retired_alok

Agree with J. best story I have ever read.

retired_xs2khizar

Thanks again Juventinogdt and Ninjafish, and glad you're still reading Agathron


- Serie C Cup 2004/2005 - Group P preview -

Group P has an almost identical look to last season's Group O, with 4 of the 5 teams involved together again. Last time the most unfancied team, Gladiator, pulled off a surprise group win.

Teams (sorted alphabetically):
Brindisi - Serie C2/C
Gladiator - Serie C2/C
Palmese - Serie C1/B
Paterno - Serie C2/C
Ragusa - Serie C2/C

Brindisi failed to cope with the step up to Serie C1/B last season following their promotion as C2/C winners, and find themselves back at square one after finishing rock bottom of the division above. It remains to be seen how this failure has affected the squad and the club as a whole, but they should be considered one of the more dangerous teams in the group.

Gladiator have clung to their Serie C2 status for dear life over the last two seasons, both times escaping relegation at the very last chance. However, they somehow managed to win their group in last season's cup competition so it is not so easy to write them off again.

Palmese finally got the promotion that they wanted by winning last season's playoff, and this coming season they will be attempting to do better in Serie C1/B than Brindisi did. They can be a dangerous force on their day and of all the teams in Group P they enjoyed by far the most success last season.

Paterno finished 15th in Serie C1/B and were condemned to Serie C2 by losing in the relegation playouts. The other 4 clubs are all familiar with each other with Paterno almost an outsider, so it will be interesting to see if this will work in their favour or not.

Ragusa round off a tough group, following on from a difficult second season for the club. Spending much of the campaign in the lower reaches of the table, they were finally able to turn themselves around and climb to the safety of midtable with some good end of season form. In last season's Serie C Cup they achieved the opposite, by putting themselves in a strong position to win the group and then being eased out on goal difference after failing to get anything from their final fixture.

retired_xs2khizar

Tuesday 24th August 2004

Franco Chiavarini and Giuseppe Lenea are both nursing pre-season injuries and will miss our opening cup game with Paterno.

Serie C Cup Group P
Ragusa v Paterno

Ragusa lineup - Di Giovanni; Tamburro(c), Attewell, Alderuccio, Sabellini; Manoni, Cirillo, Pellegrino, Caramel; Fonseca, Baggio.

Our first match of the season was a very tight and even game, with little to separate the two teams. The best chance came at the end of the first half when Manoni flicked the ball on and Fonseca spotted the Paterno keeper off his line, but his delicate lob shaved the outside of the post on its way down. Paterno were very defensive and only managed one effort of their own in the entire 90 minutes, which was blocked by Alderuccio.

Final score: Ragusa 0 - 0 Paterno


Massimo Fiorillo has joined the club as our second scout, and he will work alongside Vincenzo Barbieri to find potential transfer targets for us. Even more pleasing is that Gaspare Pellegrino and Simone Tamburro, who were both on contracts that run out at the end of this season, have now signed extensions to their deals until July 2007.


Saturday 28th August 2004

We have a good record against Gladiator in my two seasons here, being unbeaten in all six meetings (3 wins, 3 draws). Claudio Gallicchio has managed to score 5 goals against Gladiator in that time, but he will not even make the bench today thanks to a knock picked up in training. Franco Chiavarini returns to fitness and starts on the right.

Serie C Cup Group P
Ragusa v Gladiator

Ragusa lineup - Di Giovanni; Tamburro(c), Attewell, Alderuccio, Sabellini; Caramel, Cirillo, Pellegrino, Chiavarini; Fonseca, Baggio.

Despite us having the majority of the possession this was another very tight game. It took 70 minutes to find the breakthrough, with Daniel Fonseca curling in another free-kick to put us 1-0 in the lead, and it looked like surely that would be enough to take the win. Unfortunately as we pushed up for a second, Gladiator caught us on the break and Diego Russo finished a quick counterattack to steal a point for the visitors with 6 minutes to go.

Final score: Ragusa 1 - 1 Gladiator

retired_xs2khizar

Tuesday 31st August 2004

With two draws in our opening games we could really do with a win at Brindisi if we want to progress, in what on paper should be the most difficult game.

Serie C Cup Group P
Brindisi v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Cinalli; Tamburro(c), Attewell, Alderuccio, Sabellini; Caramel, Cirillo, Pellegrino, Chiavarini; Fonseca, Baggio.

We get off to a great start, Eddy Baggio striking twice inside the first 20 minutes to give us a 2-0 lead, and the game swung even more in our favour when Brindisi's Andrea D'Amble saw red for losing his rag and pushing Alderuccio. Then, in the dying minutes of the first half, out of nowhere Michele Menolascina fired a stunning shot into the top corner of our net and it was 2-1 at the break.

