Sorrento and the Amalfi

retired_jgirl87 · 08-24-2005, 03:34 AM

<lets breathe out>

Good luck, haze :cool:

retired_xs2khizar · 08-24-2005, 04:04 AM

Congratulations on the new job :cool:

This really is an excellent start, haze, I think I will be following this one. Give Gela a good beating for me

Best of luck :thup:

retired_bootcamp_nat · 08-24-2005, 08:37 AM

Wow! Page 1 finally ends with the inevitable appointment. I have no idea how long an actual season will take to report, but at this rate you'd better buckle yourselves in for a long ride. BTW Cheers for the support everyone!
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It was a long eleven hour bus ride down to the toe end of the boot and the quaint Sicilian coastal town of Gela. The lads seem particularly toey and from what my coaches have gathered the players are right behind my appointment. On the bus with plenty of time to kill I sat and had a good chat with the charismatic fullback Ferrara, he assured me that the players had no question that chairman Castellano had made the right decision and if I just kept improving my Italian they may even accept me as one of them before to long. Ferrara never fails to impress me. Whilst physically quite a scrawny specimen he is without a doubt the toughest and most ferocious player we have on the squad, yet off the pitch he is quiet almost to the point of being withdrawn at times. I am beginning to realise after he opened up to me today that his apparent quietness is just a conscious effort he makes to think about his actions before acting after finding himself in all too many dangerous situations as a youngster due to his fiery temperament.

Despite the initial searches by my scouts we go into our first official match of the season with a relatively inexperienced side and to be honest expectations are mixed at this point. The Serie C Cup is not a very high priority and to be honest I will be looking to utilise this match as a chance to see how the side plays as a unit. With just Maraucci out injured the side will be as strong as we are capable of currently, however in the next week or two before the transfer window closes I will hopefully be bringing in a new keeper - replacing the hapless Ambra - and a central defender at the very least. Pezzella starts at the back today with the solid Gargiulo, both the new recruits will have another match to prove themselves and the experienced Russo will get the start on the left ahead of Marciano.

Quote:

20.08.04
Gela Juve-Terranova @ Vincenzo Presti, Gela - Serie C Cup Group N

All the early action came in our half as Gela attacked hard and often however the defence held firm with the scariest moment averted by Gargiulo as he cleared a shot of the goal-line after the post also managed to save our embarrassment. Sanda worked his way into the match and was causing problems with his pace, on 29 minutes he managed to turn his man inside the home sides half before drawing a defender and playing Guariglia into the penalty box where the veteran striker made no mistake putting us up 1-0. As the match progressed it looked inevitable that Gela would equalise, numerous chances were spooned over the bar or saved by the inspired Ambra in goals. On the hour mark it looked like Guariglia would settle the score however his close range header from Sanda'a cross was tipped over by the Gela keeper. The home side continued to press late in the game however our defence held firm and we could have extended the score with Russo in the 90th minute however once more Gela's keeper stood tall and kept his sides slim hopes alive. Finally the whistle blew on my first match in charge - a win - lucky maybe but a win is a win.

Goals - (Sorrento) Guariglia 29
Attendance - 2294

Gela 0-1 Sorrento

retired_bootcamp_nat · 08-26-2005, 10:21 AM

In my first full week as manager my three scouts have been particularly busy and it looks like we will hopefully be adding another four players to our books before the week is out. Earlier this week veteran Serie C keeper Cristian Tosti has agreed in principle to our contract and whilst his fee of €2k is almost a third of our budget it will certainly be worth it as he is a quality stopper from the tapes I’ve seen. Also agreeing in principle is the centre half Rocco Roberto Paris - a former Bari trainee who played a handful of matches for the now Serie B side - our offer of just €1k was accepted by Serie C1 side Lanciano. We are still waiting on the players demands for the other two potential recruits but we are hopeful that midfielders Andrea Conti and Jaime Leon Merito will both sign before the weekend transfer deadline.

