is looking a very likely destination indeed.

[nerf]

Tuesday 14th April 2009

Giancarlo Di Nicola is not yet back to full fitness and makes it no further than the bench this evening, which is more than can be said of Luca Orlando - the midfielder's groin strain could be more serious than first expected and was nowhere near to being passed fit for tonight. Simone Tamburro also misses out through suspension.

In light of our blunt display at Arezzo there's a surprise recall to the first team for Franco Chiavarini, provided with special instructions to find space wide right and supply as many crosses to Massimo Costagliola as humanly possible.

Serie C1/B Fixture #30

Ragusa v Biellese

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Santos, Capuano, Del Prete, Sabellini©; Volpe, Pellegrino, Mignani, Chiavarini; Marino, Costagliola.

Whereas we failed to produce anything of note in the first forty-five in Arezzo, tonight the damage was done within little over twenty minutes. Alessandro Volpe's cleanly volleyed opener arrived couresty of Marino's perseverence and Chiavarini's cut-back, before Marino himself doubled our lead when he wriggled free of a clinging defender and gave goalkeeper Luca Mordenti no chance with an emphatic left foot finish.

Mid-table Biellese, undefeated in their last three, were shell-shocked by the double blow and proved unable to even warm Van Strattan's hands on the Aussie's return to the starting lineup. The visitors' otherwise forgettable evening will unfortunately stick painfully in the mind of their sixteen year old substitute Danilo Fabbri, who was the unlucky kid in the wrong place to be credited with an own-goal, making it 3-0, after Mordenti caused a goalmouth scramble by flapping at a corner in the dying minutes.

Final score: Ragusa 3 - 0 Biellese

A nice, comfortable win was just the tonic, combined with a much more pleasing performance across the pitch. Alessandro Volpe was man-of-the-match once again, while Franco Chiavarini enjoyed his role on the right and could well have earned the chance to retain his starting place for the coming weekend.

The bad news is that Lecco comprehensively dispatched Crotone with a 4-0 win at the Rigamonti-Ceppi, maintaining their six point lead with twelve points left to play for.

[nerf]

Sunday 19th April 2009

As the prospect of a third consecutive plunge into the promotion playoffs looms over our near future like a daunting, recurring nightmare, the sight of a three-quarters full Guido Biondi, embellished with red-and-black, is a less than soothing sight. It's our first return to Lanciano since you-know-when. Lanciano youth product turned Ragusa defender, Massimo Del Prete will today be assigned the permanent task of shackling former teammate Mattia Pagano - no holds barred.

Serie C1/B Fixture #31

Lanciano v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Fumagalli, Capuano, Del Prete, Sabellini©; Volpe, Pellegrino, Mignani, Chiavarini; Marino, Costagliola.

Franco Chiavarini looks re-born. The Argentinian has sat both on the bench and out in the cold for an interminable length of time, yet in a follow up to his assist and good display last week, it was his intelligent piece of play that created the first real opening of the game in the 18th minute. Franco cut infield and stabbed a clever diagonal ball into the feet of Nicola Marino on the edge of the area, and the teenager somehow emerged free from a convergence of defenders to round goalkeeper Luca Ferro and score his tenth of the season.

Then, some ten minutes before half-time, a repetition of history. Not a Pagano goal, but rather the sight of Gaspare Pellegrino lunging, stretching, over-stretching for a tackle, and then staying down on the turf afterwards. As soon as he failed to get straight back up I knew instantly what the problem would be; it was exactly this time last year that Gaspare re-tore the groin muscle that ruled him out of our playoff attempt last season. God help us that it should happen again.

Injury worries aside, things were looking okay at half-time, with Simone Tamburro introduced to adopt Gaspare's holding midfield role as well as the captain's armband. What we really needed was an early second half goal to calm the nerves... Nicola Marino duly obliged. Fumagalli's 53rd minute punt was ignored by the Lanciano defence, who were too busy making a hash of their attempt to play offside and were left standing there, arms aloft, while Marino and Costagliola both gleefully raced on to face the abandoned 'keeper. Marino used his wide open strike partner as a decoy, instead choosing to dance around Ferro for the second time of the afternoon like it was the easiest thing in the world. 2-0.

