Ragu

The game of football was introduced to Italy by the English in the 1890s and the first club to form was in Genoa where the cricket and athletic clubs joined in 1897 to create a winter sports club.

The Italian Federation (FIGC) joined FIFA in 1905. There was a tier system established, with over 3,000 teams in a pyramid systems of divisions. (San Marino teams were also members of FIGC)

By 1978, all teams in the Federation were professional, with the three top divisions of Serie A, B and C. Serie D had nine regional divisions, further broken down into five - Excellenza, Promozione, Prima, Seconda and Terza.

Ragusa in Sicily boasts ASD Pro Ragusa in the Promozione Division, but has had many ups and downs and been in and out of business. They play at the Stadium ENAL. Ragusa is one of many towns in south-east Sicily that feature in the Italian detective series, Inspector Montalbano - that may have been more of a pull for the female members of our holiday party. A further attraction was a reasonable value lunch, laughingly called Express, at the Ristorante Duomo. Amusing menu items included Truffle Ice Cream Sandwich, and a wine, Zibbibbo, which smelt of the farmyard, yet was surprisingly refreshing once you got past the nose.

What chance, say you, of us following ASD Ragusa away to Porto Palo (south east tip of Sicily) for this weekend's fixture ? We need to find some more Montalbano settings to get away with it....