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

[nerf]

Tuesday 7th January 2003

We have had mixed responses from the rounds of contract talks over the past few days. After negotiating back and forth, Simone Tamburro, Gaspare Pellegrino and Claudio Gallicchio have all finally agreed to accept our improved offers. The three of them will sign on as our first full-time players until the summer of 2005.

The bad news comes from top scorer Giancarlo Ferrara. Although he claims that he is in no hurry to leave the club, he feels that what we can offer him is nowhere near what he thinks he should be earning. He even suggested that it would be in the club’s best interests to raise money by selling him, as our most highly valued player.

Annoyingly, he is probably correct on both accounts.

We have also had no success at all in our attempts to bring new players in. We have issued several offers of transfers and loans for a list of central defenders up and down the Italian football leagues, but our efforts are yet to bear any fruit.

[nerf]

Sunday 12th January 2003

We didn't have far to travel for our visit to Acireale, a town on the east coast of Sicily close to the city of Catania. With Acireale having been close to the top of the table all season and currently holding the third spot, it is an easy decision to continue with our new specialised away match formation. The only change in personnel is Graziano Ursino replacing the suspended Tamburro.

Serie C2/C

Acireale v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Ursino, Infantino©, Italia, Guastella; Manoni, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Cooke; Ferrara.

We made a bright start in the first half an hour, with Pellegrino's towering header hitting the crossbar and the home goalkeeper Pavarini making a couple of saves, so we were well worth the lead on 32 minutes. A risky ball left to right across the Acireale defence was intercepted by the adventurous Manoni, who looked up to see Pavarini caught unawares well out of his goal, and the midfielder curled it into the open net from 35 yards. Giancarlo Ferrara almost made it two a minute later when Caramel played a ball over the top of the defence, but Pavarini made another save.

1-0 up at half-time and doing quite well, so no changes. Unfortunately 10 minutes after the break Cirillo was caught in possession deep in midfield by number 6 Vegna, who found Mirco Ventura running in behind Stefano Guastella. Stefano could not get back in time and the Acireale striker finished low across Lenea to make it 1-1.

Vladimiro Caramel had two 1v1 chances that he should have done better with before we finally regained the lead on 74 minutes. Stephen Cooke's free-kick from the right wing arrives at a nice height for Giancarlo Ferrara, who volleys in another for his tally. Unfortunately the lead only lasts 5 minutes. Guastella is left in a 1v2 situation at right back and goes to close down the man with the ball, leaving Ventura wide open, and although Lenea parries his shot onto the post its an easy chance for substitute Direnzo to knock the rebound in ahead of Ursino.

For the last 10 minutes I bring Sabellini and Bonaffini on for the two starting fullbacks, but the normally lethal Ferrara is denied twice by Pavarini as the home keeper continues his atonement for our first half goal.

Final score: Acireale 2 - 2 Ragusa

[nerf]

Monday 13th January 2003

With the chances that we had we really should have come away with all three points, but it's hard to be disappointed with a draw away against a useful team like Acireale. Man of the match Vladimiro Caramel was a constant danger from start to finish despite his disappointment in front of goal; the 34 year old midfielder clearly felt he had a point to prove against his former club.

On the other hand both full backs were very disappointing, hence their second half substitution. Graziano Ursino continues to look poor as he has done since he arrived here on loan from Reggina, and Stefano Guastella's recent improvement in form was not evident yesterday including being partially at fault for both of Acireale's goals. I'm afraid both Graziano and Stefano will find themselves dropped for the next match.

At the top of the table Brindisi maintain their winning streak to 7 games by beating Olbia 3-2, and increase their lead at the top to 9 points. Our 1 point at Acireale keeps us in 9th position.

I had the rare chance of a brief word with our enigmatic Director of Football Marcello Pitino today, when he came to inform me that Serie D outfit Savoia have tabled on offer of £22,000 plus another player for Giancarlo Ferrara. That player is Nicola Mariniello, a 25 year old Italian wingback who is a good passer of the ball and gets stuck in. Marcello insisted, and I agreed, that we cannot afford to hang on to Giancarlo in the hope that he will change his mind and sign a new contract. We decide to negotiate for £30,000 plus Mariniello and wait to hear what Savoia think of the suggestion.

[nerf]

Tuesday 14th January 2003

The loss of Giancarlo Ferrara seems sealed as Ravenna make us an offer we can't refuse. A representative for the Serie D club visited Ragusa today to tell us that they are willing to pay £50,000 and exchange midfielder Nazzareno Scopelliti in their attempt to win the chance to talk to Giancarlo. 25 year old Scopelliti, a hard working and aggressive central midfield player, was a target of ours back in the summer but has failed to settle in at Ravenna. He will be a bonus; we would have taken the £50,000 alone. Needless to say we accept, and arrangements are made for the two players to visit their prospective clubs immediately.

Wednesday 15th January 2003

I talked with Nazzareno today on his return visit to the club. He doesn't seem happy about the whole situation and I can tell that he feels a bit let down by Ravenna, a team he only signed for 5 months ago. We offered him a contract that he agreed to go away and consider, but he's obviously very sour on the deal.

Giancarlo returned this evening and I arranged for him to come in and see me. His discussions with Ravenna clearly went much more smoothly and they have agreed terms, so it looks like he will be leaving us.

[nerf]

Sunday 19th January 2003

There's a big test for the team as the league leaders are in town. Brindisi have been the most impressive side in Serie C2/C so far and come in boasting a 7 game winning streak, not to mention having knocked five past us earlier in the season.

Despite being the home side, in respect to their current form we will stick with the 4-5-1 formation that has served us well in away matches recently. Tamburro returns from suspension and resumes his position at left back, with Danilo Sabellini taking the other full back spot.

Serie C2/C

Ragusa v Brindisi

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Sabellini; Manoni, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Cooke; Ferrara.

In a scrappy first half neither team manages to keep possession for long, but at least we are nullifying Brindisi's usual attacking fluency. Approaching the final minute of the half, Manoni repeats his trick of pressuring the opposing defenders and forces another loose pass. Brindisi goalkeeper Adami toys with the idea of coming to sweep the ball up, but Manoni starts to look favourite in the race and the goalkeeper has a late change of mind. The midfielder shows good awareness to spot Ferrara open as the Brindisi defence is caught all at sea, and Ferrara is able to turn and casually lob the desperately backtracking keeper from 25 yards.

After celebrating the goal I return to the dugout shaking my head. I can't believe we're trying to sell this guy.

The whistle for half-time sounds shortly afterwards and we go in for the break. Stephen Cooke had not been finding much joy down the right hand side, so I rest him in favour of Alessandro Bonaffini. At the start of the second half Brindisi force a good save from Giuseppe Lenea, then almost immediately Cirillo plays Ferrara in at the other and and the striker shaves the outside of the post. There's a lot of activity on the Brindisi bench in the second half as start to try everything to break us down, changing formation and making substitutions, but we are looking solid and holding our shape well.

With 10 minutes to go Brindisi win a free kick just inside our half of the pitch and push everyone forward into the box. Pietro Infantino towers highest to head the ball clear, and Giancarlo Ferrara picks the ball up at the halfway line. With the free-kick taker trailing in his wake, Giancarlo races on to finish confidently past Adami and seal the victory.

Final score: Ragusa 2 - 0 Brindisi

[nerf]

Monday 20th January 2003

To say that I'm delighted after yeserday's result would be an understatement - we just beat the runaway league leaders 2-0! The mood among the players was sky high following the game and they deserve it after keeping their spirits up through a rocky start; I have given them all the day off training today as a reward.

In the match itself Caramel and Pellegrino again bossed the midfield, and Pietro Infantino was a tower of strength at the back as he rediscovered his lost form, but Ferrara was just superb. Apart from his 2 goals his movement was excellent and he worked tirelessly on his own, and if it proves to be his last appearance in Ragusa blue then he certainly hasn't left quietly. His 13th and 14th goals in all 23 appearances this season puts him 5th in the division's goal scoring charts.

[nerf]

Wednesday 22nd January 2003

Surprisingly the deal with Ravenna has collapsed. After taking a few days to think about it, Nazzareno Scopelliti finally rejected our contract outright and refuses to re-negotiate. The guy seems to have something against us.

Giancarlo Ferrara did agree terms with Ravenna but as far as I can tell that agreement has been cancelled by the Serie D club and the whole thing is off. I have tried to contact Marcello to seek his assistance but have been unable to get hold of him, and both Giancarlo and I are left puzzled as to why there has been this sudden turn around.

Friday 24th January 2003

I found time to cross over into southern Italy and pay a visit to Pietro Alderuccio, to see how the rehabilition from his back injury is coming along. The young central defender has been recovering well from his accident, and although at one point it was within a whisker of being career threatening, his doctors and physiotherapists are confident that he will be back to full strength before the summer. The bad news for Pietro is that his club Reggina do not have the same faith in him, and have taken the ruthless decision to place him on the transfer list during his rehab. Pietro's contract also expires, oddly enough, early in September of this year. Not that those details had anything to do with my visit, of course.

