Valletta 2-0 Mgarr United
The Lilywhites keep marching on in the BOV Challenge League with another victory, this time against an in-form Mgarr United team whom they beat 2-0 on Saturday afternoon at the Centenary Stadium. It was the seventh league win for the team of coach Thane Micallef this campaign, which means the capital team fully performs to expectation. The Greens could not take advantage of a first half red card for current NCL Top Scorer Andrei Ciolacu and ended up with ten themselves in the final minutes of the game.
It was team captain Brandon Paiber himself who put the Citizens ahead after just three minutes with an excellent finish. Valletta kept on pushing with Enoch Mushagalusa close to doubling with an attempt from the edge of the box which sailed inches high of the crossbar. Mgarr had a good period around 20 minutes when an attempt was cleared from the goal-line while Lilywhites goalkeeper Timothy Aquilina did well to block a Samuel Boakye attempt a minute later. Just past the half hour mark, Valletta doubled their lead courtesy of defender Zachary Cassar, whose low shot from the outside of the box found the net via the post. On 38 minutes, Ciolacu got dismissed after some remarks towards the referee, receiving two yellows in quick succession.
The second half was less eventful than the first and never reached the heights of the first one. Halfway through, Boakye could have blown new life in the game with a good opportunity but aimed his attempt too high. Not much later on the other side, young Jake Azzopardi could have added a third for Valletta with an attempt from an ideal angle but Mgarr goalkeeper Jonathan Debono was in the right place to save. Mgarr substitute Matthew Attard received his marching orders on 86 minutes, receiving two cautions in the space of six minutes. It was the very first official senior competitive encounter between these two clubs in history.
Marsa 1-0 Zurrieq
On Sunday night, the second spot in the standings was at stake, with Marsa coming out as worthy winners against a depleted Zurrieq side. In fact, both teams had an important player missing due to suspension, for Marsa it was captain and midfield maestro Dylan Agius while Zurrieq striker Mamadu Bah was watching from the stands for the same reason. Instead of Bah, 19-year-old Canadian youths player Jerry Nwenda played up front, his debut in Maltese senior football.
Marsa took an early 14th minute lead when Lydon Micallef was sent through, serving Robinho who tapped in, a goal which proved to be the winner. Zurrieq clearly found the going tough initially but settled down nicely toward the end of the half, without creating much danger in the Marsa box however. In fact, clear goalscoring opportunities were scarce throughout the game, much to the credit of both defences.
The team of Saviour Debono-Grech kept the initiative after the break with Zurrieq initially relying on counter-attacks. Robinho and Micallef kept on creating some (half) chances on various occasions, with Zurrieq goalkeeper Jurgen Borg being involved in some routine saves. On 63 minutes, Mwenda had a glorious opportunity to equalise but Ryan Caruana blocked his effort. This action however signalled a period of Zurrieq dominance, but without finding the net. With five minutes regular time left, Jean-Claude Bugeja Aboumehdi should have sealed Marsa’s victory with a second goal but failed to find target with only Borg to beat. A late Zurrieq rally proved to be fruitless with Marsa bagging a hard-earned victory.
Pieta’ Hotspurs 0-3 Sirens
In the early Victor Tedesco Stadium kick off on Saturday afternoon, Steve D’Amato’s Sirens beat Pieta’ Hotspurs 3-0, inflicting the second consecutive defeat on the early pace-setters. The St Paul’s Bay side remain unbeaten in their last seven games, with only Valletta beating the Blues on Match Day 1 of the campaign, an impressive sequence.
Pieta’ started on the offensive and had a good chance to open the score on nine minutes when William Fernandes was in the clear but his effort was blocked by Andrea Cassar. On 21 minutes, it was Sirens who went ahead after Leonardo De Bortoli was felled in the box with Gilberto Carrara making no mistake from the spot. The Hotspurs had another fine chance on 29 minutes when a stinger by Fernandes was well tipped over by Cassar. The match was an entertaining one with chances at both ends.
The team of coach Manuel Caruana had a good chance to get back on level terms on 51 minutes when the industrious Fernandes had an excellent shot that was once more well saved by Cassar. Two minutes later, Sirens doubled with a counter cooly concluded by Thiago Nonato who beat Reeves Cini with a low shot. This proved to be the killer-blow for Pieta’ as, just before the hour, Sirens put the game to bed with another classic counter and Thiago Nonato grabbing his brace with another fine effort. Sirens easily controlled the match after that flurry and climbed to a third spot in the table with Pieta’ retreating down, like Sirens (and Zurrieq) on the 15 points mark.
Swieqi United 3-1 Lija Athletic
On Sunday afternoon at the Centenary Stadium, Lija continued their dismal campaign, being beaten hands-down by Swieqi United. The match was over for Lija after the early dismissal of Erjon Beu, who received two yellows in the space of 11 first-half minutes for two reckless challenges. Swieqi on the other hand, return to winning ways after obtaining just one point in their last two games.
On 18 minutes, Swieqi took the lead through Blessing Brafo, who rounded off some good work by Deacon Abela from close range from a corner. Four minutes later on the other side, Abela brought down Rundell Winchester in the box with the referee pointing at spot. However, Jean-Claude Debattista spectacularly blocked Beu’s spot-kick attempt. This was followed by the Beu red card incident on the half hour mark, leaving Lija a mountain to climb for the remaining hour. Swieqi continued on the attack with Augusto Caseres and Alan Schembri-Wismayer missing sitters from accurate angles. In all fairness, on 41 minutes, Brafo escaped with just a yellow card for a bad tackle on Lija’s Mead Mifsud, an action which should have restored numerical equilibrium.
