League: Cailungo and Juvenes-Dogana, one must miss out

Two midweek matchdays will close out the regular league season, both to be played exceptionally on Wednesday and Thursday evenings due to the approaching Easter weekend. Tomorrow night’s two early fixtures promise to deliver key outcomes in the battles for top spot and for twelfth place. Tre Penne and La Fiorita will play on the same matchday for the last time this season, as the Città club will have a bye on Matchday 30. With a two-point lead over their rivals from Montegiardino, Ceci’s men can only be sure of finishing top if they beat Faetano tomorrow (Acquaviva, 21:15) and then see La Fiorita fail to do likewise on Thursday against Pennarossa or next week against Fiorentino. A tie on points cannot be ruled out if Faetano avoid defeat tomorrow: in that case La Fiorita, thanks to the head-to-head record in their favour, would finish the regular season in first place. The only absentee through suspension is Faetano coach Danilo Girolomoni, who will miss the last two matchdays as well as two fixtures in the Preliminary Round. The Gialloblù are mathematically out of the race for fourth place, as Tre Fiori – who they can still theoretically catch – have already beaten them twice this season. In Montecchio, also tomorrow evening, Juvenes-Dogana and Cailungo face off to decide who will be the last contender for twelfth place – currently occupied by Murata. Separated by just a single point in the table, a draw would eliminate both: this is because Murata hold the head-to-head advantage over Cailungo, the only side who could still draw level with them should the chasing pack finish tied. Juvenes-Dogana, who in any case must win their next two games to have any chance, would qualify for the Preliminary Round if, at the same time, Murata fail to beat Virtus on the final matchday of the league. Former Juvenes-Dogana player Filippo Quaranta, now on the other side, will be unavailable through suspension. Further back sit San Giovanni, out of reach for Juvenes-Dogana – if only because of the head-to-head record in favour of Tognacci’s side. Their opponents are the unpredictable Fiorentino, boasting the fifth-best attack in the league. Two-thirds of Malandri’s attacking output comes from the Moroccan duo of Ben Kacem and Abouzziane: the Rossoblù are in fact the only club with two players already into double figures in the league. Looking ahead to the final matchday against La Fiorita, Malandri will also have to manage the disciplinary tightrope of Castellazzi and Baizan – with the clear aim of not losing them for the decisive clashes in the Preliminary Round. The same applies to Montebelli of San Giovanni, given that the Rossoneri cannot yet afford to ease off the accelerator. La Fiorita v Pennarossa, scheduled for Thursday in Dogana (21:15), will be a last chance for Andy Selva’s men – with their coach a major former Pennarossa figure – to close in on or overtake Tre Fiori in fourth place. Two points separate them, exactly the margin the Chiesanuova side have made up over the last five matchdays. Michelotti and Baldani will both definitely miss out for Pennarossa after picking up one booking too many in the recent win over Libertas. Borgagni too will have to cope without two players, with Lentini and De Falco unavailable. Tre Fiori must seize their chance to virtually secure a play-off spot in the head-to-head clash with Virtus, who are three points ahead. The Neroverdi, without former Tre Fiori man Apezteguia and Magri (both suspended), could even settle for a draw to reach the 50-point mark and aim to stay out of Murata’s reach on the final matchday. That would mean celebrating third place and, above all, direct qualification for the play-offs. The two teams are in completely contrasting form, with Virtus having taken 7 points more than Tre Fiori in the last three rounds, overtaking them and then consolidating the gap. Now destined for the Preliminary Round, Libertas and Domagnano will meet in an attempt to improve their positions and gain an advantage when the post-season pairings are drawn. On the Granata side, Cuomo is suspended, while Brighi and Angelini are out for Domagnano. For the latter, the only realistic target at this point is Fiorentino’s ninth place, while the Borgo Maggiore club can still hope to leapfrog Faetano into sixth, while also watching out for Folgore, just one point behind. The defending champions face a derby with Cosmos, who are still without a win this season. Gori’s Gialloverdi have two games left to remove the zero from the “wins” column and will try to stem a run of defeats that has reached five in a row and twenty-one in total in the league. For their part, Folgore can and must win their last two regular-season fixtures if they are to overtake Libertas (whom they face on the final day) and Faetano, who will close against Cailungo but are further away than the Borgo Maggiore side. Garcia will miss the derby through suspension. Here is the schedule for Matchday 29 of the league:

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