In spite of what has been a good start to the group stage of the cup campaign we have not changed our priorities at all. The cup is secondary, it is about finding our best starting eleven before the Serie C2 season begins. At this point the certainties are Ferrara, Aruta and Gargiulo at the back with Buonomo and Neto in midfield and Sanda and Guariglia up front. That leaves four spots up for grabs and with the new signings arriving at the end of the week it will be interesting to see who really wants to fight for their spot in this team. Competition for places is something that was lacking and I think we are on our way to creating a healthy competition within the playing group.

retired_brunette7854 · 08-26-2005, 08:59 PM

Great stuff Haze, keep it up.

retired_bootcamp_nat · 09-03-2005, 02:20 PM

Cheers RomfordPele. Great name btw!
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Quote:

31.08.04
Summer Signings Pt.2

Cristian Tosti - GK - 30
At €2k our most expensive recruit but possibly our most important one. No club with just one keeper is healthy and the addition of Tosti will ensure that the unlucky Ambra will watch most matches from the sideline. In my opinion this is a good thing unfortunately. Tosti adds the experience and stability we require at the back and I look forward to seeing how he fits in here in Sorrento.

Rocco Roberto Paris - D RC - 25
From what I’ve seen of this lad he is just what we need to partner Gargiulo at the back. Solid, dependable and quite quick Rocco is a genuine footballer with good feet and a good reader of the game. At just €1k he is an absolute bargain. The only reason he has come down a level to play with us is due to the fact that his previous club Lanciano could not promise him regular first team action. Something that will not be an issue here in Sorrento.

Andrea Conti - AM RLC - 27
A Roman by birth Conti began his career with three matches for the giants of Roma after progressing through their junior ranks, however since that one season with the senior team he has spent seven seasons at six different clubs before making us his eighth club at twenty seven years of age. A journeyman? Yes. Hopefully for us he will offer a touch of class and composure in the midfield ranks. The fact that he has signed for free with a few measly bonuses potentially going back to his former club Lanciano either says that he was not worth much to them or that they were just happy to offload him. Either way he will get every possible chance to prove himself here along with his former team mate in Rocco Paris.

Jaime Leon Merito - AM R - 21
Also joining for free (and a few bonuses) is the young winger Merito. Born in Colombia but a naturalised Italian, Merito is a quick winger that looks to have the sort of game that can make it at this level. We will wait and hope. He has signed from Serie C1 side Acireale and will hopefully apply pressure to Costabile for the right wing position.

Leon - Physio - 25
Our final addition to the football club before the season proper kicks off is young physio Leon. Born in Sao Paulo, Leon is of Brazilian-Italian heritage and has completed his physio training recently in Naples. This is his first official placement and I think he can learn a lot from our head physio and local legend Giancarlo Colonna.

retired_bootcamp_nat · 09-03-2005, 02:21 PM

With the confirmation of this weeks signings I feel the club is starting to take a better shape in my mind as we have now strengthened all areas of the squad. The experience and stability of Tosti and Paris will certainly be big positives and Conti has the class but will he have the metal to make it in Sorrento? Three of the midweek signings will take the pitch against Igea Virtus as Tosti takes over from Ambra in goals whilst both Paris and Conti take their places in the centre of defence and in the midfield respectively. The starting lineup will be as follows: Tosti - Ferrara, Aruta, Paris, Gargiulo - Conti, Russo, Buonomo, Neto - Sanda, Guariglia. Against another Sicilian club this time it was Igea Virtus' time to take a nine hour bus trip up to meet us in sunny Sorrento.

Quote:

31.08.04
Igea Virtus @ Comunale Italia, Sorrento - Serie C Cup Group G

If this match was to demonstrate anything to our supporters it was that we had indeed found a solid shot stopper in Tosti, he looks like being the type of keeper that we can build our defence around. Twice we went behind today and it should have been more if not for the exceptional Tosti, twice we equalised. Igea Virtus' first goal was a tap in to their central defender Monaco after a scrambled corner found its way to the far post on 16 minutes. Then on the half hour Buonomo fed Sanda in the box and the Cameroonian turned his man before rounding the oncoming keeper and equalising. Igea Virtus then retook the lead when Costabile was judged to have hauled down Francesco Esposito in the box and despite Ferrara and Sanda's complaints Alizzi scored for the away side. Then finally in the 89th minute second half substitute Di Ruocco worked with Conti down the left and the new signings deep cross was headed home by Costabile at the far post. 2-2 and Tosti the saviour at the Comunale.

