After hearing the case, FAI officials found Landen guilty of “gross misconduct” and suspended the three players who were given red cards. The association also fined the club €500 and warned them as to their future conduct. But crucially, the FAI also ruled Landen was not guilty of the after-match assault in the locker rooms.
“There was no evidence brought forward by D-Pils that this incident took place,” an FAI source said.
The disciplinary committee had earlier sent a request to Baranovsky to attend the hearing, but he failed to appear as he was working that day, he explained. It is understood that Landen collected favorable references from other LFL clubs and brought evidence to the hearing that the D-Pils captain did not pursue the case with gardaí.
Now Landen United is fully reinstated in the league and are catching up on the games they missed while the case was under investigation. The players accused by D-Pils are back in action too, having been suspended for three games.
Landen’s manager Paul Corcoran said: “That was the right decision. The league didn’t have the right to expel us and they were proved wrong. Landen didn’t have to do anything with that incident.”
D-Pils said they were deeply upset by the FAI’s decision and they are now looking to play in a different league.
Asked why he did not pursue the case in the disciplinary committee, Baranovsky said: “Football is a hobby for us. We don’t have anyone to represent us and we’re all working. I thought the evidence we presented before the league was enough.”
He added that neither he nor his team-mates wanted to expose themselves to further attacks. “This is not football,” he said.
The LFA’s Peter Doyle said: “Football legislation is not an easy one. It’s like a court. A lot depends on the jury and on what sort of impression you make.”
Meanwhile, Soviet Union FC
– another LFL club composed mostly of Eastern European immigrants – have said they were also “upset” about the FAI’s ruling and were considering following D-Pils in quitting the league.
“It’s under question,” said the club’s manager Max Unilij.
Landen United is one of the longest-standing clubs in the LFL, established in 1961. It has been credited for its work with disadvantaged youth in the Ballyfermot area and it is traditionally one of the strongest teams in the league.
The west Dublin club received national coverage in March 2007 when player Robbie O’Hanlon was shot dead on a pitch in Clondalkin. It was suspected to be a revenge attack for another murder, in which O’Hanlon was alleged to have been an accomplice.