[nerf]

Sunday 26th January 2003

With 1 week until the transfer deadline, early this morning we finally get a response from Savoia and Ravenna concerning Giancarlo Ferrara. Although Ravenna neglect to provide an explanation for the sudden collapse of the proposed deal, both clubs inform us that 'while still retaining their interest in the player they do not wish to pursue that at this time'. I think it is clear what that means, and how their stance will change when Giancarlo becomes eligible for approach at the end of the month.

Our previous meeting with Puteolana, week 2 of the league season back in late September, ended with us losing 2-0. Since then though they have no been so lucky, and in fact come to Ragusa with a run of no wins from their last 14 matches.

Claudio Gallicchio return to the team, hopefully with some hunger to prove himself, and with the shift in formation it is Manolo Manoni who is the unlucky midfielder to sit out.

Serie C2/C

Ragusa v Puteolana

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Sabellini; Cirillo, Pellegrino, Cooke; Caramel; Ferrara, Gallicchio.

We dominated the first half. Stephen Cooke had a screaming volley disallowed because of a player in an active offside position, before Giancarlo Ferrara gave us the lead on 10 minutes with a typically smooth finish.

In the second half I substituted Ferrara for Lupo, in light of recent events, and Lupo almost provided Gallicchio with a goal when he crossed for his strike partner, only for visiting goalkeeper Paolo Cavalieri to produce a magnificent clawing save. Puteolana never got a look in and we strolled to the 3 points.

Final score: Ragusa 1 - 0 Puteolana

[nerf]

Monday 27th January 2003

2550 fans in the Aldo Campo Selvaggio enjoyed watching us romp to a comfortable victory yesterday with the 1-0 scoreline only flattering Puteolana. The ever superb Gaspare Pellegrino controlled the entire match from centre midfield, pulling all the strings from start to finish. Stephen Cooke was particularly bright and both of the full backs found space to join in the play regularly.

Despite the win we somehow still don't improve on 9th place, but 5 wins and a draw from the last 6 games is a very encouraging run.

[nerf]

Saturday 1st February 2003

It finally happened, and there's nothing we can do about it. Giancarlo Ferrara has travelled to Monza this afternoon to discuss joining up with the Serie C2/A club when his contract expires in the summer. It's a frustrating feeling.

Chairman Giuseppe Antoci was sympathetic and reassuring when we met up for lunch. He is very pleased with my performance, the fans are delighted with the progress that the club is making, and both he and the fans give their full support to my management of the club. It's nice to hear, but it won't get me 20 goals a season.

It's a real blow for the club, especially with the financial situation the way it is. To make matters worse, the transfer deadline also passes today without us being successfull in signing anyone. I get the feeling that transfer market has really been laughing at us this season. I'm not even consoled by the bitter satisfaction of knowing that Ravenna's devious strategy concerning Ferrara appears to have completely backfired on them.

Speaking of financial problems, fellow Serie C2/C club Fidelis Andria have announced that receivers have been brought in to deal with their situation. All transfer funding has been withdrawn and the receivers have indicated that they will consider any reasonable offers which are made for the club's players. This immediately grabs my attention, as they have three players that interest me: Defender Stefano Fumagalli, Midfieler Davide Faieta and striker Andrea di Napoli. I will ask Enrico Calabrese to go and scout the club to see what he can recommend.

[nerf]

Sunday 2nd February 2003

Back in the Napoli region again for a visit to 17th placed Nocerina, who have languished in the lower reaches of the table all season. In our previous meeting goals from Gallicchio and Manoni helped us to a 2-0 victory on Giuseppe Lenea's debut.

Despite being tempted to drop Giancarlo Ferrara out after he signed a commitment to join Monza, his form is too good to justify it and we still have 4 months of his service before he abandons us. He keeps his place in an unchanged side.

Serie C2/C

Nocerina v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Sabellini; Cirillo, Pellegrino, Cooke; Caramel; Ferrara, Gallicchio.

Nocerina start well, with Lenea making a couple of saves from Lazzaro and Bigica to keep the score level. On 37 minutes his huge goal kick is chased rabidly by Vladimiro Caramel; Nocerina centre back Eddy Mengo looks favourite to head it clear, but the sight of the stocky 34 year old bearing down on him seems to unsettle the defender and Caramel gets something on it as the ball is allowed to drop. Ferrara nips in to collect, is challenged by D'Angelo on the edge of the area, but Ferrara bounces onto the loose ball and swerves past the advancing keeper to slot it into the net. 1-0.

Nocerina are unable to mount any convincing attempt at coming back from the goal, and Claudio Gallicchio is guilty of missing two good chances in the second half so the score remains the same.

Final score: Nocerina 0 - 1 Ragusa

[nerf]

Tuesday 4th February 2003

In a rare bit of press coverage for our obscure little club, Chairman Giuseppe Antoci declared himself extremely pleased with this weekend's result. The article went on to say that the team were tipped to toil at the bottom of the league this season but current form looks like keeping them out of trouble. Indeed it has, as we have drawn right up behind the teams challenging for the playoffs and opened up a 6 point lead ahead of 10th placed Foggia.

There was also a comment from unsettled Argentinian goalkeeper Nicolas Cinalli, who told the paper that he is concerned about his omission from the first team. It is understandable, but I cannot promise him things will change unless I see reason for them to; I can only assure him that he will be selected if the time is right. After discussing the player with my assistant, Antonio tells me that in his opinion Nicolas is overrated and he does not think the keeper will ever become a consistant performer at the club.

[Guest Aadik]

nerf,

just sat and read the whole thing- ferrera leaving sucks. Its too bad you couldn't tell ravenna that you would just take the 50,000, with or without the midifielder.

Great work so far.

[nerf]

Thanks for the comment Aadik. Yes it does suck, and yes I wish we could have just taken the money . Anyway, I hope you carry on reading

Sunday 9th February 2003

2nd placed Tivoli are the next team to visit the Aldo Campo Selvaggio. They won their last match 4-2, but in our meeting earlier in the season we are able to hold them to a satisfactory 1-1 draw.

Again with respect to the opponents I chose to keep it tight and place an extra man in midfield, with Gallicchio losing out to Manoni. Danilo Sabellini was excellent against Nocerina and is really grabbing the chance to make the right back position his own, so he continues his run in the side.

Serie C2/C

Ragusa v Tivoli

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Sabellini; Manoni, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Cooke; Ferrara.

In front of 2343 home fans the first half is very open and even with both teams making chances. I make no changes at the break and hope that we are the ones who manage the breakthrough.

Stephen Cooke's running with the ball had been giving the away team problems all day. On 67 minutes he held on to the ball and began a mazy run across midfield, eventually finding himself somehow in the left channel and bursting into the box. At the byline he managed to dig a cross out, and who tiptoed in at the near post to finish? Monza striker Giancarlo Ferrara.

Final score: Ragusa 1 - 0 Tivoli

[nerf]

Monday 10th February 2003

Another very satisfying performance and another victory lifts us to 8th position, extending our unbeaten run to 8 games and making us the form side in the division. Vladimiro Caramel was impressive again as Tivoli couldn't even get near him, but Pietro Infantino was man of the match. The big centre back made some vital interceptions as he continued his excellent recent form. Not bad for a 36 year old!

There was an incident in training today when a clumsy aerial challenge by Graziano Ursino resulted in Giancarlo Ferrara landing badly on his shoulder. The physio report from Salvatore Rinzillo revealed that the damaged shoulder could keep him out for 3 weeks... Considering Giancarlo has netted all 6 of the team's last 6 goals this is a blow, although on the bright side at least it could give us an early indication of how we might cope without him next season.

Saturday 15th February 2003

Stephen Cooke turns 20 years old today but has told me that he is more than happy to continue on loan here until the end of the season. Despite being substituted a couple of times in recent matches, he has on the whole been excellent and I'm delighted that he wants to stay.

We have been in negotiations with cash-strapped Fidelis Andria this week over two players - 21 year old central defender Stefano Fumagalli and 20 year old former Brescia striker Andrea di Napoli. As the negotiations continue back and forth, it looks like we should be able to agree fees in the region of £10,000 for each.

In other news, Lodigiani have announced for the second time in recent weeks that Giancarlo Morrone's job as manager of the club is safe. The old dreaded vote of confidence...

[nerf]

Sunday 16th February 2003

Frosinone lie in 11th position in the league at the time of our visit, just down the road from Rome. In our previous meeting this season, 2 goals from Claudio Gallicchio guided us to a 3-1 win at the Aldo Campo Selvaggio. Claudio will get the opportunity to repeat that showing because he replaces Ferrara in the only change from the team that beat Tivoli.

Serie C2/C

Frosinone v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Sabellini; Manoni, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Cooke; Gallicchio.

With less than 2 minutes of the first half expired, Stephen Cooke made an interception in midfield and looked up to play Gallicchio in behind the defence. Centre back Omar Roma tussled with the striker as they both chased the through ball, and eventually Claudio went sprawling across the grass not far outside the area. The home fans held their breath as the referee trotted across to the protesting defender... and the protestations only got louder when the red card was raised. Adjudged to have pushed Gallicchio unfairly when through on goal, Roma was dismissed for a professional foul.

It only got worse for Frosinone. In our very next attack, Manolo Manoni wriggled his way down the left to the byline and crossed the ball in, and it was Gallicchio who showed the most determination amongst the melee to reach it and barge the ball home from 6 yards. At half-time I make one substitution, Bonaffini getting some playing time in place of the otherwise quiet Manoni.

