BOV Challenge League review: Valletta remain on top

The BOV Challenge League provided considerable thrills and spills over the weekend with a number of hard fought and close contests.

Swieqi United move temporarily up to joint-second, before being leapfrogged by Pietà Hotspurs FC on Sunday, after getting a 2-1 win over Mtarfa FC.

Swieqi made their intentions clear right from the start and after threatening with a Blessing Brafo effort from outside the penalty area, which was neutralised by goalkeeper Frederick Tabone on 14 minutes, they managed to take the lead two minutes later. There was a short clearance by a Mtarfa defender and Daniel Agius scored with a picture-perfect first-time volley from outside the area.

Augusto Rene’ Caseres missed a good opportunity for Swieqi on 19 minutes off a cross by Josiah Mallia and on the half-hour, Swieqi appealed for a penalty after Nicholas Pisani ended up on the ground after being challenged by the Mtarfa goalkeeper. However, the Swieqi player was cautioned for simulation.

However, Pisani was not to be denied on the 37-minute mark when he had a first attempt from inside the penalty area blocked by a defender, yet he hit home the rebound to put Swieqi two goals in front.

10 minutes into the second half, Mtarfa pulled on back when they were awarded a penalty after Mallia brough Eric Mensah down, and from the resulting penalty, Darren Falzon converted efficiently.

Swieqi however kept their opponents under control and in the dying minutes, Mtarfa ended the game with nine men. Ayrton Senna Azzopardi received a second yellow card after a reckless tackle on 82 minutes, and four minutes later, goalkeeper Tabone was sent off for headbutting an opponent. Ryan Tonna had to spend the final few minutes as a goalkeeper for Mtarfa.

Mgarr United 0-0 Fgura United

Fgura United recorded their third-consecutive goalless draw after they held Mgarr United on Saturday.

The first good chance of the game came in the 31st minute as Mgarr’s Samuel Boakye got into the penalty area and played a ball to Luka Mijic, who took a heavy touch but managed to find a shot, yet it goes straight into goalkeeper Yenz Cini’s chest.

Mgarr’s big chance came in the second minute of added time in the half, as Boakye was played down the line, before playing a ball into the penalty area, finding Jurgen Suda, who found the top corner but the shot was well saved by Cini.

There was another good chance for Mgarr after the break in the 58th minute, as a corner was whipped into the back post, finding Samuel Okoh who has a free head, yet it goes just over the bar. Another good opportunity came a few minutes later as Suda crossed the ball into the penalty area, and while it is missed by Fgura’s defenders, finding Mijic alone, he strikes a powerful shot that goes over the bar.

Fgura had a great opportunity to go in front late on, as in the 86th minute, Donys Aldair Quintero Maldonado put Andrew Xuereb through on goal down the left flank, and while he muscled his defender off the ball, he shot at the near post to try to catch the goalkeeper off guard, yet Jonathan Debono saved excellently.

The match finished in a draw, with both teams taking home a point.

Senglea Athletic FC 0-2 Tarxien Rainbows FC

Tarxien Rainbows FC ended their barren run of form with a crucial win against a struggling Senglea Athletic FC side.

Tarxien kicked off the match, and they had the first decent chance. In the 15th minute, Tarxien’s Gabriel Mensah won the ball in midfield and carried it to the edge of the penalty area before taking a shot, yet it is easily saved by Senglea goalkeeper Jonathan Grech.

Immediately after, Senglea had a good chance at the other end, as Benjamin Tweneboa was played down the line, before taking a quick shot that slammed the post. Another chance was presented to them a couple of minutes later as Jerry Ayi Alex was played in behind on the left by Terence Vella, and after taking a touch, his shot was saved with Tarxien goalkeeper Andreas Vella’s feet to keep it goalless.

The breakthrough came in the 19th minute for Tarxien, as a ball was whipped into the six-yard box and Mensah was left unmarked for a free header to score.

A few minutes later, Tarxien had a good counterattack that saw Jurgen Debono break free on the left, finding space for a shot, yet it is saved by the goalkeeper.