That game-winning brace earned Nicola Marino a rest, allowing Giancarlo Di Nicola fifteen minutes of fitness, and Giancarlo went on to link with Massimo Costagliola in typical fashion to round the game off with Costagliola's 50th goal for Ragusa, an 83rd minute header.

Final score: Lanciano 0 - 3 Ragusa

[Get on Teletext!]

Just posting so you don't think everyone has lost interest

Still brilliant, I check almost everyday for updates so keep them coming

[nerf]

Thanks GoT

Monday 20th April 2009

Three goals, three points, and Massimo Del Prete himself proved a personal point with an admirable display yesterday, earning himself a satisfying man-of-the-match accolade on his return to his former club. I was also pleased with Stefano Fumagalli's contribution at left-back, arguably his best performance in that position, perhaps in response to being dropped recently.

The news that then filtered in after the game from the Franco Ossola in Varese was shocking... despite Marco Delvecchio lobbing the 'keeper within sixty seconds, and then Michele Palermo adding another goal moments before the break to take Lecco into half-time 2-1 up, Varese's Gianluca Porro added two second half goals on top of Brognoli's equaliser and the home side sent Lecco packing with a 2-4 defeat.

This morning the Serie C1/B table shows the gap at the top now back down to three points... three games to go... false hope?

[nerf]

Tuesday 21st April 2009

False hope... hope... often there's no difference. I've always felt more comfortable with facts. Fact, there are nine points left to play for. Fact, our goal difference is superior to Lecco's. Therefore, if we win each of our last three while Lecco pick up no more than six points from theirs, we can still steal the title and automatic promotion.

Fact: I really don't fancy another playoff "adventure"...

Further hope was gleaned from the nervously awaited report of physio Vincenzo Ambrosio this morning. Gaspare Pellegrino is looking at roughly three weeks of rest; it could have been much worse. I quickly raced through my mental calendar. He'll miss the home fixtures with Forlí and Martina, with a slight possibility of making the final game at Messina with luck on his side. Assuming no disasters in the meantime, we'll have Gaspare back for the playoffs... should that be our destiny.

Lecco's defeat at Varese was an unexpected surprise that I wasn't prepared for. What we have to do now is make sure that we are absolutely prepared for our last three matches, starting with Forlí on Sunday, and give ourselves a final chance by obtaining maximum points. We've already thrown too many opportunities away over the past three months; if Lecco slip up again, unthinkable though it is, it would be unforgivable for us to not be in position to capitalise this time.

[nerf]

Sunday 26th April 2009

Flustered Forlí arrive in Ragusa with the saintly light of safety still mathematically within arm's reach, yet with the more immediate threat of automatic relegation nipping much closer at their heels. A meagre tally of seven points from their last eight matches partially explains their precarious position of 17th, just one point above table-propping Teramo.

The Ragusa eleven is led out in front of a packed Aldo Campo this afternoon by Simone Tamburro, once more filling in for Gaspare as our theoretical midfield rock. Giancarlo Di Nicola remains on the bench, with the intention of giving him a sizeable chunk of the second half to ease him back in.

Serie C1/B Fixture #32

Ragusa v Forlí

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Fumagalli, Capuano, Del Prete, Sabellini; Volpe, Tamburro©, Mignani, Chiavarini; Marino, Costagliola.

Representing the fact that both teams desperately needed points from this one, the match kicked off at quite a pace. Despite Marino's attempted chip landing on the roof of Cristiano Scalabrelli's net inside thirty seconds, it was Forlí who struck first. Sabellini was sucked in and beaten by Poletti, Del Prete came across to cover for the fullback, and Gianluca Simeoli utilised the resulting space in the middle to accurately divert Poletti's cross goalwards for a sixth minute opener. Not the best start to our 'nine point push'.

You could have feared the worst at that moment, but we responded positively and dominated the rest of the half, culminating in Marino spinning away from his marker to clip the ball past Scalabrelli for a 39th minute equaliser. Jess van Strattan then maintained parity after the break with an impressive save, indirectly setting the stage for Massimo Costagliola to give us the lead by doing what he does best on the end of Marino's deep cross. 2-1.

We should then have gone on and killed Forlí off, a team down on their luck who had seen their advantage evaporate. Instead we stuttered and hesitated - Volpe hooked a penalty-kick wide of the post after Mignani was brought down, before Costagliola embarassingly found the side-netting when Marino presented him with an almost open goal. The lead remained worryingly slender.

