Danielle Lerner

@Danielle_Lerner

Photos of an alleged biting incident that sparked controversy between Louisville City FC and FC Cincinnati have been shared with the United Soccer League for review, according to a Louisville City spokesman.

In a post-match interview first reported by the Courier-Journal, Louisville City coach James O'Connor accused FC Cincinnati striker Djiby Fall of biting Louisville City midfielder Niall McCabe on the face during Saturday's 1-1 draw at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati.

Fall and McCabe confronted each other after Fall was shown a straight red card in the match's 87th minute. Photos taken by Louisville City team photographer EM Dash Photography show the two players so close they are touching chests. In one photo, Fall has his mouth pressed against the right side of McCabe's face. Another photo shows McCabe with what appears to be a mark on his right cheek about an inch below his ear.

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Louisville City has provided the photos to the USL, team spokesman Jonathan Lintner said Monday.

"The league's operations staff are in the process of reviewing the incident, we anticipate a decision will be made this week," USL spokesman Nicholas Murray said in an email Monday.

O'Connor said after the match that the referee had spoken with Louisville City assistant coach Daniel Byrd about the incident and would include it in his match report.

"After the red card there's obviously an incident where (Fall) goes and bites Niall McCabe," O'Connor said. "The referee's acknowledged it. This is after the red card. So the league has an onus now to deal very strictly with that. ... There's absolutely no place whatsoever for that type of behavior in the game."

FC Cincinnati President and General Manager Jeff Berding defended Fall and disputed O'Connor's claim in a statement to the Enquirer on Sunday, saying, "We have seen no evidence to substantiate the allegations made by Louisville City Head Coach James O'Connor and it is our belief his post-match comments are not true."

Louisville City stood behind O'Connor in a statement of its own Sunday, saying, “After last night’s game, the referee indicated to Louisville City FC assistant coach Daniel Byrd that he witnessed the incident where Djiby Fall contacted Niall McCabe and would include that in his report. The USL is now reviewing the matter, and we will wait for league officials to come to a proper resolution."

Fall will be suspended for one game for the red card and could potentially face additional discipline stemming from the alleged bite.

Reporter Danielle Lerner can be reached at dlerner@courier-journal.com or 502-582-4042.