RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil -- Luis Suarez told FIFAs disciplinary panel that he did not deliberately bite Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup. "In no way it happened how you have described, as a bite or intent to bite," the Uruguay striker wrote in Spanish in a letter dated June 25. The players defence is in paragraph 6 of FIFAs disciplinary committee ruling, which has been seen by The Associated Press. "After the impact ... I lost my balance, making my body unstable and falling on top of my opponent," Suarez wrote in his submission to the panel which met Wednesday, one day after Uruguay beat Italy 1-0 in a decisive group-stage match. "At that moment I hit my face against the player leaving a small bruise on my cheek and a strong pain in my teeth," Suarez said. However, the seven-man panel which met on Wednesday evening dismissed the argument. The bite was "deliberate, intentional and without provocation," the ruling stated in paragraph No. 26 of the panels conclusions. Suarez was banned for nine Uruguay matches and four months from all football. He was also fined 100,000 Swiss francs ($112,000). The panel, chaired by former Switzerland international Claudio Sulser, included members from the Cook Islands, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Panama, South Africa and Singapore. The ruling confirmed that referee Marco Rodriguez of Mexico acknowledged in his match report that he missed Suarezs bite. So did his two assistants and the fourth official. "I havent seen the incident because the ball was in another sector of the pitch," Rodriguez writes in paragraph No. 4 of witness submissions in the 11-page document. TORONTO - Inconsistency ended Randy Carlyles tenure as coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, according to general manager Dave Nonis. Carlyle was fired Tuesday after the Maple Leafs lost five of seven games on their last road trip. The Leafs have a 21-16-3 record this season and currently hold one of the two wild-card spots in the Eastern Conference. I think wed all agree weve had some good periods, good stretches, but I dont think I can stand here in front of you and say that weve been consistent, Nonis said at a news conference. We just felt at this point this was the right time to make the change and move ahead and try to get this team back playing like we have played for periods this season. Assistants Peter Horachek and Steve Spott will handle coaching duties for Wednesday nights home game against the Washington Capitals. Horachek ran the first practice of the post-Carlyle era. Nonis did not indicate if or when the Leafs might hire a full-time head coach. According to TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger, a replacement process and candidates review will begin immediately, however, no timeline has been established for a new hire. Dreger adds that all Leaf players are now potential trade targets as the team moves forward. Its possible Horachek and/or Spott could handle the job for the rest of the season, though there are several external candidates available. They include Pete DeBoer, who was recently fired as coach of the New Jersey Devils. TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie reports that the most likely scenario is Horachek becoming the interim head coach, as there will likely be many big name coaching candidates available this summer. Carlyle, who was informed of managements decision Monday night, longed for answers back to last season, when the Leafs lost eight straight in regulation and 12 of their final 14 games to fall out of playoff contention. When Brendan Shanahan took over as president, he and Nonis reviewed aspects of the organization and opted to fire Carlyles assistants, Dave Farrish, Scott Gordon and Greg Cronin, and give him a two-year contract extension. Even with hindsight, Nonis said that was the right decision. Randy deserved to come back, Nonis said. I think hes an excellent coach. You dont coach over 700 games withhout being good at it.dddddddddddd Good coaches get let go and unfortunately today we had to do that and it has nothing to do with the summer or whether or not he was the right guy. He was the right guy to bring back and unfortunately today this was the right decision for our team. The Leafs were blown out by the Buffalo Sabres and Nashville Predators in consecutive losses in November, bringing up concerns that Carlyles job may be in danger. When asked if players were trying to get their coach fired, defenceman Cody Franson answered no and added an expletive. Following those losses and in the aftermath of a controversy about not saluting fans at Air Canada Centre following a win, the Leafs went 9-1-1 to rocket into a playoff spot. Recently, some old problems began to creep up, especially on this 2-5 road trip. Its been too much of a roller-coaster, Nonis said. Its not that (players are) not capable because they are, its not that they havent done it because they have. Thats probably the biggest reason, or one of the biggest reasons, for the change today. Carlyle went 91-78-19 in 188 games as Leafs coach over parts of four seasons. The native of Sudbury, Ont., replaced Ron Wilson with 18 games left in the 2011-12 season. Wilson was fired following the infamous 18-wheeler going right off a cliff losing streak named for then-GM Brian Burkes quote. Carlyle and the Leafs made the playoffs in the lockout-shortened 2013 season before falling behind three games to one in the first round against Boston. They came back to force a Game 7 and led 4-1 with 11 minutes left before losing in overtime. In 2013-14, the Leafs were easily in a playoff spot when goaltender Jonathan Bernier suffered an injury. They lost eight in a row in regulation and dropped 12 of their final 14 games. Carlyles job appeared in jeopardy then, but Shanahan decided he wanted some time to evaluate the team. The final decision came with his firing, the fourth NHL coach this season to get the axe. Paul MacLean of the Ottawa Senators was first, then Dallas Eakins of the Edmonton Oilers, followed by DeBoer. Carlyle won the Stanley Cup as coach of the Anaheim Ducks in 2007. Hes a good man, a good coach and hell be back in this game quickly, Nonis said. ' ' '