Derry wait on league reaction

National League News: Derry City officials will wait until after tomorrow's Eircom National League board of control meeting, postponed from this afternoon, before deciding how they will react to Wednesday's decision by an FAI appeals board to order that Bohemians' controversial win over Shelbourne in August be replayed.

The title contenders issued a statement yesterday expressing their "great dismay" over the appeal outcome and stating that their board would "protect, robustly and resolutely, the interests of our club".

There appears to be some confidence within the club that the decision can be challenged, while a source dismissed as ill-conceived the idea that the FAI could order a replay in the interests of "fair play" when the rules don't specifically allow for such a move and the financial stakes are so great.

The club are unlikely to make a move before tomorrow's meeting of the league which is, technically at least, the party in dispute with Shelbourne over the game.

If the league decide to request arbitration on the dispute, then City will almost certainly sit the process out before deciding how to act.

If the league decide instead to accept the decision, then City would, most likely, request arbitration themselves.

The obvious fear at this stage is that the whole process will mean that the matter of who wins the league will not be decided by November 17th, when the campaign is scheduled to finish.

Another possibility is that all of the games will be played but that one or other of the clubs will then take an action for damages over what they perceive to have been administrative errors that cost them the title.

"Of course we're concerned about the situation," admitted league chairman Paddy McCaul yesterday, "and we're anxious to see some clarity brought to things. But at the moment I'm still hopeful that everything can be resolved within the required time frame."