Marco Cirillo and Gaspare Pellegrino are running the midfield comfortably, and it is Pellegrino who causes problems for Frosinone on 70 minutes. He won another tackle and the home side backed away from him, so he let fly with a shot that was parried around the post by the goalkeeper. Stephen Cooke took the resulting corner from the right, and there was Pellegrino leaping like a salmon at the near post to nod the ball in. A second goal was just reward for him personally and for the team's dominance.

With the game secure I rest Caramel and give Bonarrigo a run out for 15 minutes, and although Luca Galuppi sent an impressive volley scorching into the top corner in the last minute, it was too little too late for Frosinone.

Final score: Frosinone 1 - 2 Ragusa

[nerf]

Monday 17th February 2003

Gaspare Pellegrino was just awesome yesterday; he gets better and better with every match that we play. He covered every blade of grass on the pitch, passed the ball around really well and also managed to get a goal in to the bargain. Marco Cirillo alongside him is also continuing to grow in the midfield role, despite being a striker by trade. Another player to make a particularly good showing was Danilo Sabellini, carrying on his successful efforts to prove that he should be our starting right back.

With Catanzaro held 0-0 at home by the improving Latina, we climb up another notch to 7th place. I don't want to get carried away because there are still another 11 games to go, but we are now only 3 points below a playoff spot... and we will be playing 6th placed Gela in our very next match. This weekend they were helped to a good 4-1 home win over Acireale by a hat-trick from 36 year old striker Diego Zanin.

He was not the only player to score a hat-trick this weekend, as our scout Enrico informs me that transfer target Andrea di Napoli bagged all three goals in Fidelis Andria's 3-1 win over Foggia. He also pointed out that our other target, Stefano Fumagalli, was outstanding in Fidelis Andria's defence and dominating in the air.

Saturday 22nd February 2003

After we finally agreed a £10,000 valuation with Fidelis Andria for Di Napoli, we visited the player to discuss personal terms. Unfortunately we discover that Andrea is already on the equivalent of £750/week at his current club, and with my maximum offer limited to £575/week at Antoci's insistence, the young striker is understandably not too keen on the deal and dismisses our offer as unacceptable.

[nerf]

Sunday 23rd February 2003

Fellow Sicilian club Gela Juve-Terranova lie joint 5th on 38 points, 6th on goal difference, after having been the early league leaders back in October. They also bring with them the division's top scorer in Francesco Erbini - 32 goals in 29 games. Erbini netted Gela's second goal in their late 3-2 victory over us earlier in the season.

Again I can afford to name an unchanged team, and despite being the home side in this local derby we stick with the 4-5-1 formation.

Serie C2/C

Ragusa v Gela

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Sabellini; Manoni, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Cooke; Gallicchio.

Francesco Erbini went close twice in the first half, including another fantastic fingertip save by Lenea, before we hit them with a classic counterattack on 42 minutes. Stephen Cooke played a classy one-two with Vladimiro Caramel, and the Villa youngster raced in behind the defence to finish in off the far post. 1-0.

Just before half-time Cooke chipped the ball to Manoni on the left, who turned and slid Claudio Gallicchio in on goal. Claudio took a swing and thwacked the ball past the keeper, only to watch it slam back off the crossbar, hit keeper Andrea Panico on the back and go out for a corner. How unlucky can you get?

At half-time Bonaffini came on for the unusually quiet Marco Cirillo. In the 70th minute Erbini finally escaped the attentions of Pietro Infantino and the predictable outcome was his 33rd of the season. With a striker as lethal as him you only need to let him go once, and the only foot Infantino had put wrong had cost us the lead.

As late as the 91st minute I thought we would pull out a last gasp win, but Gallicchio shot straight at the keeper to let a good chance go begging and we had to settle for a draw.

Final score: Ragusa 1 - 1 Gela

[nerf]

Monday 24th February 2003

1-1 is not a bad result against Gela, and at least the team performance was again excellent. Our movement was good; Gela had real difficulty trying to pick up the midfield runs of Manoni, Caramel and Cooke. With the bad luck off the crossbar and Gallicchio wasting a late chance we did come close to winning and perhaps should have, but at least we have kept our unbeaten run going into double-figures now.

Conversely, I noticed that Puteolana's 1-0 defeat by Frosinone this weekend extends their run to 19 matches without a win! That might explain why they are currently sat at the bottom of the table.

[nerf]

Sunday 2nd March 2003

Today we are back on the west coast of Italy again, in a place called Santa Maria Capua Vetere slightly north of Napoli, to face 15th-placed Gladiator. Our two previous meetings, once in the cup and once in the league, finished 3-1 and 2-2 respectively with Claudio Gallicchio netting in both games.

There are two changes to the starting eleven, both forced. Danilo Sabellini followed Giancarlo Ferrara's example by managing to injure a shoulder in training, but went a step further by putting himself out of action for 2 months! Stefano Guastella therefore gets another shot at right back, and Bonaffini starts due to Manoni's suspension from his 4th yellow card.

Serie C2/C

Gladiator v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Guastella; Bonaffini, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Cooke; Gallicchio.

Barely 60 seconds have passed when we force an early corner down the right. Stephen Cooke steps up and curls one in, Bonaffini darts across the 6 yard box to lose his marker and rise at the near post, and his close range header nestles sweetly in the net. 1-0 already, a great start.

As the half progresses Pellegrino and Gallicchio both see shots flash close past the upright, before Gallicchio goes one better by actually hitting it; Gladiator goalkeeper Di Muro is relieved to watch the striker's shot thump off his right hand post and bounce clear. We go into the half fully deserving of the lead without being able to stretch it.

Although we had spent the last 44 minutes of the first half searching for it, it takes just 2 minutes of the second half to find that elusive second goal. Guastella's chip down the right touchline sees Stephen Cooke sprinting in behind the Gladiator full back, and he whips a perfect cross in at pace that just begs someone to get on the end of it. Vladimiro Caramel pounces in ahead of Gallicchio to do just that, and finds the corner with a volley to make it 2-0.

Gladiator finally fashion a decent chance at our end, but Giuseppe Lenea produced an amazing save to deny Majella what looked like a certain goal. We didn't have long to worry though, as three minutes later Claudio Gallicchio found the goal that I'd been wishing him to get. Put through by Cooke's header, Gallicchio held off a defender and struck at goal... the keeper got a hand to it but Claudio finally got a slice of luck and the ball bounced in off the far post. It was his 10th of the season which will hopefully bring him some more confidence, and it was also Stephen Cooke's third assist of the game.

Final score: Gladiator 0 - 3 Ragusa

[nerf]

Monday 3rd March 2003

Translated from a local sports paper:

"Ragusa chairman Giuseppe Antoci could not hide his delight following his team's 3-0 win over Gladiator: 'It was another beautiful result and a great team performance', said the 57 year old. 'We have made great progress under the new coach and proved that we belong in this division following our promotion last season'. Ragusa's director of football Marcello Pitino was unavailable to comment.

With the season nearing completion, Ragusa sit comfortably in the top half. After being tipped to struggle, fans and players can now start to relax or maybe even push for an extremely unlikely promotion place."

That playoff place is jointly ours, as Fidelis Andria's draw at home to Lodigiani means that we jump above them into 6th place on goal difference, level on points with both Fidelis Andria in 7th and Gela in 5th. I don't agree with the season being near to completion, however. There are still 9 matches to go and a lot can change in that time, but at the moment the table looks like THIS.

Up a couple of levels in Serie A, Chievo have sacked manager Luigi Del Neri. Rock bottom of the top flight, they are already 9 points behind the nearest team and have only managed to accumulate 11 points all season.

[nerf]

Sunday 9th March 2003

Our visitors this weekend are Igea Virtus. They currently stand in 16th position and our previous meeting was a dour 0-0 away draw.

Although we are at home against a team lower down the table, the 4-5-1 formation has been serving us well and there seems little reason to change it. Manoni returns from suspension to resume the left midfield role, and Giancarlo Traitor... err, Ferrara is fit enough to be named as substitute.

Serie C2/C

Ragusa v Igea Virtus

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Guastella; Manoni, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Cooke; Gallicchio.

In the 28th minute Gaspare Pellegrino found Cooke in the right channel, and the English midfielder wriggled into the box then went down under the attentions of Igea Virtus defender Incrivaglia. We were up off the bench claiming a penalty, but the referee wasn't immediately convinced. He trotted over and consulted his assistant... then turned and pointed to the spot!

With our regular penalty taker and general splitter Giancarlo Ferrara sat behind me in the dugout, the task has been passed to Claudio Gallicchio. Claudio looks very nervous indeed as he places the ball on the spot. I immediately have a bad feeling about this. Claudio starts his run up, never looking confident, and his effort curls woefully wide of the keeper's right hand post. Dammit.

We created a few more chances in the first half, with Cirillo and Pellegrino owning the game from midfield, but woeful finishing sends us into the half at 0-0. I make no changes, we had been dominating and the goal must surely come. As the teams head out for the second half and I resume my place on the sideline, I glance across at the Monza striker on the bench.

