By Stuart Teather
ST ALBANS Soccer Club is taking its fight with Football Federation Victoria (FFV) to the next level, with a date set for a tribunal hearing at Football Federation Australia (FFA).
In June, St Albans was suspended from the State League One competition for the remainder of the season over a melee after a match with Frankston Pines, but a subsequent appeal to the FFV tribunal saw the penalty reduced to a loss of nine premiership points and a $7000 fine.
The loss of premiership points all but ended St Albans’ hopes of promotion to the Victorian Premier League next year, and the club decided to appeal to the FFA.
The FFA will hear St Albans’ case on 14 August, with the club arguing that the FFV had double standards when handing out the punishments.
St Albans president Vlado Brekalo said his club wanted equality across the competition after Frankston, the other club involved in the melee, received a $5000 fine and did not lose any premiership points.
“I hope justice prevails,” he said. “I hope they come to the right decision because all this has blown out of proportion. There is no base for it, it is good for Football Federation Australia to get rid of double standards. If they’ve got a standard it is fine, the standard has got to be for all clubs, and with everyone supporting it, no problem.”
However, even if the FFA returns the club’s nine premiership points it will still struggle for promotion after a 0-0 draw with Bulleen on Sunday.
The Saints needed to win against Bulleen to stay in touch with the top two teams, Northcote City and Bentleigh, but could not score and as a result fell further behind the promotion candidates. If the club has its nine points reinstated it will still be five points, or nearly two games, behind second-placed Bentleigh with five rounds remaining.
