Raffaele De Vita’s home return put on ice by West Lothian white-out

Dec 2 2010 by Eric MacKinnon, West Lothian Courier

Raffaele De Vita

RAFFAELE DE VITA doesn’t get the chance to head home to Italy often so when he was handed a couple of days off he was naturally thrilled.
But the Livingston striker’s delight quickly turned to agony when the wintry weather put his plans to visit his family on ice.
De Vita spent three frustrating hours at Edinburgh Airport on Monday only to see his flight cancelled because of the snow — something which his home city of Rome hasn’t seen in 35 years.
He said: “I was supposed to go back to Italy on Monday as I had a couple of days off but after waiting at Edinburgh Airport for three hours my flight was cancelled.
“It was a nightmare for me as I don’t get the chance to go home too often to spend time with my family.
“There hasn’t been any snow in Rome for 35-years so this weather isn’t something I’m really used to.
“I experienced a little in Blackburn when I was there but nothing compared to this — I’ve never seen anything like this in my life.
“Since moving to Livingston I also haven’t had Christmas off which is a new thing for me too.
“I was in the reserves when I was with Blackburn Rovers so I was given a couple of weeks off every Christmas and could go home to spend it with my family.
“So being away from them at this time of year is the hardest thing for me.
“My Mum is coming here on Friday for a few days and my girlfriend and her family are all coming to Scotland for Christmas which will be great.”
Despite Mother Nature’s latest icy tantrum De Vita doesn’t miss football in his home country and although his Livingston contract is set to expire at the end of the season he has no plans to head home any time soon.
He told the Courier: “I love football here in Scotland and I don’t think it is anywhere near as good back in Italy in terms of honesty among the people running it.
“There are a lot of people in the game over there who are causing problems.
“I have a friend who plays football in Italy who has not been paid for three months and some of them are going on strike as they are struggling to get food on their table.
“So I’m in no hurry to move back to Italy and I’m very happy at Livingston.
“My contract is up in the summer and I don’t know what is going to happen but I think the club will need to know if we are going to be playing in the First Division or not.
“It is too early for me to think about contracts as there other things happening first so all I want to do is concentrate on my own game and try and help the team get as many points as possible.”
At present, Livingston are leading the way at the top of the Second Division pile and De Vita admits he has his sights firmly set on a return to the First Division where he has unfinished business.
He added: “I came to Livingston to play in the First Division but it was something I never managed to do because I was injured straight away so it is something I want another shot at.
“I’m happy with our league position but, as the gaffer has said, we haven’t been playing as well as we can do so we’d like to improve that.
“There is plenty competition for places which is also good and with guys like Robbie Winters and Iain Russell challenging for a place upfront it definitely keeps me on my toes.
“I know that when I play I have to play well.”