On 67 minutes there is more controversy, as Nicola Armonia is sent off for dangerous play and the visitors are down to 10 men. Right. With the man advantage and having dominated the match so far, the game is there for the taking and we have to do something. Sending out instructions to switch to 4-3-1-2, I pull Gallicchio and Manoni off the pitch to throw Ferrara and Lupo on up front.

With 10 minutes to go, Marco Cirillo won the ball on the left and found Vladimiro Caramel infield. Vladi dribbled right, cut back to the left, twisted Fabio Caserta inside out, then fizzed a low drive at goal from almost 25 yards. The ball skimmed across the turf and skipped into the bottom corner for a great goal, we finally had the lead that we merited.

In the last minute Ferrara's cross from the left found Lupo open in the area for an easy finish to round it off, his 2nd goal in 11 substitute appearances.

Final score: Ragusa 2 - 0 Igea Virtus

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Monday 10th March 2003

What could have been a frustrating disappointment turned into a great performance in hindsight. Although it took a magical bit of play from Caramel to break the deadlock, there had only been one team in it all game and Igea Virtus had not managed a shot on goal. Marco Cirillo's scintillating performance ran the match with help from Pellegrino, as the pair excelled in all fields yet again.

Goals number 36 and 37 from Francesco Erbini were not enough for Gela as they were held 3-3 at 17th Nocerina, and Fidelis Andria's 0-0 draw sees us go 5th and into the playoff spot!

Tuesday 11th March 2003

Antonio had a quiet word in passing this morning just before we headed out onto the training pitch, to let me know that Nicolas Cinalli is suffering with some problems in his personal life at the moment. His relationship is on the rocks and his girlfriend is threatening to catch the next plane back to Argentina. Nicolas insisted to Antonio that he intends not to let these difficulties adversely affect his level of performance, but all things considered I can see the Argentinian looking ever more likely to leave us this summer.

In news outside of Ragusa, Serie A strugglers Chievo have handed former Chelsea boss Gianluca Vialli the impossible task of saving their top-flight status, as he takes over the manager's role following the dismissal of Del Neri last week.

I sat down to catch an exciting Champions League game on television this evening. In the Westfalenstadion, 10-man Juventus fought back impressively against Dortmund to take a 3-3 draw with David Trezeguet's dramatic 90th minute qualiser.

Thursday 13th March 2003

Tonight saw the 1st legs of the UEFA Cup quarter finals, and there was shock in Rome when a scorching hat-trick by Icelandic striker Eidur Gudjohnsen gave Chelsea a surprise 3-0 away victory over Lazio. Real Betis, who have been red hot all season both domestically and in Europe, continued their quest for glory as another double from Henrik Larsson helped them to a comfortable 3-0 1st leg lead over German outfit Schalke 04.

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Sunday 16th March 2003

The town of Olbia hosts Sardinia's main harbour or port, and we make the trip across the water to face the team 9th in the division. Our previous meeting was settled at 1-0 by Manolo Manoni's memorable chip.

The same team that started against Igea Virtus will also start this game, as I keep faith in Claudio Gallicchio in attack at the expense of Lupo and that other guy.

Serie C2/C

Olbia v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Guastella; Manoni, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Cooke; Gallicchio.

Lenea makes two superb saves early on, before Stefano Guastella picks up an injury from a jarring collision and has to be substituted in the 38th minute. Graziano Ursino comes on at left back with Simone Tamburro moving across to take over at right back.

Tamburro has barely a few minutes to get used to his surroundings before Olbia capitalise. The captain loses the Olbia winger down our right flank but the resulting cross should have been headed clear easily by Infantino. For some reason the veteran centre back completely loses the flight of the ball, and Giglio can't believe his luck as the ball falls at his feet for the softest of goals.

Scoring on the stroke of half-time is always said to be a great time to get a goal, and it really seemed to knock the stuffing out of us. Throughout the second half we struggle to get out of first gear, even when changing to a more attacking formation and bringing Ferrara on, and Giglio rubbed salt in the wound with his second 10 minutes from time.

Final score: Olbia 2 - 0 Ragusa

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Monday 17th March 2003

So our unbeaten streak comes to an end, as it had to eventually. It is a shame that we let it happen in such a disappointing fashion, because we never really got going at all during the match. Olbia somehow won the midfield tussle where we have usually been so dominating and they controlled the game as a result.

The loss drops us back to 6th place. Our run of good form is brought to a close, a run that saw us take 10 wins and 2 draws from 12 matches spanning the last 3 months.

Stefano Guastella suffered a strained neck from his first half collision and looks unlikely to make it back in time for the important fixture with Fidelis Andria on Sunday.

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Sunday 23rd March 2003

There's a full house at the Aldo Campo Selvaggio for the visit of Fidelis Andria, who are just a point behind us in 8th position. Last time they triumphed over us 3-2 with that man Ferrara bagging both of our goals.

With both Danilo Sabellini and Stefano Guastella sidelined with injuries I am forced to start with Ursino at left back and Tamburro shifts to the right again. For the away side Stefano Fumagalli lined up in defence, but there is no sign of Andrea Di Napoli neither in the starting eleven nor on the bench.

Serie C2/C

Ragusa v Fidelis Andria

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Ursino, Infantino, Italia, Tamburro©; Manoni, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Cooke; Gallicchio.

Vladimiro Caramel and Claudio Gallicchio are both guilty of missing sitters in the first half, before Fidelis Andria start to come into the game and force a good save from Lenea. The match drifts on to the second half, and needing to kick some life into things I bring Ferrara on for the ineffectual Manoni to push for the win.

In the 74th minute, Silvestri skipped past the sluggish Ursino with ease and crossed low and hard into our 6 yard box. In the melee of unrushing players, Lenea uncharacteristically misjudges the cross and can only deflect the ball away, where it rolls nicely into the path of Stefano Morello to tap into the net.

Final score: Ragusa 0 - 1 Fidelis Andria

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Monday 24th March 2003

A second straight defeat and we drop another place, down to 7th. We showed a little more invention than we did at Olbia but were still unable to revive the form of recent weeks, though Fidelis Andria could hardly claim to have deserved all 3 points either. If Caramel or Gallicchio had stuck one of those golden chances away in the first half things might have been different.

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- Month of April 2003, part I -

Sunday 6th - Serie C2/C - Catanzaro v Ragusa

8th placed Catanzaro are based on the southern tip of Italy, so it is only a short trip across Sicily for our next away game. Stefano Guastella has recovered from his neck injury and returns to the starting lineup.

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Guastella; Manoni, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Cooke; Gallicchio.

In a very even game, neither team really created any gilt-edged chances and it turned into quite a dull affair. Ferrara and Bonaffini came on as I tried to shake things up, but we turned in our third lifeless performance and came away with a point.

Final score: Catanzaro 0 - 0 Ragusa

Olbia's 3-0 victory lifts them 3 places in the table to 6th, leapfrogging Catanzaro, us and Gela in turn. Brindisi win 2-0 at Gela to confirm their guaranteed playoff spot already, though they look like a safe bet for the divisional title anyway. With 5 matches left in the season we are 4 points off the playoff spots. Our recent dip in form, or a more accurate description would be 'screeching halt', leaves it looking like we will probably have to win all 5 matches to realistically be sure of snatching a playoff place.

Two more Italian clubs go into financial crisis, specifically Albinoleffe and Reggiana of Serie C1.

Monday 14th - Serie C2/C - Ragusa v Latina

Latina are currently in 14th, although they can claim a 2-0 victory over us earlier in the season. In an attempt to spice things up a bit more, Ferrara starts and we return to the 4-3-1-2 formation.

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Guastella; Cirillo, Pellegrino, Cooke; Caramel; Ferrara, Gallicchio.

The only real incident of note in the first half is Stephen Cooke limping off the pitch in the 14th minute to be replaced by Manoni. Shortly after half-time, Marco Cirillo found Gallicchio with a clever angled pass and the striker finally tucked away a goal, only for the linesman to dash our hopes with a flag raised for offside.

With 15 minutes to go the substitute is substituted when Manoni himself is stretchered off holding his ankle, and Bonaffini comes on with Lupo replacing the frankly disinterested Ferrara. We continue to have all the possession as we had done all game, but Latina defend well with us lacking in creativity.

Final score: Ragusa 0 - 0 Latina

Salvatore's physio report makes gruesome reading. Marco Cirillo will need to miss training for a few days with a dead leg, Stephen Cooke's damaged foot will keep him out for 3 weeks, and furthermore Manolo Manoni has strained ankle ligaments that will sideline him for a month.

English Premiership title holders Arsenal have announced that they have sacked manager Arsene Wenger, citing the need for a manager with a fresh approach to the team. After being comfortably top of the table at Christmas, finishing bottom of their Champions League 2nd phase group coincided with some rocky league form to cause them to drop to third and almost certainly out of the title race. With a mere 4 games remaining it looks like Newcastle and Manchester United will fight it out for the Premiership crown.

Arsenal will have to settle for a meeting with their North London rivals Tottenham in the FA Cup final in May.

Radomir Antic has been given the ultimatum by the Barcelona board. 6th in La Liga and elimination from the Champions League is just not good enough for the Spanish giants.