There's a popular opinion that a 10-man team can prove even more difficult an opposition than a full eleven, and Brindisi certainly set about to prove that. The home side worked tremendously hard in the second half, making it almost impossible for us to get any rhythm going never mind take advantage of the extra man. With just 8 minutes left on the clock the inevitable happened, a simple cross was swung into our box, and the next thing I knew the head of Brindisi's Antimo Lunco was on the end of it to level things at 2-2.

Final score: Brindisi 2 - 2 Ragusa


It is a disappointed group of players on the trip back from south-east Italy. As a club we don't put much emphasis on the Serie C Cup, but having been two goals and an extra man up we really should have been celebrating a win that would at least have given us a strong shot at qualifying from the group stage. As it was, Brindisi buckled down and fought out the draw that eliminates us from the competition with one more group match yet to play.

retired_xs2khizar

Wednesday 1st September 2004

I sat down to talk with chairman Giuseppe Antoci about the coming season. Giuseppe gave me the same objective that he had provided for the last two years, that he simply expects the club to avoid relegation back to the Serie D. It's nice not to have any extra pressure to achieve something above the club's status, but I had to admit that my personal intentions are a little higher than that. I really feel like this is the strongest team we have had since I arrived back in the summer of 2002 and anything less than 7th place at the absolute minimum would be a disappointment, and if you're talking about 7th then the next natural step is to have one eye on 5th place and the gate to the promotion playoffs.

According to a local paper this morning, the general concesus amongst the fans seems to be somewhere in between, expecting a comfortable mid-table finish.

retired_embartl

Comfortable mid table finish my arse

Just get back Stephen Cooke again Must say that as a fellow Villain I'm loving the updates

Anyway Utterly superb story and let's hope you can crack promotion this season

retired_xs2khizar

Cheers BoN I'd love to have Cooke back but I wouldn't fancy my chances. Besides, I'd quite like to see him making a go of his career at Villa Park, and Serie C football probably wouldn't help him too much!


Sunday 5th September 2004

A new season, a fresh start, and we are blessed with an almost full strength squad to choose from so the team out today should resemble our best eleven. Our opponents are Castelnuovo, who were relegated from Serie C2/B before bouncing straight back up the next season into Serie C2/C.

Serie C2/C
Castelnuovo v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Cinalli; Tamburro(c), Attewell, Alderuccio, Sabellini; Caramel, Cirillo, Pellegrino, Chiavarini; Fonseca, Baggio.

The first half does not progress very well, perhaps with the disappointment of Tuesday night still in the players' minds, and at half-time we find ourselves a goal down to Castelnuovo's Martelloni. 10 minutes into the second half the game threatens to change when Claudio Gallicchio gets one back, but immediately Castelnuovo come back with a response to regain their lead just two minutes later. We switch to a more attacking formation, adopting the old 4-3-1-2, but in the 70th minute Castelnuovo catch us on the break and Nicolas Cinalli is guilty of butterfingers as the home side get their third.

Final score: Castelnuovo 3 - 1 Ragusa


Not exactly what we were looking for. It was a poor performance, despite the efforts of Pellegrino and Cirillo in midfield who can come out of it with some kind of dignity, but the rest of the team were below standard and we never looked like winning the game.

The result did not go down too well with local Ragusa journalist Briono Di Nazzaro, who compared the mid-table expectations with 'his arse' and is one of a few ambitious supporters of the team who are clamouring for a promotion challenge. We will have to wait 10 days for the home fixture with Frosinone to have another go at setting that challenge off on the right foot.

retired_xs2khizar

Wednesday 8th September 2004

When a week of highly motivating training is needed, the last thing you want is to travel away for a meaningless cup game. Unfortunately we have no choice in the matter and set off for Palmese to get it out of the way. Cinalli finds himself dropped after Castelnuovo's weak third goal, Danilo Sabellini and Marco Cirillo are rested, and we will switch to 4-5-1 with the intention of gritting our teeth for a draw.

Serie C Cup Group P
Palmese v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Di Giovanni; Tamburro(c), Attewell, Alderuccio, Guastella; Fonseca, Bonaffini, Caramel, Pellegrino, Chiavarini; Baggio.

Predictably the first half passes fairly uneventfully, until Eddy Baggio pops up on the stroke of half-time to give us a 1-0 lead. After the break we almost double that but Baggio's second effort is whistled for offside, and then as the half progressed Franco Chiavarini sent a good chance over the bar.

Just as I start to think that this 4-5-1 formation might come in handy in the future, Palmese's Pappalardo appears to make it 1-1 and share the spoils.

