Earthquake in the southern league: Igea Virtus penalized 5 points

Earthquake at the top of the Serie D Group I standings. Igea Virtus has been penalized 5 points by order of the Tfn, the National Federal Court. The basis for the measure is a unserved suspension in the Primavera championship involving goalkeeper Cristian De Falco, 19 years old, who started in 22 of the 25 matches played by the club from Barcelona.

Five months of disqualification, as confirmed by the ruling published by the disciplinary section of the Tfn, have been imposed on president Massimo Italiano and secretary Rosario Sorrenti. The goalkeeper, who remained on the bench in the last match that ended in a 1-1 draw against Nissa, will serve a five-match suspension.

The management of Nuova Igea is expected to issue a statement or may hold a press conference to explain its point of view on a matter that developed after a joint report from two clubs and that would not fall within the timeframe of the appeal.

THE REACTIONS. Honorary president Immacolato Bonina has intervened through the club's official channels with a very harsh statement: "In these matches we have shown that we are the strongest and this has upset a lot of people. This move has been scientifically and politically planned. The ruling comes after three months and just days before a match crucial for the top standings like the one we will play against Reggina. These are details that make you think. The results have been validated and the appeal from other clubs should have taken place within 48 hours of the conclusion of the matches."

Still the honorary president: " Nissa and Savoia have requested a -5, Barcelona bends but does not break. The city should know that we will play all our cards to be right. We will go to Rome, we will file an appeal (the deadline is within seven days) for this penalty to be annulled. We have the means to do so, the city and the team must win the championship on the field and in the stands. We cannot accept this wrong, we will rise again because we deserve to fulfill the dream of promotion." Still Bonina: "The federal regulations have penalized us, we are waiting for the reasons and not within 40 days because these measures cannot exist."

THE MANAGEMENT'S NOTE. In the evening, the management of the yellow-red club issued a long note that we report in full. "With regret, disappointment, and anger we receive a sentence that condemns us to five penalty points to be served in the current season, plus the five-month ban for president Massimo Carmelo Italiano, the five-month ban for general secretary Rosario Sorrenti, five match bans for player Christian De Falco and a 500 euro fine for our club."

"For us, this is not a sentence that we consider consistent with what happened, to which we will appeal in the ways and times provided by justice. There is no alternative, there is no reason – in our legitimate opinion – to receive a 'condemnation', even if not definitive, that diminishes our journey, our season, which until now has been filled with successes, merits, and recognitions, all achieved on the field and the result of no small sacrifices, from the team, the players, and the club."

"On our side, we have good faith, the desire to assert our reasons out of respect for our people and our work."

"At the time of registering player Christian De Falco, sent off at the end of the last match of the previous season, played with the Primavera team of Reggiana, we could not have been aware of this situation, aside from the impossibility that still persists at the federal level, where a secretary or a delegated manager operates in an amateur capacity for the registration of a player coming from professionalism, who has been employed in youth teams or in the first team."

"The federal portal, unlike what is possible for opposing parties, does not allow it. This impossibility has been the subject of a 'battle' for years by the secretaries of the LND, to whom the federal president has repeatedly acknowledged the validity of the request and the intention of the sports institutions to address such difficulties (not least in the meeting on December 15th in Rome)."

"In essence, there are no tools for amateur clubs to ascertain whether a potential registered player coming from professionalism has undergone a suspension or has ongoing issues that limit their use, both at the youth level and in the first team. Furthermore, it should be specified that to date there has never been a dispute from a Sports Judge that has ruled that a player's suspension must be served exclusively in the first team or in the juniors. The player Christian De Falco is a 2006 class and could have served it as one of the three overage players allowed by the regulations in the juniors championship."

"As a result, in the specific case that condemns us, considering that no one has ever appealed within the required time, and that all results have been validated, there has been no secretary or secretariat from any team we faced this season with De Falco on the field (suspension nonetheless rectified retroactively) that has ever reported irregularities or alleged offenses. The same player, when asked at the beginning of the season, had never referred to the suspension received at the end of the last match of the previous championship, despite the secretariat or those responsible having repeatedly carried out the regular procedures."

"We wonder, in this regard, how another singular aspect of the story was not taken into account, which highlights the impossibility of detecting the suspension and the player's irregular position. During the match valid for the fourth day of the first half, played at the 'Velodromo' in Palermo against Athletic Club, the player Christian De Falco was cautioned. The sanction was also processed in the subsequent communication from the Sports Judge. How is it possible that neither the Sports Judge nor the computer systems detected the suspension that had not yet been resolved? We believe that no one could have been aware of the unresolved pending issue, but at the same time, we are of the opinion that our good faith cannot be called into question by an induced short circuit, which is not decisive for the result validated on the field, nor is it predominant to what was recorded on the playing field. However, we have taken our responsibilities, faced a sports trial (not concluded) that we are sure can set a precedent, considering that we believe that the penalty is not the right result of an operation characterized throughout by transparency, merit, and linearity."

"We will appeal, we will not give an inch, confident that we will assert our reasons in the appropriate venues. The city and our fans, who like us are experiencing these hours with apprehension and anger, can be sure that we will transform everything in the way that best represents us, that is, with heart, sacrifice, passion, work, and quality. There are eight matches left in the season. We have obtained fifty points, fifty. We have lost only twice, so we must do our job and continue to work as a team and fight for the goal."

"Mitigating factors, the lack of tools, and good faith were not taken into account, but we will not be discouraged. We bend, but we do not break. Forward...together!"

THE NEW RANKING: Athletic Palermo 51, Savoia 50, Reggina and Nissa 47, Igea Virtus (-5) 45, Gelbison 40, Milazzo 38, Gela (-1) 37, Sambiase 36, Lamezia 35, Enna 30, Ragusa 27, Vibonese 26, Sancataldese 24, Messina (-14) and Acireale (-1) 23, Castrum Favara 21, Paternò 17.

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