On 66 minutes I sent Giancarlo Di Nicola on from the bench. Like a ray of sunshine cutting through gathering clouds, the Aldo Campo was suddenly blessed with a moment of rare beauty. Marino's interception, Di Nicola's explosion of pace, Chiavarini's visionary 40 yard ball, Marino's smooth exchange of passes with Costagliola, and finally Marino's sweeping near post finish; all immaculately linked in one beautifully swift counter-attack that flowed through Forlí in six or seven touches.

When the visitors eventually registered that the ball had just been transferred up the field and into their net in the blink of an eye, their heads dropped just as we had hoped. We were rampant for the remaining twenty minutes, allowing Massimo Costagliola to fire home a fourth to cap an encouraging second half.

Final score: Ragusa 4 - 1 Forlí

There were moments of worry, but in the end the scoreline was emphatic and representative of a much improved second half performance. Giancarlo Di Nicola was involved in the third and fourth goals and his fitness levels look good, putting him in contention to start next week.

Less encouraging is Lecco's 2-0 victory at home to Arezzo. The gap remains at three points with just two matches to go.

[nerf]

Saturday 2nd May 2009

In a week that saw Sicily's Citta di Palermo seal automatic promotion to next season's Serie A despite being a hefty 19 points behind run-away Serie B champions Empoli, fates were also sealed over in England, where Arsenal's 3-0 win at home to Blackburn confirmed the Gunners as this season's Premiership champions with a match to spare. The early conclusion leaves Manchester United and Aston Villa to battle it out for runner-up on the final day, with the former holding a one point advantage. United are also destined to meet the new champions in a fortnight's time for the FA Cup final.

Villa have enjoyed a fantastic second half of the season under the clever guidance of new boss Roberto Mancini, who has turned them from a midtable outfit into potential Champions League qualifiers. Aided by the good form of captain Gareth Barry and Italian international midfielder Manuele Blasi, the Midlanders went to Anfield today where Blasi scored against his former club in an impressive 4-2 victory. Villa must now beat Watford next weekend - without homegrown 29-goal striker Darius Vassell through injury - and hope that Steve McLaren's Southampton can manage some sort of result at Old Trafford on their behalf.

[dr-nix]

still as brilliant as ever, keep up the good work.

[nerf]

Thanks dr-nix

Sunday 3rd May 2009

8th-placed Martina come to the Aldo Campo boasting far better recent form than Forlí, having won seven of their last eight matches. Once more I resist the temptation to unleash Di Nicola from the start; he'll be reserved for the second half for a further week, allowing us the rarity of an unchanged lineup.

Serie C1/B Fixture #33

Ragusa v Martina

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Fumagalli, Capuano, Del Prete, Sabellini; Volpe, Tamburro©, Mignani, Chiavarini; Marino, Costagliola.

If the first half flew past in a blur, what a rip-roaring rollercoaster of a second half we were to endure today. Claudio Gallicchio's 64th minute substitution was the spark, as he immediately pounced on a loose ball in the centre circle with typical determination and gave Volpe the chance to look up and pick out Costagliola, who was pulling off the shoulder of his marker Antonio Gallú. The big striker did the rest, swerving into the penalty area before slipping it under the advancing goalkeeper to give us a 1-0 lead.

Confident Martina would not crumble, however, and took just four minutes to retaliate. The visitors probed for a quick equaliser, but with strong interceptions by Del Prete, Capuano and Tamburro it looked like we had it under control, that is until the ball came to Redavid on the right and his diagonal chip was for once completely missed by Enrico Capuano. Martina striker Claudio Cacciatori said grazie and showed his appreciation in style, blasting an unstoppable strike into the roof of Van Strattan's net. Prego.

Pegged level too quickly for our liking, we bounced back and attempted to return the gesture. Minutes later, Tamburro was strong in midfield and volleyed the ball up to Costagliola, who controlled with his chest and slipped it into the path of Nicola Marino. Evading a defender, the teenager then unleashed a curling 25 yard effort that screamed towards the near top-corner, only for the ball to crash high off the inside of the post and bounce across the goal, ultimately to safety.

