By CAM LUCADOU-WELLS
DANDENONG Thunder have indicated they will not stand for the “over-the-top” two-year ban on under 13s boys team manager Aldrin De Zilva.
Last week club spokesman Sezar Jakupi said the Thunder was “considering its options” including an appeal to Football Federation Australia against what he termed as a “show trial” against Mr De Zilva.
“Our legal opinion was the tribunal chair’s mind was already made up. The hearing was going to be nothing more than a show trial.
“First we don’t even believe anything that was alleged had transpired.
“Even if it did, they have gone totally over the top in their approach.”
A Football Federation Victoria tribunal hearing last month unanimously found Mr De Zilva guilty of directing “offensive, insulting and/or abusive language and/or behaviour” towards 17-year-old female referee Taylor Roberson after an under-13s boys match between the Thunder and Goulburn Valley Suns.
Mr De Zilva did not front the hearing, in which none of the allegations were publicly disclosed. No witnesses gave evidence, and there was no cross-examination.
The Journal believes Ms Roberson reported Mr De Zilva had described her as pathetic and as having brought the game into disrepute.
Her allegations are believed to be substantively backed by statements from a referee mentor and another referee in the room during the incident.
Mr De Zilva, who still refutes the allegation, told the Journal last week he didn’t front the hearing because he “could not be assured of an independent and fair trial”.
The taxation lawyer resigned as an FFV director soon after the misconduct charges were laid, claiming he had been “personally targeted” since raising concerns about FFV’s financial affairs last year.
“I totally refute these claims and view them as a divergence from the financial issues confronting the FFV.”
He listed several concerns about the case’s conduct including the FFV’s choice of tribunal chairman, the delay in laying the charges and the belated opening-up of the hearing to the media.
FFV referee standing committee chairman Nick Karlich resigned last week, citing the FFV’s “questionable practices” in the case.
“The claims against Mr De Zilva are in my mind unfounded,” he said.
“Regular FFV protocols and procedures were not followed. In my view … the reports on Mr De Zilva were written by or, at a minimum were tampered with by somebody else and therefore the reports and evidence by the referees should not have been relied upon by the tribunal.”
FFV president Nick Monteleone did not return the Journal’s calls before deadline.