Closer to home, Pescara of Serie C1 become the latest club to have receivers brought in to deal with their financial troubles.

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Sunday 20th April 2003

2215 fans are in the Aldo Campo Selvaggio to watch us take on Palmese, who are currently driving for a playoff spot in 5th place. Our previous meeting back in December was sealed by Manoni's breakaway goal to earn us an impressive 1-0 away win.

Marco Cirillo has fully recovered to start, and Danilo Sabellini is fit enough to make the substitute's bench following the shoulder injury that has kept him out since the start of March.

Serie C2/C

Ragusa v Palmese

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Guastella; Cirillo, Pellegrino, Bonaffini; Caramel; Ferrara, Gallicchio.

On 16 minutes Palmese struck first when Gatta rifled a shot into the top corner, but fortunately for us it was disallowed for offside. Undeterred, Palmese hit again 10 minutes later when Verolino rose above Italia to head hom Mele's cross, and this time the goal stood. Palmese had made by far the better start and a goal had been coming.

Just before half-time we finally threatened, as Gallicchio volleyed wide from Caramel's good work and typically accurate cross. At the break I brought Lupo on for the subdued Ferrara, and on 77 minutes he rose high to outjump Palmese number 5 Bogni and flick on Lenea's long goal kick. Claudio Gallicchio raced onto the end of it, shifted the ball to his right as the other centre back Balestrino tried to get across to cover, and blasted a rising shot into the near top corner from just inside the area. 1-1.

Immediately after the restart Lupo was involved again, collecting Infantino's clearing header to lay it off first time to Pellegrino. The midfielder found Vladimiro Caramel just over halfway and a big gap seemed to open up ahead, so Vladi drove through towards the Palmese area. He appeared to take far too much time on the edge of the box, but just when it looked like a defender had closed him down he jinked to his right and sidefooted home, wrong-footing the keeper.

Little more than 5 minutes later we secured a much needed victory as Lupo capped a successful second half performance. His nod to Marco Cirillo sent Marco dribbling down the left wing... Lupo sprinted forwards to meet his cross, brought the ball down calmly in the area, and finished powerfully across the keeper.

Final score: Ragusa 3 - 1 Palmese

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- Month of April 2003, part II -

The victory over Palmese was very welcome indeed, after 4 dreary performances had not only yielded no wins but no goals either. Lupo put in by far his best performance so far in a Ragusa shirt, and Vladimiro Caramel was man of the match following a great 2nd half display that saw us blitz 3 goals past the visitors in under 8 minutes.

With 3 matches remaining, the league table looks like THIS.

Brindisi's 3-1 win at home to Giugliano presents them with the championship and automatic promotion to Serie C1. Tivoli and Acireale were also successful in confirming playoff spots this weekend, which leaves the rest to scrap for the final 2 playoff positions; Fidelis Andria, Gela, Palmese, ourselves, Olbia and Catanzaro are all involved from 4th to 9th. Our remaining fixtures are Lodigiani away, Foggia away and Giugliano at home.

In the UEFA Cup Semi Final 2nd legs this week, favourites Betis continued their march into the final by rounding off a 4-1 aggregate win over Bologna. After knocking out Italian giants Lazio in the quarters, Chelsea had the prospect of an all-English semi against Leeds United. Leeds were able to cancel out Chelsea's 2 goal lead from the first leg to send the tie into extra time and penalties, only for Eidur Gudjohnsen to be the hero again and score the penalty that wins the shootout for the London side.

Saturday 26th - Serie C2/C - Lodigiani v Ragusa

It's 11th v 7th in Rome as we travel to play Lodigiani, a team who have been chugging along just below mid-table for almost the whole season. A Claudio Gallicchio brace gave us three points for Christmas in the previous meeting this season.

With both of our regular wide players - Cooke and Manoni - missing through injury, Bonaffini will start on the left and wingback Sabellini will be asked to play a more advanced role than usual on the right.

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Guastella; Bonaffini, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Sabellini; Gallicchio.

The first half is shared equally between the two sides, with Lenea making a couple of saves and Gallicchio shooting wide with the best of our half-chances. At half-time I decide to go for it, switching to 4-3-1-2 and bringing Lupo on for the uncomfortable Sabellini.

On 64 minutes Lodigiani midfielder Sanetti looked first time for Bruno Trocini, who had somehow drifted completely away from Infantino and used the space to fire home the opening goal. Pietro had really gone to sleep on that one. Fortunately it only takes us three minutes to respond, when Pellegrino lobs down the left wing and Lupo swings in a cross that is attacked by both Gallicchio and Bonaffini. Bonaffini gets there first to nod the equaliser in at the near post.

Final score: Lodigiani 1 - 1 Ragusa

There are more managerial casualties, this time high profile ones. Radomir Antic finally gets the marching orders from Barcelona that everyone knew was coming, and Marcello Lippi is sacked by Juventus following the Turin side's inability to find consistent league form this season. Conversely, AC Milan are crowned Serie A champions this weekend after a dominating season that proved most pre-season predictions correct.

There's also some more bad news from Salvatore as it seems that experienced midfielder Vladimiro Caramel has suffered a twisted knee in training that will put him on the treatment table for 3 weeks. He will obviously miss both of our final fixtures and it is another blow to our already slim chances of reaching the playoffs.

Yet another small Italian club, Serie C1 side Varese, goes into receivership.

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Sunday 4th May 2003

We are on the east coast of Italy to visit 13th placed Foggia, who last time condemned us to a 3-2 defeat despite a double from Ferrara. Stephen Cooke returns from injury in the nick of time to try his hand in Caramel's support role.

Serie C2/C

Foggia v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Guastella; Cirillo, Pellegrino, Bonaffini; Cooke; Lupo, Gallicchio.

Giuseppe Lenea is called on to pull off a few important saves in the first half, but we also give as good as we get with Pellegrino working especially hard in midfield. Unfortunately Lupo and Gallicchio blaze our best two chances over the crossbar.

Early in the second half Dario Italia picks up a knock and needs to be substituted, so Ursino goes on in his place and Ferrara comes on for Gallicchio. Foggia had a few more efforts on goal in the second half but somehow we coped, and came away with what was in truth a slightly fortunate draw on the balance of play.

Final score: Foggia 0 - 0 Ragusa

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Monday 5th May 2003

Unfortunately, wins for Fidelis Andria and Gela put them out of reach and mean that we can no longer make the playoffs. I'm not too disappointed, it would have been an overachievement to have done so and at no time did I expect to get there. We will round off the season with a home fixture against Giugliano, with nothing but pride to play for for either team.

Over in England, former Ajax and Barcelona manager Louis van Gaal is appointed at Highbury as the new Arsenal boss.

(Rumours circulating, that a group of people were there at the press conference claiming "I could emulate your career and do even better", are said to be unfounded)

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Sunday 11th May 2003

2730 fans are in attendance at the Aldo Campo Selvaggio for the final league fixture of the season. Giugliano are 12th, 4 points clear from the relegation playoffs, and we are in 7th with a similar 4 point gap separating us from the promotion playoffs. In the other meeting this season, a rare goal from captain Simone Tamburro was enough to give us all three points.

Serie C2/C

Ragusa v Giugliano

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Infantino, Italia, Guastella; Cirillo, Pellegrino, Bonaffini; Cooke; Lupo, Gallicchio.

Giugliano make the better start in this end-of-season kickabout, and froma a 15th minute ocrner Gianluca Fanelli rises highest at the near post to glance home the opener past Lenea. Both teams have chances and again Gallicchio and Lupo are guilty of misses. Gallicchio finally has the ball in the net in first half injury time, but it is disallowed due to Lupo being in an offside position.

On 83 minutes, Ferrara, Bonarrigo and Sabellini come on for Lupo, Gallicchio and Bonaffini. It is Giancarlo Ferrara's very last appearance in the blue Ragusa shirt, and despite having turned his back on the club he gets a rousing reception from the fans.

Final score: Ragusa 0 - 1 Giugliano

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Monday 12th May 2003

So as the regular league season is officially over, the final Serie C2/C table looks like THIS.

8th out of 18 is not a bad finish overall for a club who were promoted from Serie D last season. Our storming 12 match unbeaten streak did look at one point like putting us in with a shout for a playoff place, but we faltered and stumbled at the end to miss out and slip closer to mid-table. Considering that both the Chairman and the fans merely expected us to survive relegation, I think we can be quite happy with a top half finish and the knowledge that we scalped most of the teams above us along the way.

Indeed, Giuseppe Antoci has told me that he is delighted with the season as a whole and pleased that we coped so well in the new division. He has insisted that I take a week off to put my feet up, and I might just take his advice.

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Saturday 17th May 2003

I head back home to England for a few days to catch up with friends and family. Up in the north-east, Newcastle United are parading the FA Premiership trophy around a black-and-white city after pipping Manchester United to the title. Manchester were second with Arsenal in third, the first time that neither of those teams had claimed the championship since Blackburn Rovers won it in 1995.