To our detriment, the tempo then dropped a little and the next fifteen minutes ticked on without joy, tension increasing by the second. A point would not be not enough. 80 minutes, 85, 87, 88... news was already arriving from Lecco, I waved it away... and looked up to see Volpe's left wand conjure a pass where there was surely no angle for it, a magical through ball, and Marino was suddenly heading for goal. Defender Marchese was across to cover, but only ushered Marino onto his favoured left side... from which he scuffed a weak, mis-hit, bobbling excuse for a shot straight at the goalkeeper. Clutching curly hair in anguished hands, the teenager's sunken pose embodied my touchline dismay. There went the chance.

The 90th minute moved quickly into the 91st, the sands of our final title bid draining rapidly. 1-1, we'd left it too late. We'd left it too late when Volpe's pass found Marino in the left channel. We'd left it far too late when Marino outfoxed Marchese and dribbled to the left byline. It was surely too little, too late, when Marino's left foot dug out a chipped ball that floated temptingly back towards the penalty spot.

The only thing that wasn't late was Massimo Costagliola, whose arrival was timed to perfection. Reminiscent of something out of 'Hotshot Hamish', Massimo arrived in the manner of a locomotive to headbutt the ball into the corner and leave marker Gallú eating turf while the Aldo Campo erupted wildly.

Final score: Ragusa 2 - 1 Martina

[nerf]

Monday 4th May 2009

That was too dramatic and far too close for comfort, although it quickly became somewhat of an anti-climax. Despite Marco Delvecchio being absent from the teamsheet, Lecco powered past Lanciano doubtlessly with all the ease that the 4-0 scoreline suggests, and the lead stays at three.

The Serie C1/B table shows that goal difference remains in our favour, but we can now only hope that timid Biellese use their home advantage to perform some sort of miracle during Lecco's visit next Sunday, while we try to negotiate a trickier away fixture in the form of a Sicilian derby with Messina. I'm not at all confident that fate would be so kind, but Massimo's forehead at least kept a glimmer of hope alive for one more, final, week.

Far higher up the echelons of Italian football, AC Milan secured the Scudetto this weekend when their 2-0 win over Parma at the San Siro made it impossible for either Roma or Juventus to catch them. The confirmation of the league title will no doubt boost their confidence ahead of the midweek commencement of their Champions League Semi Final clash with Liverpool at Anfield.

[Skiddaw]

Jeez man! you cannot not post the last matchday now... I'm eating my fingernails out!

Great story & KUTGW....

[nerf]

Tuesday 5th May 2009

Albinoleffe, fresh from earning themselves a promotion playoff spot in Serie C2/A, have made an approach for Stefano Guastella in the hope that we would be willing to let Stefano go for free.

Contrary to what his senior level appearance record would suggest - which doesn't even reach double figures in the last four years combined - I am a fan of Stefano. I like him as a player and he's a nice kid, but we've simply had, and still do have, several options in front of him at the right-back position. Besides, nothing short of a tidal wave is shifting the reliable Danilo Sabellini from that spot, assuming those of us with good memories can disregard Willy Baiana's kung-fu antics as an aberration.

Guastella's release will also enable us to shave one more salary off our bloated wage bill, which currently stands £1,000 over budget. I don't think Stefano is in any great hurry to leave the club, but he can do a really good job in Leffe and it will benefit his career.

[nerf]

Thanks Skiddaw

Wednesday 6th May 2009

Tonight's 1-1 draw at Villareal was enough for dominating Barcelona to secure their nineteenth Primera Liga championship with four matches still to go, inspired by their man-of-the-match, the cultured 31 year old Brazilian left-back Dédé, who continues to astound the media pundits with his scintillating form for Barca since his £12.75 million transfer in January. Coinciding with his arrival, the Catalan club jumped to the top of the table and have not been shifted since.

In the first leg of the Champions League Semi Finals, 45,000 were crammed into Anfield to see Neil Mellor score ten minutes from time, giving Liverpool a 1-0 advantage to take to the San Siro next week. Chris Kirkland denied Shevchenko on more than one occasion as Liverpool shook off their overall poor league form this season to keep their Champions League hopes on track.