Final score: Palmese 1 - 1 Ragusa


We end our participation in the Serie C Cup having drawn all four of our games, and finish 4th in the table. Gladiator shock everyone by winning the group for the second year in a row, and initial favourites Brindisi actually finish bottom. Lets hope that the league form will not prove to be the same as the cup form, but it rarely is.


Tuesday 14th September 2004

Deportivo have signed Claude Makelele from Real Madrid for £12.75 million. The 31 year old French international spent four successfull seasons in Madrid, often credited as the most important piece in a team full of brighter stars. In response to rumours that Real are lining up English midfielder Steven Gerrard as the direct replacement for Makelele, Liverpool have slapped a £45 million valuation on their player.

In training, Vladimiro Caramel manages to dislocate his shoulder and will be out for the next 2 months.

retired_xs2khizar

Wednesday 15th September 2004

2491 fans are present to welcome us back to the comfort of the Aldo Campo Selvaggio, following three successive difficult away fixtures. Frosinone are the team on the road this time, but come into this game having found two late goals to gain a decent 2-2 draw with Acireale in their opening match. We have won 3 of the last 4 meetings between the two clubs, with Frosinone's only victory over us coming during darker times last November.

Serie C2/C
Ragusa v Frosinone

Ragusa lineup - Di Giovanni; Tamburro(c), Attewell, Alderuccio, Sabellini; Bonaffini, Cirillo, Pellegrino, Chiavarini; Fonseca, Baggio.

10 minutes into the match we got the perfect start, when Franco Chiavarini's long ball was flicked on by Baggio for Fonseca to finish by sidefooting the ball just inside the near post. 15 minutes later it was 2-0, thanks to a move orchestrated by the same three players. This time Eddy Baggio started it by finding Chiavarini, who fed a chipped pass inside to Fonseca, and the elegant Uruguayan finished confidently past the Frosinone keeper.

Our pressure on Frosinone was relentless and we had complete domination of the first half, so it came as no surprise when we found a third goal before half-time. Eddy Baggio was sent tumbling in the area by a blatant push in the back, and Daniel Fonseca gratefully thrashed the penalty kick into the roof of the net for a first half hattrick.

As if we hadn't got the game in the bag already, it was well and truly finished off in the early stages of the second half. Fonseca was in vibrant mood and intercepted a loose pass in the Frosinone defence, left it for Eddy Baggio, and the forward struck a spectacular 20 yard shot that swerved and dipped into the roof of the net for 4-0.

Final score: Ragusa 4 - 0 Frosinone


It's good to be home again! Frosinone found us unstoppable today and the Ragusa fans enjoyed a decent performance by their team. Not to say that there isn't plenty of room for improvement, but you can hardly complain with four goals and a much needed win to kickstart our season.

retired_xs2khizar

DS: Thanks very much
Juventinogdt: Lets hope there's more where that came from In fact...


Sunday 19th September 2004

We are in northern Italy, not a million miles from Bologna, for an away trip to Sassuolo. Our hosts have started their season with two draws from their first two games, but last time we visited here they convincingly beat us 4-1. A study of the results table also reveals the disturbing fact that we have only won 1 away match in our last 22 attempts, a dismal run stretching back as far as March 2003! We will be fielding the same team that played midweek, but urge the midfield to play more defensively as we attempt to end that record.

Serie C2/C
Sassuolo v Ragusa

Ragusa lineup - Di Giovanni; Tamburro(c), Attewell, Alderuccio, Sabellini; Bonaffini, Cirillo, Pellegrino, Chiavarini; Fonseca, Baggio.

During the first half the home side manage to retain most of the possession, but it is us who are looking more dangerous in terms of creativity. Our two banks of four are stifling any chance Sassuolo have of making an incisive pass or finding an opening, and Fonseca and Baggio are revelling as our source of attack at the other end.

In the 23rd minute a fantastic save by Sassuolo keeper Paolo Ginestra is required to deny a curling effort from Fonseca, and it proved to be a warning of what was to come 10 minutes later. Eddy Baggio muscled his way up to flick the ball on with his head, and his strike partner applied the accurate finish to put us 1-0 up.

There is little to say at half-time, our gameplan and preparation was paying dividends, so I just encouraged the players to make sure they keep doing what they had been doing so far. The second half started off in a similar fashion, and on the hour a ball from Simone Tamburro allowed Daniel Fonseca to trick his marker and blast his second goal in off the far post.

Final score: Sassuolo 0 - 2 Ragusa


Eddy Baggio picked up the man of the match award for a hard working display, but Daniel Fonseca's double makes him the early leader in the Serie C2/C goalscoring charts with 5 in 3 matches. We go 4th, with Gladiator, Castelnuovo and Imolese the three teams above.