Hapoel Afula has formally asked the Israel Football Association's Supreme Tribunal to throw out a petition filed by MS Ashdod that sought to delay Tuesday's Liga Leumit season opener between the two clubs, arguing the challenge is both procedurally defective and timed to force a rushed decision.
Ashdod's petition, lodged with the federation's top judicial body, asked judges to either dismiss the matter or issue an interim order postponing the August 18 kickoff — not because of anything involving Afula, but because of a separate disciplinary case against Ironi Tiberias.
Tiberias was formally indicted by the Israel Football Association last month over an alleged saline-infusion scandal, with charges that include aiding the use of banned substances in aggravated circumstances, fraud, coordinated testimony and violations of federation regulations and prior judicial rulings. Prosecutors have signalled they may seek penalties ranging from a heavy points deduction to relegation.
Ashdod's argument, according to the petition, is that letting the opening round proceed now risks creating "irreversible facts" on the league table — results banked before the Tiberias case is resolved that could later complicate any remedy the tribunal orders. The club first raised the issue with the league committee's chair on August 13, before escalating to a formal petition.
Afula's response, filed to the tribunal, attacks the petition on several fronts at once. Its lawyers say the filing lacks a required affidavit — a fundamental defect for an administrative proceeding of this kind — and that Ashdod never exhausted the normal channels through league management before running straight to the Supreme Tribunal.
There is also a timing complaint. Ashdod's petition landed on Friday, August 14, hours before Shabbat, despite the underlying facts having been known to the club well before that. Afula's lawyers characterised the move as a deliberate choice to sit on the issue and then spring it at the last possible moment, leaving barely any room for a considered response.
On the merits, Afula stresses it has no stake whatsoever in the federation's case against Tiberias and should not be made to absorb the practical fallout of a dispute it isn't party to. Postponing the opener, the club argues, would leave it at a competitive and organizational disadvantage against sides that complete their round on schedule.
Afula is asking the tribunal to dismiss Ashdod's petition outright, allow Tuesday's match to go ahead as planned, and order Ashdod to cover its legal costs.
The Supreme Tribunal had not issued a ruling as of Monday. Its decision will determine whether the Liga Leumit's opening round kicks off on schedule or whether the Tiberias case casts a shadow over fixtures beyond the club directly involved.
