Marsa St Michael and Attard Edex Kings have booked their places in the final of the MAFA Knock-Out competition after hard-fought victories in their respective semi-final clashes.
Valletta St Paul’s 3–4 Marsa St Michael
Defending champions Valletta St Paul’s were knocked out of the MAFA KO in a thrilling semi-final against Marsa St Michael, who edged past them with a 4–3 win in a match full of drama and attacking football.
Valletta took an early lead just three minutes in, when Jerome Fiteni rose highest to head home from a corner, beating Marsa goalkeeper Alvarez. But Marsa responded almost instantly, leveling the score just three minutes later through Darko Todorovski, who made no mistake in beating Ivan Valentin after some poor defensive play.
A major error from Valletta keeper Valentin in the 24th minute handed Marsa the lead. His failed clearance fell straight to Lamin Jaiteh, who punished him with a perfectly executed lob to make it 2–1 — a scoreline that stood until half-time.
Valletta came out strong in the second half, equalizing with a header from substitute Matheus Verissimo. However, their joy was short-lived. In the 48th minute, Moses Chijoke Nwankwo restored Marsa’s lead with a spectacular effort, and just nine minutes later, Seedy Fofana capitalized on another defensive lapse to put the result beyond doubt.
Despite a late push, Valletta couldn’t mount a comeback, and Marsa held on to seal their place in the final.
Referee: Lorry Sammut
Birżebbuġa St Peter’s AFC 0–2 Attard Edex Kings
Attard Edex Kings secured their spot in the final with a composed 2–0 victory over Birżebbuġa St Peter’s AFC in a tightly contested match between two Second Division sides.
The game saw few chances in a cautious first half, but Attard eventually broke the deadlock on the hour mark. Fayis Valiya Parambath latched onto a precise pass from Miguel Acevedo and calmly slotted past Darrell Abela Tabone to give his side the lead.
As Birżebbuġa pushed forward in search of an equalizer, they were caught out at the back. In the closing stages, Andrea Linares Aguilera took advantage of a disorganized defense to score the decisive second goal and wrap up the victory for Attard.
Referee: Peter Abela
Final Set for Wednesday Night
The MAFA Knock-Out Final between Marsa St Michael and Attard Edex Kings is scheduled for this coming Wednesday at the Marsaxlokk Ground, with kick-off set for 7:00 PM. A thrilling encounter is expected as both sides aim to lift the coveted trophy.