In the other semi, a last minute goal by 30 year old Nicola Ventola inched Inter past Leeds United in front of almost 74,000 in the San Siro, after Leeds' Clarence Seedorf had equalised Emre's opener for Inter. The away goal could be crucial for the Premiership club, whose 11th place will not be enough to qualify for this competition again next season.

[nerf]

Sunday 10th May 2009

This is it, final chance. We must get nothing short of a victory this afternoon, while Lecco must crash and burn in Biella. Possible... unlikely. A lot can happen on the final day though, as we have found out to both our benefit and cost in the past.

Standing in our way on a dry day in northern Sicily are Messina. The good news is that the 16th-placed team are suffering an awful end to their season, having lost all of their last five matches, scoring just twice in the process. The bad news is that their situation bears a similarity to ours - if they win and other results go their way, they could still squeeze out of the relegation playoff zone and into security via goal difference.

Midfield duo Gaspare Pellegrino and Luca Orlando are back in full training but lack match fitness, so both get as far as the bench today. Giancarlo Di Nicola, on the other hand, makes his first start for seven weeks, at the expense of Franco Chiavarini on the right of midfield. It's harsh on Franco, who has done surprisingly well of late, but we'll need Giancarlo's magic today.

Serie C1/B Fixture #34

Messina v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Fumagalli, Capuano, Del Prete, Sabellini; Volpe, Tamburro©, Mignani, Di Nicola; Marino, Costagliola.

The steep curves of the Stadio San Filippo, brightly bedecked in red and yellow, welcomed kick-off with an air of hope and belief. They could still get out of the relegation playoffs. We could still get out of the promotion playoffs.

Nicola Marino certainly knew as much. Bang in form and looking bright as a button, it's clear that Antonio's plan of holding him back for the second half of the season was a masterstroke, and the teenager had more influence on the first half than any other player on the pitch. He went close twice in the opening ten minutes, first stabbing over the bar when Di Nicola sent him through, and then dazzling defender Righetti to get a shot in that was held by the 'keeper.

Fittingly it was Marino who broke the deadlock. Giancarlo Di Nicola showed his importance to the team once more, providing the creative touch with a diagonal ball over the top of the defence, and Marino scurried in to draw the 'keeper and fire past him - the travelling Ragusa tifosi went mad in the cheap seats, belief fortified.

We were clearly on top and Marino should have had a second in the 39th minute, when Costagliola helped Di Nicola's cross on to find Marino all alone in front of goal, but he shot straight at Vincenzo Marruocco and the chance went begging. It nearly cost us. As the first half drew to a close, a deep ball into our penalty area arrowed towards Messina striker Giuseepe Ripa, unmarked and shaping up for it to drop neatly onto his poised left foot, only for Enrico Capuano to come out of nowhere and cover with a magnificent intervention.

Despite the late scare, at half-time we had a good grip on the game and were otherwise unworried by Messina. So far, so...

...bad. Somebody caught my sleeve as we headed into the changing rooms at the break. News from Lecco. News that a twelve-minute barrage in Biella and given a commanding 3-0 lead to... Lecco. No way in hell would Biellese ever come back from that. Our result would be academic; the title was Lecco's.

Slightly deflated, I immediately switched into playoff preparation mode and gave Pellegrino and Orlando the nod for the second half - now we know they'll need the match fitness for more games to come. The second half itself was a massive anti-climax. It appeared that news had also filtered through to Messina that their relegation playoff rivals Fano and Teramo were both winning as well, consigning them to their own tense playoff fate. Gone was the bright hope of the first half, replaced with a real end-of-season affair that drifted without incident.

The sun caught the mood and dipped behind a cloud as the final whistle approached. Not many left the San Filippo happy.

Final score: Messina 0 - 1 Ragusa

[nerf]

Monday 11th May 2009

Even on a calm, warm, relaxing day such as this, somehow the mid-morning pastries at the Caffé Trieste don't taste quite as good when you're staring down the barrel of the promotion playoffs for the third season in a row.

Lecco cruised out the second half of their 3-0 win over Biellese yesterday and pipped us to the title by three points. In all truth and fairness they were justified champions, having led the division for the majority of the season. We had our chances to change that along the way, but the pace set by strong, consistent Lecco was much like my steaming fresh coffee - just a little too hot to handle.