The emotion of the occasion is heightened as Newcastle manager Sir Bobby Robson chooses the time to announce his retirement at the age of 70. In a managerial career spanning 5 decades from the 1960's to the 2000's, Sir Bobby took the helm at clubs such as Ipswich Town, FC Porto, Barcelona and PSV Eindhoven, as well as guiding the England national team to a semi final placing in the 1990 World Cup. He retires in success, finally bringing his beloved Newcastle United their first league championship since 1927 and I believe their first major piece of silverware since 1967.

Meanwhile over in Wales there are more immediate things to concentrate on. 72,497 people pack The Millennium Stadium in Cardiff to watch a North London derby with even more at stake than usual - Arsenal versus Tottenham in the FA Cup final.

Midway through the first half the red section of the crowd goes mad; Dennis Bergkamp lines up a free-kick from 25 yards and curls it into the top corner, putting Arsenal 1-0 up and helping to banish memories of 1991, Wembley and Gascoigne. Arsenal continue to have the better chances throughout as they search for a second, but with just 5 minutes to go a Chris Perry header falls to Teddy Sheringham, and the 37 year old produces an equally spectacular strike from just outside the area. Seaman is helpless as the ball flies into the same top corner that Bergkamp had found and it looks like they're heading for extra-time.

But as they have done so many times over recent years, Arsenal find something else at the death. Francis Jeffers came on as a 71st minute substitute for Kanu, and, when Sylvain Wiltord found acres of space on the right wing and crossed to the edge of the box, it is the young English striker who clips a difficult half-volley that loops over Sullivan's clawing hands into the corner of the net. A 90th minute winner to send the assembled Gooners into raptures and fulfil every Spurs fan's worst nightmare. To really rub it in, former Tottenham defender Sol Campbell picks up the man-of-the-match award as captain Patrick Vieira lifts Louis van Gaal's first trophy at Arsenal.

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Wednesday 21st May 2003

Despite finishing 4th in the Premiership and winning the League Cup, Gerard Houllier has been sacked by Liverpool. It seems that the club's board have become fed up with being a second tier team and watching Newcastle overtake them, and want a manager who can take them that extra step forward to the top.

Tonight I was back in my home in Ragusa to watch the UEFA Cup final between Chelsea and Betis, televised live from the Nou Camp. Eidur Gudjohnsen produced yet more heroics in the competition by equalising after Brazilian star Denilson had given the Spanish club the lead, but a goal in extra time by that man Henrik Larsson and a third from Casas helped Betis to lift the trophy that they had looked odds on to win all throughout the campaign.

Saturday 24th May 2003

It had been rumoured by many already, but today Liverpool officially unveiled former Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger as thier new manager. Liverpool deny that this was planned before Houllier's sacking earlier in the week but the press will tell you otherwise.

Closer to home, Giancarlo Ferrara's new club Monza has announced that receivers have been brought in to deal with their financial crisis. Normally this would give my bitter side some satisfaction at Giancarlo's expense, but you only have to glance at our accounts to see that we will soon be in the same boat. After making a loss of around £115,000 for the season we are finally in the red and heading south. With the current financial climate as it is, and with a new Italian club confirming receivership every month, I expect that it is surely only a matter of time before Ragusa join the list.

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Monday 26th May 2003

The divisional awards are announced. Our own Marco Cirillo is a surprising choice for third place in the Italian Serie C2/C Player Of The Year category - I say surprising because although he has had an impressive season, so have 1 or 2 others at the club and I wasn't aware that he had been gaining that much attention. Furthering our involvement in the awards is Simone Tamburro's inclusion in the list of substitutes attached to the Italian Serie C2/C Team Of The Year.

Gela's Francesco Erbini ran away with the Italian Serie C2/C Top Goalscorer Award, as the 31 year old cultured striker netted an impressive 36 times in the league, 42 in all competitions.

Wednesday 28th May 2003

It may be the end of the season but the Italian sports press have been whipping themselves into a frenzy this week in the run up to one game - It is an all Milan affair at Old Trafford for the Champions League final between Inter and AC. In the end a relatively disappointing spectacle at the theatre of dreams results in AC Milan adding to their Serie A title, taking the match 2-0. Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko bagged both goals, passing the 100 mark for his club and rounding off a generally outstanding season for him and his team in glory.

Saturday 31st May 2003

As the month ends, so do the loans of midfielder Stephen Cooke and defender Graziano Ursino. Stephen has enjoyed his stay in Sicily and has been a huge bonus for us this season, chipping in with several assists and adding another dimension to our midfield. He returns to Aston Villa as a more mature 20 year old at the prime age for gaining Premiership experience, and I really hope that one day he becomes a first team regular for the big Midlands club.

Graziano is a more negative matter. Having failed to impress from day one and onwards, the only reason we kept him around was because we were so short on cover at centre back and left back. I don't expect him to go on to achieve anything at Reggina.

Latina and Igea Virtus are the two unlucky teams who will join Puteolana in relegation from Serie C2/C. Gladiator and Nocerina breath a sigh of relief after narrowly escaping the drop by triumphing in the relegation playoffs.

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Wednesday 11th June 2003

After we waved goodbye to two players last weekend, two more have parted from the playing staff this week; both Corrado Vaccarro and Pietro Infantino have decided to hang up their boots this summer. 39 year old Corrado has not been needed this season in a goalkeeping capacity but has certainly done his job as a coach, so he will be staying on in that role. Defender Pietro is 37 now and although he was an important part of our defence this season, he feels that he cannot go on for another year and has decided to call it a day. He has no ambition to go into coaching and will part ways with the club.

Following Bobby Robson's retirement from football, Newcastle United have appointed former Dutch international Frank Rijkaard as their new manager. Rijkaard inherits a young and vibrant squad of players but will be faced with the pressure of trying to continue Sir Bobby's achievements.

There's bad news for Fabio Capello when the Roma board send him packing, clearly not delighted with finishing 4th in Serie A this season.

The financial situation claims yet another two Italian clubs, as Serie C2 side Cremonese and Serie B outfit Venezia are the latest clubs to go into receivership.

Saturday 14th June 2003

A brace from 20 year old Andrea Di Napoli had given Fidelis Andria a 2-1 win in the 1st leg of their playoff final with Palmese, and they took an early lead in the 2nd leg. Palmese fought back well to go 2-1 up and make the tie level at 3-3 on aggregate, but a dramatic last minute goal from experienced striker Giovanni Spinelli puts Fidelis Andria through 4-3 overall. They join champions Brindisi in celebrating promotion to Serie C1, as the season officially closes.

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- Ragusa 2002/2003 - Player recaps -

GOALKEEPERS

Nicolas Cinalli, 23, Goalkeeper (Argentinian)

(apps 7 - conceded 14 - clean sheets 1 - AvR 6.85)

Nicolas started the season as our first choice goalkeeper, but after losing his place to Giuseppe Lenea in October he has not made an appearance since. The form of his young counter part has given me no reason to reinstate Nicolas, and his disappointment could lead to him being placed on the transfer list this summer.

Antonio Di Giovanni, 20, Goalkeeper

(apps 0 - AvR -.--)

Antonio has been available for loan almost the entire season but has had no interest shown in him. Corrado doesn’t think that he will ever be good enough to play for the club but we may need him as cover if Cinalli leaves us.

Giuseppe Lenea, 18, Goalkeeper

(apps 31 - conceded 27 - clean sheets 14 - AvR 7.45)

Just superb. I gambled on him early in the season and he responded brilliantly, fulfilling our expectations and more. Giuseppe has got better and better in every game and only turned 18 years old in January.

Corrado Vaccaro, 40, Goalkeeper

(apps 0 - AvR -.--)

Corrado hung up his gloves this season when he turned 40. He had not been called upon to play last season, but we have got on very well and I’m happy with his coaching job so far.

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- Ragusa 2002/2003 - Player recaps -

DEFENDERS

Pietro Infantino, 37, Centre Back

(apps 36 - MotM 3 - AvR 7.25)

Pietro also heads into retirement as he reaches his 37th year. He had been a leader and a capable performer despite one or two slip-ups, and his form during the second half of the season had been impressive.

Dario Italia, 32, Centre Back

(apps 34(2) - AvR 6.94)

Dario has not had the best of seasons and I will be hoping to replace him as soon as possible – in fact I am disappointed that we haven’t been able to do so already. He hasn’t been terrible but I see him as the weakest of the usual back four. His inability in the air and occasionally lapse marking has contributed to our goals conceded column this season.

Graziano Ursino, 20, Defender left/central (on loan)

(apps 12(5) - AvR 6.52)

Graziano’s loan has expired and we will not be renewing it. He has only appeared when we have been desperate and he hasn’t impressed during those times. I can’t see him making it at Reggina when he doesn’t even show that he’s capable at Serie C2 level.

Stefano Guastella, 19, Right Back

(apps 28(1) - Assists 1 - MotM 2 - AvR 7.00)

Stefano turned out to be our regular right back, and with the occasional ups and downs I think he did a decent job overall. He will have to fight it out with Danilo Sabellini to keep his place but he can be satisfied with his first full season. He has shown plenty of determination, if a little inexperience too.

Danilo Sabellini, 20, Right Wingback

(apps 8(9) - MotM 1 - AvR 7.17)

Danilo’s lack of appearances has been completely down to his lack of fitness. He suffered 2 lengthy injuries that combined to keep him on the treatment table for 5 months, and his battle to gain match fitness in-between made it even longer. It is a shame, because he has looked like a good player and I suspect that he may even have ousted Guastella from the starting lineup if he had stayed healthy.