Right before half-time, Tarxien were awarded a penalty after James Brincat kept the ball in play right on the line, and then had his shirt pulled. Dacosta Boadu stepped up for the Rainbows, and he managed to narrowly get it into the net after the goalkeeper also got fingertips on it, pushing it on to the post, yet it still went in.

In the second half, Tarxien had some good opportunities up the pitch, yet Senglea did not back down as they were pushing more forward and taking more risks. Senglea had a good chance in the 81st minute as a ball was crossed from the right wing to find Alexander Cini’s head, yet the ball skims off the bar for a goal-kick.

Tarxien ended the game with 10 men as Manji Williams received a second yellow card for time wasting in the 87th minute.

Senglea came close again in the 89th minute as a ball was crossed from the right to find Vella alone at the back post, yet he headed the ball onto the bar. The game finished with Tarxien taking all three points as they returned to winning ways.

Gudja United 4-2 St Andrews FC

In the late Centenary Stadium match, Gudja United returned to winning ways after beating St Andrews 4-2. On the other hand, St. Andrews after holding the leaders Valletta last week, failed to capitalise on all their goalscoring opportunities and lie in the bottom six with only nine points.

It was a very entertaining match with many goalscoring opportunities from both sides.

St. Andrews started the better of the two sides, looking more dangerous and came close to opening the scoring after just 10 minutes when a shot from Ricardo Calixto Correa Duarte was well saved for a corner by Daniel Attard. Just before half time, Jose’ Borg’s side had another opportunity to break the deadlock with another shot from outside the penalty area by Correa Duarte, but his effort sailed just inches wide of the goal.

After the change of ends, Gudja started on the right foot and scored immediately after the restart with a towering header through their central defender Nicholas Gauci. St Andrews replied immediately and levelled matters two minutes after with a shot from outside the penalty area by Correa Duarte.

Incredibly, Gudja scored again after the restart with a solo effort from their Brazilian Willian Henrique Dos Santos finished with a low shot into the left corner. Therefore, there were three goals in the space of five minutes. In the 62nd minute, St Andrews restored equilibrium with a header from defender Owen Magro. Again, the Blues went ahead in the 67th minute with a tap-in by Diego Silva Caetano after a deflected header shot by Gauci.

Gudja captain Dale Mifsud sealed the win in the last minutes with a first timer from the edge of the area to collect all three points.

Valletta FC 0-0 Zebbug Rangers FC

Valletta FC had to settle for their second-consecutive goalless draw after being held by a spirited Zebbug Rangers FC side.

Valletta dominated for long stretches but were found wanting in front of goal. They had the best chances throughout the match with the Zebbug goalkeeper Jamie Azzopardi being the best player on the pitch.

Zebbug had some good moments in attack too, as the Valletta rearguard left much to be desired, especially in the opening quarter of the match.

Azzopardi’s string of saves started off with a Peter Xuereb effort from the edge of the area and on 33 minutes made another great save off a

Azzopardi’s string of saves started off a Peter Xuereb effort from the edge of the area and on 33 minutes made another great save off a Brandon Diego Paiber freekick. Just before the break, a Zak Barbara effort just missed the target.

Four minutes into the second half, an Andrei Ciolacu shot was again brilliantly saved by Azzopardi.

In the final 20 minutes of the game, Valletta were in full force with Zebbug shelled in their defensive zone. But Valletta were chaotic at times and missed some favourable opportunities in front of goal.

The Citizens were also unlucky in stoppage time when a scorcher from substitute James Scicluna smashed against the crossbar.

Lija Athletic FC 0-1 Santa Lucia FC

Lija Athletic FC and Santa Lucia FC were looking to end the year on a high with a victory, given that the former had a relatively underwhelming campaign, while the latter were getting up to speed with the intensity of the BOV Challenge League.

The Saints were in a far better position than Lija, aspiring for a Top Eight spot.

Santa Lucia could have gone ahead on 26 minutes when they were awarded a penalty after Jean Carlos Cloth Goncalves was fouled in the box. However, Goncalves had his attempt brilliantly saved by Lija goalkeeper Luke Bonnici to keep the score goalless.