A simple glance at the printed final league standings in the sportspaper beside me shows that our tendency to draw was what cost us, most of which came during February and March in a period when we dropped far too many points. We actually finished the season with five consecutive victories, but by that stage the damage was already done and we had given Lecco too great a headstart.

Looking back, if you could nail the season down to a couple of weeks, our consecutive draws with Teramo and Fano in February were the killers. Hot on the heels of that thrilling January evening at the Aldo Campo, in which we beat and wrestled the top spot away from Lecco, we promptly dropped four points at teams in the relegation zone and handed the lead straight back. Turning those draws into victories could have changed everything and I could be sitting here, on the edge of the quiet piazza, as a Serie B manager.

[nerf]

Wednesday 13th May

No doubt similar regrets will tonight be felt by the coaches of AC Milan and Leeds United, because it is Liverpool and Inter who will compete in the Champions League final at their expense. Emile Heskey's first-half goal in Liverpool's 1-2 defeat in the San Siro enabled the Reds to sneak through via the away goals rule, despite AC Milan's complete domination of the second leg.

In the other Semi Final at a packed Elland Road, a spectacular second half lob by veteran winger Pedrag Djordjevic guided Inter safely through 3-1 on aggregate. The victory keeps Inter on course to retain their title of European Champions for a second year.

[Guest Rafalution]

So, this story has been going on for over 2 years now? That is impressive, to say the least. Alos a bit worrying, but thats what this game does to you

[smiller]

Enthralling as always, but I feel this has to be the year you reach Serie B or else you may want to call it a day with Ragusa. Hope I'm wrong. You certainly have a team worthy of promotion.

[virtex]

I won't give you any more praise as we don't want you getting a big head now do we!

Just wondering if you have played on FM2005 at all yet?

And btw, FORZA RAGUSA!

[nerf]

Yes Rafa, two years two months. It is quite worrying! I never expected it to go on this long.

Thanks smiller - I feel the same.

virtex - I have played FM2005 but only a little bit so far. Seems very good though.

Thanks for your comments chaps

Tuesday 19th May 2009

Placing the phone down, I pause before leaving my chair. That was my old mate Gordon Cowans, calling from England with a rather serious proposition. An interesting one. I shake my head and get up. Now's not the time for distractions, we've got a match to prepare for.

I sacrifice the protection of the hut-like office and return to the May heat beyond, the echoes of Antonio putting the squad through its paces drifting across the dry, rutted training field. From here I can see it's pretty much a full turnout, allowing myself momentary mock disorientation; from past experience, I was convinced there was some kind of rule that you were only allowed to go into the playoffs with an injury list as long as your arm...

As if on cue, Gaspare Pellegrino emerges from the adjacent building with shinpads in hand, stripped to the waist. In response to my query, he raises a thumb and calls over his shoulder: "Good, boss" in cheeky English, as he jogs off towards the rest of the squad. Presumably this morning's final physiotherapy session went well, as hoped and expected. After a month out I'm not certain about Gaspare's match sharpness, but at least he's injury free.

I'm more confident about the sharpness of seventeen year old Nicola Marino, who is in full stride and scoring goals. A year ago he went into last season's playoffs dragging his heels; young, tired legs not strong enough nor used to a full, exhausting season. With a lively Marino, a fit Di Nicola and a healthy Pellegrino, we're perhaps in better shape for these playoffs than we might have been in the past.

We're also heading in on good form and positive results, having won all of our last five, six of our last seven, and with only one defeat since January. This is in stark contrast to last season, when we entered the playoffs off the back of two miserable defeats. Hopefully the inevitable extra confidence will help.

[nerf]

Wednesday 20th May 2009

While the players enjoy an afternoon of rest, Antonio and I sit down to discuss the teamsheet and tactics prior to tomorrow's shadow play session.

The main debate centres around whether to risk Gaspare Pellegrino or not. I'm initially in favour, as Gaspare's injury has cleared up and he needs match fitness sooner rather than later. Antonio makes a good case to rest him for one more game, however. Simone Tamburro has been playing well in the holding role and we need the captain's influence more than ever, while it might be prudent to ease Gaspare on in the second half with a view to starting him in the second leg.

Alongside Simone in the centre will be Luca Orlando, who came through the Messina fitness test very strongly. Away from home in the first leg, his calm, possession-maintaining style could be useful, giving him the edge over the alternatives of Mignani or Gallicchio.