Simone Tamburro, 29, Wingback

(apps 36 - Goals 2 - Assists 3 - MotM 1 - AvR 7.02)

As club captain, Simone had a solid season at left back and would have appeared in every game were it not for his two suspensions. He has the drive to lead his teammates on the pitch and is not unknown to go bombing forward up the left wing to good effect.

[nerf]

- Ragusa 2002/2003 - Player recaps -

MIDFIELDERS

Alessandro Bonaffini, 21, Winger

(apps 16(11) - Goals 2 - Assists 1 - AvR 6.48)

Alessandro has been the typical squad player this season and has seemed quite happy to play that role. His versatility has seen him fill in at centre midfield and at full back, as well as his normal position of wide midfield. He puts the effort in, but I can’t see him ever holding down a regular first team place here.

Manolo Manoni, 26, Winger

(apps 23(7) - Goals 4 - Assists 2 - AvR 6.53)

Manolo has had a varied season. Although he has chipped in with a few spectacular goals, he has not shown the quality that I would expect from a first team player. His form has been up and down but overall average at best, and I would hope that he will not be needed to make so many appearances next season.

Stephen Cooke, 20, Midfielder (on loan)

(apps 19(3) - Goals 1 - Assists 7 - MotM 3 - AvR 7.31)

The phone call I made to Gordon Cowans in November was probably one of the best things I have done at the club. Stephen was fantastic, breathing more life into our attacking play and proving why the Aston Villa youth coaches rate him so highly. He also took living abroad in his stride; I only wish we could keep him for next season!

Gaspare Pellegrino, 20, Centre Midfield

(apps 36 - Goals 2 - Assists 1 - MotM 1 - AvR 7.58)

Gaspare has been an absolute god-send. After thinking that we would be lacking in central midfield when I first arrived, he has stepped up to the challenge and been consistently brilliant from start to finish. He never stops running, never complains, works harder than anyone else and distributes the ball in simple fashion. As the holding midfielder he has been a key player for us this season and I expect the same next season.

Vladimiro Caramel, 34, Attacking Midfield

(apps 34 - Goals 4 - Assists 7 - MotM 8 - AvR 7.52)

Vladi has also been superb and another critically important player for the team. On occasion he has attempted to drag the attack through matches on his own, and anything creative invariably came through him. I predicted that he would become a creative influence on the team this season and he fleshed out every word of that. My only worry with Vladi is that he will turn 35 during the summer.

[nerf]

- Ragusa 2002/2003 - Player recaps -

ATTACKERS

Carmelo Bonarrigo, 27, Forward

(apps 4(5) - AvR 6.44)

While I accept that Carmelo has not had a decent run in the side and was usually played out of position in midfield, I do not think that he has the ability to be considered worthwhile. Whenever he has been on the pitch he has been quiet and made no impact whatsoever.

Marco Cirillo, 26, Striker

(apps 31(4) - Goals 1 - Assists 6 - MotM 1 - AvR 7.37)

Marco was a revelation in midfield, putting in some high quality performances and chipping in with his fair share of assists. I don’t think he’s too delighted with being used out of position, but he has put aside any feelings of discontent when on the pitch in favour of getting his head down and working hard for the team, and deserves a lot of credit for it. His reward comes in the shape of a regular first team slot and a third place in the division’s Player of the Year award.

Giancarlo Ferrara, 28, Striker

(apps 28(7) - Goals 17 - Assists 7 - MotM 5 - AvR 7.48)

It is obvious that losing Giancarlo is a huge blow to the club. Not only will our top scorer and best striker walk out on us this summer, but he will do it on a free transfer. The £50,000 that we almost sold him for in January would have come in very useful, but after that fell through we have no choice but to wave him on his way to Monza. With his style of playing on the shoulder of defenders alongside his good all around ability and eye for goal, he will no doubt continue to bang in the goals for his new club.

Claudio Gallicchio, 25, Striker

(apps 29(4) - Goals 11 - Assists 5 - AvR 6.81)

Claudio has managed the not inconsiderable task of remaining a complete mystery to me for the entire season. Sometimes he looks a handful, occasionally lethal, and other times he is quiet and spurns chances by the hatful. He is strong and determined, I just hope that he can find some consistency to his play and become more ruthless in front of goal – we will need it next season if he becomes our main striker.

Vittorio Emanuele Lupo, 28, Striker

(apps 2(14) - Goals 3 - Assists 3 - AvR 6.81)

Vittorio looks likely to get more first team action next season. He has sometimes shown glimpses of ability this season, and, although I remain unconvinced, I still hope that he will be able to raise his game to the task.

[nerf]

Tuesday 17th June 2003

Although the team have not been involved in any action for a month, myself and scout Enrico Calabrese have not been sat around twiddling our thumbs. Being his usual enthusiastic self Enrico has been here there and everywhere, and we have both been tapping our networks as we look to build up what has become an even smaller squad than last season.

One of my contacts in England threw up the name Stuart Attewell, a young central defender who has been in the youth team at West Bromwich Albion. When Stuart turned 17 years old in April the club decided not to sign him on to full professional terms and he became a free agent. He's not the quickest and could tighten up his marking, but he is a strong brave lad with good aerial ability and good positional sense. In truth it is a bit of a gamble, but after the success of Stephen Cooke's visit and the desperate need for central defenders here then I think we should take it. I will be going back to England to meet with Stuart and his parents to see if he can be tempted into resuming his career abroad.

[nerf]

Sunday 29th June 2003

I spent some time today with Giuseppe Antoci at the Chairman's villa higher up the valley. He is very pleased with the performance of the club under my management and continues to give me his full support. As for expectations for the coming season, he assures me that he would be just as happy with further survival in the division to cement our reputation as a Serie C club, rather than pressure me for a promotion fight. Anything better than relegation will suit him for now.

The conversation turned to financial matters, a sombre topic in Italian football at the moment. Although we have secured a brand new sponsorship deal with a local company that will be worth £45,000 for the next 5 years, there is no chance of the club becoming profitable any time soon and I think we both accept that the prospect of joining many other clubs in receivership sometime in the near future is not an unlikely possibility. However, Giuseppe is as aware as I am that the tiny squad needs strengthening after 5 players departed this summer, so he is standing by his promise that £35,000 will remain available for transfers. I promised to try and spend as little as possible.

Tuesday 1st July 2003

Stuart Attewell arrived this week as a Ragusa player, my first ever permanent signing for the club. He was excited about the opportunity to live and play abroad after the disappointment at West Brom, but I think the deal clincher was getting him to talk with Stephen Cooke about his experiences over here. I know that Stephen enjoyed his time in Ragusa and obviously had good things to tell him; whatever he said seemed to make up Stuart's mind and he has decided to join us.

A local magazine has named Giancarlo Ferrara as their Ragusa player of the year, in a poll voted on by fans of the club. Giancarlo grabbed their attention with his second straight season as top scorer, after playing a big part in helping the club get promoted from Serie D the previous year and then scoring some crucial goals last season. Clearly they are slightly more forgiving about his imminent depature to Monza than I am.

Vicenza and Lucchese are the latest clubs to be caught in the financial crisis, both bringing in the receivers.

Thursday 10th July 2003

The scouting work done over the last few weeks is beginning to pay off, as I welcome a certain individual to Ragusa this morning to show him the around. This time it is no unknown 17 year old, but a Uruguayan who was capped 28 times by his country and has Serie A experience... none other than Daniel Fonseca. The talented forward enjoyed several successful years at Napoli and Roma before fading out at Juventus, and is quite a catch for an obscure little club like Ragusa.

Daniel is 33 now and has spent the last couple of years playing low level football in both Italy and his home country. He seems fairly happy about the prospect of joining a small club with a regular first team place, immediately took a liking to the old town, and all in all it looks likely that he will sign a contract early next week.

And that's not all, as I have also been granted permission by Reggina to discuss the possibility of Pietro Alderuccio joining us when his contract runs out in September. Reggina placed him on the transfer list during his rehab, but even though he is now fully fit they have still not had any interest from other clubs and they cannot interfere if Pietro decides to join us.

With Stephen Cooke no longer around we will also need to strengthen the midfield. Igea Virtus were relegated this season, along with a previous transfer target of ours called Fabio Caserta. The 24 year old can play anywhere across the midfield, is good in the air and can use the ball well - we place a small offer of £4,000.

[nerf]

Saturday 12th July 2003

Yesterday I hopped over to southern Italy to speak to Pietro Alderuccio. We were able to agree terms fairly easily as he was not keen to sit around at Reggina any more, a club that had not shown much interest in helping him through a difficult long term injury. Unfortunately, as much as I would like to have him for pre-season, his contract means that he will not be able to join us until September 16th, by which time we will already be 3 matches into the new league season. That can't be helped though, and I know it will be worth the wait - Pietro is only 21, is strong in the tackle and is capable of man marking. It was a blow to have to cancel his loan last season after the accident, but now that he has made a full recovery we should benefit from his return.

