BKN301 Championship: final run-in begins, spotlight on Cosmos-Virtus

With the international break now over, the BKN301 San Marino Championship resumes with news we would never wish to report. Last night Pennarossa head coach Massimo "Bobo" Gori suddenly passed away. The 61-year-old coach began working on the Titan with Tre Fiori in 2017 and later went on to take charge of Murata, Faetano and Cosmos. On the pitch, the league is gearing up for a decisive and action-packed month of April. Five matchdays are scheduled, which will bring the season to a close and crown the champions of the Titan. The title race and the battles behind remain very much alive. Starting, of course, from the top, with the duel between Cosmos – currently leading the table – and Tre Penne, just one point behind. The 26th matchday kicks off on Saturday 1 April, with the Yellow-Greens and the White-and-Blues both playing at the same time, before going head-to-head in a direct clash on the following matchday (to be played on Tuesday evening in Montecchio in a midweek round). On paper, the task is trickier for Nicola Berardi’s men, who face Virtus in Montecchio in a must-watch top-of-the-table encounter. Cosmos come into it in great shape, buoyed not only by top spot but also by the league’s best attack (with leading scorer Prandelli) and best defence. Bizzotto’s Black-and-Greens are also in good form (two straight wins with nine goals scored) and sit solidly in fifth place. The Acquaviva side also boast excellent head-to-head results against Cosmos this season: in the reverse fixture they held Berardi’s juggernaut to a 0-0 draw, while in the BKN301 Coppa Titano they knocked the Yellow-Greens out in the Round of 16 (a first-leg win for Virtus and a draw in the second leg), going on to reach the final against Tre Penne (final date still to be confirmed). Ceci’s side, meanwhile, will be in action in Domagnano against San Giovanni. The White-and-Blues are hoping for a slip from Cosmos to try to move into first place, but the Red-and-Blacks are still in the hunt for the play-offs and determined to make life difficult for the team from Città. Tognacci and his men currently occupy eleventh place – the last spot granting access to the post-season – in an extremely tight bottom half of the table (from Domagnano in eighth on 23 points down to Fiorentino in fourteenth on 20, everyone is still in the mix). Saturday’s early kick-offs also feature Pennarossa and Juvenes-Dogana, effectively a direct clash in the play-off zone. The Biancorossi, shaken by coach Gori’s sudden passing, are level on points with San Giovanni and have not won in two rounds; Amati’s side – one point ahead of Pennarossa – are in good shape, having picked up seven points from their last three outings. Saturday’s programme is rounded off by the meeting between Domagnano and Libertas. The Giallorossi – on a three-game losing streak – are chasing points to relaunch themselves and hold on to eighth place; the Granata, for their part, sit in that comfortable no-man’s-land of sixth place and are now virtually assured of a play-off berth, although they have not won since 8 March. Sunday’s schedule closes the round with three late fixtures. At the Crescentini in Fiorentino there will be a derby between Andy Selva’s Giallorossi and Malandri’s Rossoblu. Tre Fiori come into it on the back of two consecutive wins and currently share third place with La Fiorita. The summit is six points away for the Gialloblu, but their rest day on the next matchday will practically rule them out of the title race (barring shocks). Fiorentino are also chasing valuable points in the battle for the play-offs: they are second from bottom in the group but only two points off the all-important 11th place. The Rossoblu, however, have managed just one point from their last five outings. A similar situation to Tre Fiori applies to La Fiorita, who on Sunday will face Faetano. Manfredini’s Gialloblu – level on points with Selva’s side – will sit out the final matchday and therefore need to put as many points as possible in the bank now and hope for a few stumbles at the top. Their recent form is positive, with a four-game unbeaten run. It is also a key game for Faetano: Girolomoni’s men have picked up points in recent matches and are within touching distance of the play-off zone. Another crucial clash in the race for the play-offs is Murata vs Cailungo. Angelini’s Bianconeri – just two points behind San Giovanni – have been inconsistent, with two wins and three defeats in their last five. Protti’s Rossoblu – bottom on 15 points – are effectively facing a last call to try to close the gap on the play-off contenders. Finally, it is worth noting the presence of international referees for two fixtures this weekend. As part of the usual referee exchange between San Marino and other European associations, a team of four officials from Malta will be in charge, taking centre stage in Cosmos-Virtus (referee Ezekiel Barbara) and Tre Fiori-Fiorentino (referee Daniel Casha). The assistant referees for both matches will be Shaun Calleja and Mark Ciantar. Here is the programme for the 26th matchday of the BKN301 San Marino Championship, with all matches broadcast live and completely free of charge on Titani.tv:

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