Our attacking options are more clear. Neither of us are willing to split the recent partnership of Nicola Marino and Massimo Costagliola, meaning Giancarlo Di Nicola will play from right midfield. This might expose Sabellini more at right-back, but if you're going to lean on anyone then it may as well be trusty Danilo, and the extra freedom offered to Giancarlo often makes the difference in the final third.

As for our opponents, 6th-placed Spal will await us in the Paolo Mazza in Ferrara on Saturday. Here we also have the psychological edge; we beat them 3-0 at home in November and 2-0 away in March. We also possess the advantage of the higher league position, meaning that an aggregate draw would see us go through. Everything seems in place, now we just have go out there and do what we couldn't do last year or the year before...

[nerf]

Saturday 23rd May 2009

Preparation done; game on.

Serie C1/B Promotion Playoffs Semi Final 1st Leg

Spal v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Van Strattan; Fumagalli, Capuano, Del Prete, Sabellini; Volpe, Tamburro©, Orlando, Di Nicola; Marino, Costagliola.

As Italian stadiums go, the Paolo Mazza bears initial resemblance to a typical English football league ground - four rectangular stands, 20,000 capacity. That's if you ignore the banks of benches rather than seats, the lack of roofing over two stands, the multitude of flares choking the touchlines in vibrant colour and the 19,972 Italians currently crammed inside.

It's easily the biggest crowd we've played in front of in a long time - if we didn't know for sure that we were in the playoffs, we do now. Spal defender Nicola Spanu soon found out what he was in for when he accidentally collided with the hefty frame of Massimo Costagliola in the fourth minute, with such force that he had to move temporarily to the touchline for head injury treatment.

Ten-man Spal regained possession, and Ciro Franceschini searched out Riccardo Vitale to his left with a first time pass... only for the pass to carry too much strength and evade his teammate. With a great Spanu-shaped hole gaping in the centre of Spal's defence, Costagliola suddenly found himself all alone with the ball gifted into his path. Home 'keeper Fontana hadn't been expecting this outcome either, caught in the act of straying out of his box to shout instructions, and too late he saw Costagliola with the ball at his feet in front of him. With the confidence of a young man who has been banging goals in all season long, Massimo took it early from 35 yards and the accurate shot sailed over the stranded Fontana into the empty net.

Perfect! Thousands of Spal fans silenced inside the first five minutes, a goal advantage handed to us on a silver platter, and we were on top from then on. Costagliola came close to making it two in the 22nd minute, shortly before Nicola Marino shimmied his way through the penalty area like his name was Ricky Villa and was hacked down by an exasperated Spal defender. Surely Alessandro Volpe would get the crucial second goal... if he was able to take penalties. Instead, he was again unsuccessful from the spot as Fontana saved to his left.

A slender lead, a missed penalty, a squandered chance... we were hesitating like it was Forlí in April. Just like then, and so many other times this season, it was left to Giancarlo Di Nicola to make the difference. Moments before half-time he flicked on Sabellini's throw to Costagliola, who shrugged off poor Spanu and squeezed in an effort on goal, and when Fontana couldn't hold the rebound there was Di Nicola arriving fastest to poke it home.

With the two goal lead we shut up shop for the second half. Gaspare Pellegrino came on for Volpe at half-time, replacing creativity with steely determination, and thanks to Van Strattan making a save and watching a couple more efforts flash wide, Spal were unable to claw a goal back.

Final score: Spal 0 - 2 Ragusa

In the other playoff semi final, Trento hosted Mantova on the southern slopes of the Alps and produced a 2-2 draw, which no doubt Mantova will be slightly happier about than Trento. The Serie C Cup final was also played today, in which Francesc D'Arrigo's Foggia, who eliminated us in the second round back in October, came out on top in a truly enthralling 5-3 thriller.

[BobBev]

Go Ragusa, go - I've got a good feeling about this one nerf

[virtex]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by nerf:

Tuesday 19th May 2009

Placing the phone down, I pause before leaving my chair. That was my old mate Gordon Cowans, calling from England with a rather serious proposition. An interesting one. I shake my head and get up. Now's not the time for distractions, we've got a match to prepare for. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

That sounds like a job offer to me!

And great result in the first leg!

Forza Ragusa!