Today I have been speaking to a third centre back and another big name player - Des Walker. The 38 year old former Nottingham Forest, Sheffield Wednesday and England defender also spent time in Italian football with Sampdoria, and is interested in finding a coaching role either in his home country or over here in Italy. I think that Des would be the ideal mentor for young Stuart Attewell as he would benefit hugely from Walker's experience (along with his translating), and I would be more than happy to have him on the coaching staff concurrently.

Progress on a possible Fabio Caserta deal is interrupted when a certain Serie D club called Ravenna weigh in with an offer worth £20,000 for the midfielder. It is significantly more than I was hoping to have to spend, but we really need to bolster the midfield and reluctantly decide to match it.

Wednesday 16th July 2003

Fonseca returned this week with a signed contract and he is now officially a Ragusa player. We will get to see him in action for the first time when we go on a pre-season tour to Portugal on the first of the month.

In a repeat of the Nazzareno Scopelliti incident almost exactly a year ago, Fabio Caserta has snubbed us to join Ravenna in Serie D. What are Ravenna tempting players with, their Chairman's teenage daughter? After they beat us to Scopelliti last year, then went back on their word in the cancelled Ferrara deal and now take Caserta too, it's safe to say that Ravenna are not my favourite team...

With a second blow we are also rejected by Des Walker, who instead chooses Serie C1/A side Atletico Catania rather than us, Oxford or Shrewsbury.

Sunday 27th July 2003

Today is the day that Giancarlo Ferrara's contract officially expires and he is legally allowed to go to join up with Monza, as was arranged back at the start of February. There's also a second departure when physio Gioacchino Giudice leaves to become head physio at a club called Fano. We receive £4,000 in compensation and we still have old Salvatore, so we should be okay for now.

On Wednesday the entire 17-man squad will be flying out to Portugal for our 2 week pre-season tour. We have friendlies arranged with Louletano on the 1st, Clube Desportivo Nacional da Madeira on the 6th, and their rivals Clube Futebol Uniao Madeira on the 11th.

[nerf]

Tuesday 12th August 2003

The Portuguese tour was refreshing and enjoyable off the pitch, but not very successful on it. After losing to Louletano on the south coast, Nacional da Madeira ran rings round our tired players and banged six past us on the Wednesday. The meeting with their local opposition Uniao went a little better in comparison but we still came away with three defeats from three.

Stuart Attewell put in a promising showing on the tour despite being very out of shape, and Fonseca bagged a goal even with the lack of supply in his direction. The results may have been poor, but the important thing was the fitness and I can already tell that it has done the squad a world of good for their pre-season preparations.

The tour wasn't all relaxing round a hotel, training and playing friendlies though, as Enrico had still been hard at work in my absence. On his recommendation we have placed a bid of £9,000 for Sangiovannese's midfielder Franco Chiavarini, a 23 year old Argentinian. He is very quick and possesses a right foot that could open a tin of beans, and although he is primarily a winger his mobility and passing ability should serve him well if we need him to tuck infield. Barring any spanners in the works he should be signed and registered in time for the start of the Serie C Cup on Friday.

[nerf]

- Serie C Cup - Group O preview -

Group O is compiled entirely of teams that competed in Serie C2/C last season, a constant only broken by Brindisi's subsequent promotion to Serie C1/B. Therefore each team should be well aware of their opponents this time around.

Teams (sorted alphabetically):

Brindisi - Serie C1/B

Gladiator - Serie C2/C

Palmese - Serie C2/C

Ragusa - Serie C2/C

Tivoli - Serie C2/C

Brindisi were the runaway winners of Serie C2/C last season, leading for much of the campaign and wrapping the title up with three matches remaining. This success alone must surely make them favourites to qualify from this group.

Gladiator struggled through their 2002/2003 season, spending the vast majority of it at the opposite end of the table. They narrowly avoided the drop into Serie D after having to fight for their lives in the relegation playoffs, and consequently they are not expected to make much of an impact on this group.

Palmese looked like a strong outfit for much of last season and were desperately unlucky not to join Brindisi in Serie C1, only losing the promotion playoff final in the very last minute of the season to Fidelis Andria. They contain the kind of attacking power that could help them do well in a small group stage.

Ragusa had a mixed season, starting poorly and finishing poorly to bookend a hot streak that made them the form team in the division for a good period of time. For a club that had come up from Serie D spending no money it can be considered a successful season, but with the more potent likes of Brindisi and Palmese in the group it is not easy to see them making qualification. The one thing Ragusa can take heart from is that in their 8 total meetings with these other teams last season, they only suffered a single defeat.

Tivoli also enjoyed a very successful league campaign last season, climbing to second in the table but again being knocked out by Fidelis Andria in the promotion playoffs. They stand as good a chance as any in what could prove to be a tight group.

[Gino]

Still looking good nerf, all the best with the new season

[nerf]

Cheers Gino

Friday 15th August 2003

Tivoli, a club based near the city of Rome, are our first opponents in this season's Serie C cup. Last season Tivoli managed a very respectable 2nd position in the league, although we were able to take 4 points from our two meetings with them.

Intending to make a cautious start after our unstable pre-season form, we will adopt the 4-5-1 formation and play for the draw. There are full debuts for all three signings, and, at 17 years and 4 months old, Stuart Attewell becomes the youngest ever player to appear for Ragusa, beating Giuseppe Lenea's record last year by around 4 months or so.

Serie C Cup Group O

Tivoli v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Tamburro©, Attewell, Italia, Guastella; Fonseca, Cirillo, Caramel, Pellegrino, Chiavarini; Gallicchio.

Our cautious start is blown out of the water as early as the 15th minute, as our inability to defend set pieces exposes us once again. Dario Italia is beaten in the air by the near post and a glancing header gives Tivoli a 1-0 lead that they hold through to half-time.

With the players in the changing room at half-time I give instructions to switch to 4-3-1-2. Daniel Fonseca moves up front to join Gallicchio in attack, and Chiavarini tucks infield to make the midfield three.

10 minutes after the break, Franco Chiavarini clips a good ball inside to Gallicchio, who turns and finds Fonseca breaking in behind the home defence. Looking suspiciously offside but with the flag staying down, the Uruguayan takes the ball on and curls a left foot shot high around goalkeeper Andrea Casta. It's the equaliser and his first official goal for the club.

In the 61st minute Dario Italia's long free-kick from defence is won well in the air by Vladimiro Caramel, and the ball dropps for Claudio Gallicchio left surprisingly wide open in the Tivoli area. Claudio keeps his cool, gets the ball under control, and finishes emphatically as the goalkeeper rushes out to block him. 2-1.

In the 70th minute we complete a terrific 15 minute spell with a third. Stuart Attewell's defensive header is collected by Stefano Guastella, who spots Fonseca's diagonal run and launches a long ball over the Tivoli back line. Fonseca is left with a similar 1v1 chance as he had earlier, and the result is the same.

Final score: Tivoli 1 - 3 Ragusa

A great result at Tivoli. After a worrying start we were an entirely different side in the second half and Tivoli just couldn't handle us. Franco Chiavarini made a pleasing start in his first game, and the usual suspects Pellegrino and Caramel put in a typically good display. Fonseca bagging 2 goals was a bonus, I hope it is a sign of things to come.

[nerf]

Tuesday 19th August 2003

Our first visitors to the Aldo Campo Selvaggio are the familiar faces of Gladiator, a team we met three times last season including a victory over them in the previous Serie C cup. In our league meetings we managed a 2-2 draw and a 3-0 win, so our record against them makes good reading.

After the second half success at Tivoli we will start with 4-3-1-2. Simone Tamburro picked up a calf strain in training this week that will sideline him for the best part of a month, so Sabellini will have to do his best to fill in on the left with no natural replacement. In Simone's absence, I hand the captain's armband to the reliable Gaspare Pellegrino for the first time.

Serie C Cup Group O

Ragusa v Gladiator

Ragusa lineup - Lenea; Sabellini, Attewell, Italia, Guastella; Cirillo, Pellegrino©, Chiavarini; Caramel; Fonseca, Gallicchio.

Less than 10 minutes in, Caramel's deceptive aerial ability wins another unlikely header and Fonseca squeezes a shot in on goal. Di Muro parries the ball to keep the effort out, but Claudio Gallicchio is alive to pounce and stick home the rebound. 1-0, and only an excellent save from Vincenzo Di Muro stops Claudio making it two later in the half.

Before half-time there's another opportunity for that second goal. A corner is cleared by the Gladiator defence and Attewell nods the ball back in to Pellegrino near the edge of the area. The deputising captain winds up for a long range shot, but fools everybody in the stadium by faking the shot and instead slipping the ball back into the box, where Franco Chiavarini had ghosted into acres of space. The Argentinian controls and shapes up for the shot, and although the goalkeeper gets a hand on it it still finds the net for his first Ragusa goal.

The second half is played out comfortably, with Gladiator coming gradually back into it but unable to seriously threaten. Fonseca is rested to give Lupo a run out for the last 25 minutes.

Final score: Raguse 2 - 0 Gladiator

It is shame that only 1904 people turned up at the ground to watch, as they would have seen their slightly new-look Ragusa team put in a dominating first half performance; If we can keep that sort of form going then we shouldn't do too badly. Just like last season we have started the group with two wins from two satisfying performances.