On 61 minutes, barely a minute after coming on as a substitute, Collins Gyamfi doubled for Swieqi, blasting home from a Caseres assist. Four minutes later, Winchester missed a sitter for Lija in the six-yard box but saw his header go over the bar with only Debattista to beat. On 68 minutes, Caseres came close for Swieqi but, with Lija goalkeeper Luke Bonnici out of position, aimed his header incredibly off-target. On 81 minutes, Swieqi put the outcome of the match beyond doubt with Caseres rounding off a wonderful attack through the heart of the Lija defence from a Gyamfi assist. Lija scored a consolation goal on 87 minutes when Winchester scored a penalty, given from an Abela hands-ball in the box.
St Andrews 2-1 Tarxien Rainbows
Following a series of negative results, St Andrews returned to winning ways in dramatic fashion by scoring the winning goal in the dying seconds against Tarxien on Saturday afternoon. It was a balanced match in which the Rainbows created several goal scoring opportunities but failed to capitalize any of them. The game at the Victor Tedesco Stadium was characterized by the strong winds as both teams clearly struggled to keep ball possession.
There was limited action before the break as both sides proved to be little adventurous. However, on 15 minutes, St Andrews opened the scoring in their first attempt on target with a well-orchestrated counterattack finished off by Omar Elouni from a Paul Tanti cross.
After the change of ends Tarxien transformed into attacking mode, in desperate search for an equaliser. After several early attempts, on 49 minutes, Gabriel Mensah was fouled in the box which resulted into a Rainbows penalty which substitute Conor Borg duly converted. Tarxien continued to press high and were unlucky not to score on several occasions as no less then three efforts hit the crossbar. Just before the final whistle, Luxol notched the winner from a fast counterattack with William England firing a well-timed shot into the right corner which gave the victory to the team of Jose’ Borg, a most welcome three points indeed.
Gudja United 4-1 Senglea Athletic
Orosco Anonam’s Gudja keep on surprising in the Challenge League as their positive run continues, beating a troubled Senglea Athletic 4-1 in the late Victor Tedesco Stadium match on Sunday. Trailing just two points on the number three in the standings, the Gudjans are now within reach of a Top 8 spot at the end of the first round. On the other hand, Robert Cassar’s team poor form continues as with this loss they remain in the bottom half of the table with only five points collected so far.
Senglea had a most perfect start with Rudy Cassar-Jeffries finding the net after just three minutes play. On the half hour mark, Gudja levelled matters with a simple tap in from Brazilian Diego Silva after being in the right spot to place the ball in the net.
After change of ends, in the 68th minute, Gudja completed their comeback with a superb shot from outside the box from the same Diego Silva, thus putting his name on the scoresheet once more. The Blues increased their margin five minutes from time with a penalty converted by Dale Mifsud after Tyrone Fenech fouled Diego inside the area. In stoppage time, minutes after Senglea defender Irvin Abela was sent-off for foul language, veteran Gudja substitute Haruna Shola Shodiya sealed the win with a low shot to give his side their biggest league victory ever since beating Tarxien Rainbows 5-0 in October 2020 in the Premier Division.
Mtarfa 0-3 Santa Lucia
Like Senglea, also Mtarfa’s recent form shows little improvement, being beaten 3-0 by Santa Lucia on Saturday afternoon. The Saints were the better team on the day, while the expulsion of Demicoli close to half-time did not help Mtarfa much either. Both teams had an indifferent start to their season but the Lucians can clearly look up now, being in contention for a Top 8 berth.
After an initial quiet period, Santa Lucia forged ahead when they were awarded a penalty after a foul on Ibrahim Salis. Up stepped fellow striker Jean Carlos who made no mistake wrong footing Frederick Tabone. On the half hour, Santa Lucia doubled the score through a fine solo effort from Salis. Matters turned for the worse for the team of coach Ivan Casha when they ended up with ten men on 37 minutes after Rees Demicoli received his marching orders for a second yellow card.
The second half was a placid affair with Santa Lucia controlling matters with ease despite Mtarfa’s attempt to get back into the match. The Saints made sure of the points on 70 minutes when Salis grabbed his personal brace to make it 3-0.
Zebbug Rangers 0-0 Fgura United
In the early Sunday afternoon kick off at the Centenary Stadium, Zebbug and Fgura had to settle for a goalless draw, an unentertaining match which could have gone either way. Therefore, the Rangers could not give their splendid win over Tarxien a continuation, while Fgura prolonged their negative winless sequence to four. The only lesson learned after the 90 minutes is that both camps must improve in order to reach a Top 8 position at the end of the 1st phase.
There were a few highlights during the opening 45 minutes as on 13 minutes, an in-swinging corner by Fgura’s Karl Formosa ended up on the top of the crossbar. On the half hour mark, Jamie Azzopardi had to be at his best to deny Fgura the opener when Formosa produced a pale-driver from 30 meters distance which the Zebbug custodian turned into a corner with a splendid dive. Fgura kept on showing the better ideas with a spectacular towering Adolphus Marshall header on 37 minutes from a corner action just missing target. In stoppage time of the first half, Azzopardi mistimed his sortie from a John Awori cross but there was no-one on hand for Fgura to tap home.
Five minutes after the re-start, Zebbug were close to a shock lead when Yenz Cini somehow fumbled Jamie Carbone’s attempt through his hands, with the ball ending on the crossbar. But the Rangers saw most definitely more of the ball in the second period with Cini coming to the rescue on the hour, blocking Duvan Mosquera’s close-range goal attempt after a strong run. With four minutes left on the clock, young Zebbug substitute Andrey Attard could have given his side the full three points but aimed too high from an ideal angle. Just before and after this Zebbug scoring opportunity, Dylan Caruana produced two off-target attempts for Fgura.