Goals - (Sorrento) Sanda 30, Costabile 88 - (Igea Virtus) Monaco 17, Alizzi 83(pen)
Attendance - 1716

Sorrento 2-2 Igea Virtus

retired_Andrea · 09-04-2005, 02:46 AM

Great story so far, inspiring stuff!

retired_bootcamp_nat · 09-06-2005, 02:04 AM

Always happy to inspire!
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With the transfer window now closed I am content with the squad we have been dealt following a few good acquisitions. The only player to leave Sorrento was young striker Dario De Simone who joined Serie C1 side Pro Patria for €5k, the strikers were the only area in which we had too many candidates for first team action so when a good offer came in I instructed Maria immediately that we would not hesitate in allowing young Dario to leave and further his career elsewhere.

Of the new signings Cristian Tosti was immense on debut in goals against Igea Virtus, Rocco Paris showed what we expected of him - as solid as they come - Rocco will lead from the back, however for Andrea Conti the jury is still out after he was less than impressive. As our fans will demonstrate here in Sorrento if you don't put in for the team the town will not spare you, Conti's habit of not pushing all that hard defensively will have to change and we will set about changing him immediately in training tomorrow. In spite of the fact that we were travelling quite well with four points from two matches in the group stage of the Serie C Cup the coaching panel were very sure that we had little chance of progressing in the cup. This season is about surviving the league and with no hope of actually winning the cup we will utilise the remaining two group matches against Taranto and Acireale as further pre-season practice before the league kicks off in just under two weeks time at home to (the infamous to FMS readers) Ragusa.

retired_bootcamp_nat · 09-06-2005, 02:05 AM

Only in Italy and in particular the Serie C could you be made to play two matches in as many days and this would be my first taste of this. The morning after our tough encounter with Igea Virtus we made the relatively short trip over to the Gulf of Taranto across the eastern side of the boot for our third Serie C Cup group match that evening. The only changes to the starting lineup sees Di Ruocco replacing Sanda up front and Merito replacing Conti on the right flank. Taranto are expected to challenge for promotion to Serie C1 this season and we will certainly be under pressure from the kick-off today as from what I’ve seen we are not yet up to the standards set by clubs like Taranto.

Quote:

1.09.04
Taranto @ Erasmo Jacovone, Taranto - Serie C Cup Group G

When the majority of my players walking out in front of almost six thousand screaming Taranto tifosi were in awe of the support gained by this club I was a little concerned. Sure I didn't expect too much coming into this match but from a position of awe we managed to hit them hard and fast as the powerful Guariglia headed us in front from Buonomo's early cross after just 11 minutes. I never for one moment thought that one goal would be enough here in Taranto and whilst we tried to attack we were quickly being pressed deep by the experienced Taranto midfield. On 18 minutes Menolascina fired home a free kick from the edge of the box to equalise and it wasn't to end there. If not for the tenacity of Ferrara, Paris and Buonomo we would have certainly been behind by half time however we managed to hold on late in to the game. Inevitably on 82 minutes Casale beat Tosti to a shallow cross and headed the home side ahead and that was the end of the match as a contest as Taranto played out time for a hard fought 2-1 victory.

Goals - (Taranto) Menolascina 18, Casale 82 - (Sorrento) Guariglia 11
Attendance - 5658

Taranto 2-1 Sorrento

Against a superior side I was very impressed by the way our back four structured themselves to repel a dangerous strike force. We held out well and despite losing it was possibly our best performance this season so far. Unfortunately Leon our physio that travelled with us to Taranto has made the early diagnosis that Tosti will miss a couple of weeks with a slight groin strain late in the match. So after all the changes I’ve attempted to implement it looks certain that we will be forced to start our Serie C2 campaign in just over a weeks time with the incumbent Ciro Ambra between the posts.

Sorrento and the Amalfi

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Sorrento and the Amalfi