Lija came close to breaking the deadlock early in the second half when a free-kick by Ronald Makalysten Melo Costa found Renold Winchester, yet his effort was blocked well by Christopher Farrugia. Lija had another opportunity in the 65th minute, when a shot by Winchester was saved by Farrugia.

Santa Lucia took the lead 10 minutes from time, as a fine effort from Goncalves sailed into the net, to atone for his previous penalty miss.

Santa Lucia to continue their push for the top half of the table, making it five wins on the spin.

Sirens FC 2-2 Zurrieq FC

The top-half clash between Sirens FC and Zurrieq FC finished in a draw, with the teams splitting the points between them, doing neither side any favours in the race for the title.

The first chance of the match came in the fourth minute through Zurrieq’s Shawn Darmanin, yet his shot flew high over the bar.

Zurrieq went in front in the 20th minute courtesy of Darren Borg, whose powerful header beat goalkeeper Andrea Cassar. On the half-hour mark, a low shot from Anderson De Barros went millimetres wide of the right post, keeping the scoreline 1-0.

However, it did not last very long, as Sirens got back on level terms after a cross by Hafiz Mohammed Akadom reached Trezeguet Zammit, who made no mistake from close range. Just three minutes later, a picture-perfect free-kick from Thiago Nonato Peixoto beat Jurgen Borg to fly into the top left corner and send Sirens into the lead for the first time in the match.

Five minutes following the restart, Peixoto had another opportunity, as his header hit the crossbar, coming very close to doubling Sirens’ advantage.

Despite their resurgence, Sirens suffered a huge setback moments after. Zurrieq got a goal back in the 57th minute after Jerry Seremba Mwenda stole the ball in the attacking half, passing it to Sulahmana Mamadu Bah, who only had to pass the ball into the empty net.

It was also a milestone game for Zurrieq’s Steven Bezzina, who came on as a substitute in the 59th minute to make his 500th career appearance.

In the 70th minute, a good run by Peixoto was excellently saved by Borg. Seven minutes later, Darmanin hit a great volley that sailed just wide of the post.

A minute into stoppage time, Sirens’ Carlos Da Silva Conceicao Filho was very close to getting his side back into the lead, yet his shot went just wide, with the game ending in a 2-2 draw.

Pietà Hotspurs FC 1-0 Marsa FC

Pietà Hotspurs FC were the main beneficiaries of the matchday as they got a crucial win against Marsa FC to jump from eighth in the table to second, just four points behind league leaders Valletta.

Marsa had the first opportunity of the game however, as four minutes into the first half, a backpass to Pietà’s goalkeeper was intercepted by Renan Sgaria Faria, yet his shot just about missed the goal.

On the eight-minute mark, Pietà went on a counterattack, pushing three forwards against two defenders, as a through pass by William Pinheiro Fernandes found Malta U19 international Thomas Melillo, yet his shot was well saved by the stretching Ryan Caruana who turned it away for a corner.

A few minutes later, Kaydon Catania sent a through ball to Ross McParland, and while his shot was brilliantly saved by the Marsa goalkeeper, the assistant referee eventually raised his flag for offside.

27 minutes into the half, a through ball from Jeremy Micallef to Pinheiro led to the Pietà man being free, yet his low shot was once again saved by Caruana, this time with his feet. The score at half-time remained goalless.

The breakthrough eventually came in the 48th minute, as a cross by Pinheiro was met by McParland, who made no mistake from close range to open the scoring for Pietà.

The match then turned into one being mostly battled in midfield. However, Marsa would have some opportunities to equalise right at the death. In the 84th minute, they were awarded a free-kick just outside of the penalty area in a central position. The free-kick was taken by Lydon Micallef, who had come on a few minutes earlier, yet his shot went high, just above the bar.

Deep into stoppage time, Marsa crossed the ball into the penalty area, and while Shaun Bugeja made contact, his header just about missed the post. Pietà secured the win with the clean sheet, making sure they ended the year in style.

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