As anticipated, Ħamrun Spartans retained the top place in the Premier League with an easy victory over Naxxar Lions at the end of match day 15. At the same time, Floriana stayed on their shoulder after their narrow win over Birkirkara. In the lower reaches, the struggle for survival hots on with five teams in the thick of it and Gudja almost already doomed to lose their status.
Ħamrun Spartans ….. 4 Naxxar Lions ….. 1
Ħamrun Spartans found the going much more accessible than they might have envisaged, and their 4-1 victory over Naxxar Lions that helped them to retain their three-point lead over Floriana was no surprise.
The Spartans made their intentions clear from the word go, and it only took them two minutes to pave the way for their win when Jonny Torres scored from a Uros Duranovic pass. However, the Lions roared back in the 18th minute with the equaliser scored by Pablo Augusto Servo de Carvalho, who found himself in the right spot from a Da Silva pass to beat Henry Bonello in Ħamrun’s goal.
The goal put more fire in the Ħamrun players, and they regained the upper hand and pushed their opponents back. They brought out the best from Naxxar goalkeeper Matthias Debono with a Torres header in the 25th minute and, on 40 minutes, regained the lead with a terrific shot from Uros Duranovic.
Ħamrun continued to hold on to the initiative and kept up the pressure in the second half. After some near misses, in the 72nd minute, they added to their advantage with a goal by Luke Montebello and then wrapped it all up a minute from time with a fourth goal by Emerson Marcelina.
Floriana ….. 2 Birkirkara ….. 1
Floriana overcame another challenging obstacle in Birkirkara on the way to keeping up with Ħamrun Spartans at the top reaches of the League ladder when they edged their way past their opponents in a 2-1 win, leaving their opponents still searching for victory in their last three outings.
It wasn’t easy for Floriana, but they managed to get all three points at the end of a well-deserved success. The win was paved with a 22nd-minute goal by Mattia Veselji, who rounded up two defenders before slotting the ball past Birkirkara custodian Marcel Zapytowski.
The Greens had a chance to double their lead three minutes later when they were awarded a penalty for a foul by Enrico Pepe on Matheus Zouza, but the Birkirkara goalkeeper saved Mattia Veselji’s effort from the spot to keep his side’s hopes alive come the second half.
Zapytowski’s feat must have given Birkirkara the filip they needed as they improved on the change-over and, 22 minutes inside the session, were rewarded for their efforts when they drew level from a penalty awarded for an Oualid El Hasni handling infringement in the Greens’ penalty area. It was converted by Andrei Ciolacu.
For the remaining minutes, the match was evenly balanced, but in the 82nd minute, Kemar Reid headed home their winning tally after a Dunstan Vella from an Aleandro Garzia move in front of goal.
Sliema Wanderers ….. 1 Valletta ……1
Sliema Wanderers figured in their second draw on the trot when they were held to 1-1 by their eternal rivals Valletta, who must have savoured the sharing of points more than their opponents, who, however, managed to extend their unbeaten run to eight matches and stay as the team closest to the top two teams.
The match was evenly balanced throughout, and in the end, the draw proved to be the fairest of outcomes. Sliema had more of the play in the initial stages, but shots at goal were very few and far between.
After a scoreless first half, the Wanderers opened the scoring in the 55th minute through Samuel Gomes da Mata, who found the opposing net with a shot from close in after receiving a pass from Geoffrey Acheampong.
Valletta’s reaction was immediate, and Sliema goalkeeper Rashed Al Tumi had to be very alert to save Diego Cardoso’s shot. However, in the 68th minute, Valletta levelled matters when Shaun Dimech’s goalwards-bound shot was deflected into the Sliema goal and past his own goalkeeper by Jean Borg.
Marsaxlokk ….. 2 Gudja United ….. 1
After their disappointment of only earning just three points from their last four matches, Marsaxlokk returned to winning ways by beating Gudja United 2-1 to strengthen their hold on fourth spot in the league table, three points behind Sliema.
Gudja’s loss could be taken as possibly another nail in their coffin. They are still in search of their first victory from fifteen matches and are anchored at the foot of the league ladder, ten points away from safety.
The difference between the two sides in the first half was minimal, but Marsaxlokk still managed to go ahead after 25 minutes through Nikolai Muscat, who beat James Pisani in the Gudja goal with a low shot.
Marsaxlokk retained the upper hand in the second half and, after failing to add to their tally with several scoring opportunities in the 63rd minute, finally found a way through, and Weder Soares extended the lead from a header.
The winners wasted other scoring opportunities and, in the end, paid dearly for that when Gudja pulled a goal back in the 90th minute for a consolation goal scored by substitute Luca Gatt.
Hibernians ….. 2 Santa Lucia ….. 0
Despite their improvement in recent outings, Santa Lucia only looked capable of getting something out of their clash with neighbours Hibernians and, in the end, suffered two goals in the first half that led to their downfall.
Hibernians showed they meant business from the outset and by the 11th minute had already tested the Saints’ goalkeeper, Francisco da Paz, with a Robert Bairam effort, and then in the 24th minute, missed another scoring opportunity when Kurt Shaw failed to connect from a Giannis Bastianos corner.
What the Paolites failed to do, their opponents did it for them in the 26th minute when, in his effort to clear the danger, the Saints’ Jurgen Pisani deflected into his net Jurgen Degabriele’s effort at goal.
Right on half time, Hibernians doubled their lead through Lucas Caruana, who volleyed in off a defender to give his side a 2-0 lead.
In the second half, Santa Lucia tried hard to get back into the game, but without causing much concern for Hibernians except for three occasions that goalkeeper Hugo Sacco dealt with comfortably with saves off Santiago Moracci, Jurgen Pisani and Alessandro Piazza.
Balzan ….. 1 Gżira United ….. 1
Balzan and Gżira United shared these spoils in a one-all draw that did not serve much for the United, who are in the throes of a fierce struggle with four other teams to avoid relegation. The point won by Balzan helped them establish a firm mid-table position.
With the Maroons in desperate need of points, they threw themselves forward to get the goals they needed, but though dictating matters, they found it hard to penetrate the Balzan defence. When they did in the 28th minute, the referee disallowed their goal from a header by Lucas Macula.
However, Gżira could not be denied and deservedly took the lead in the 39th minute from Lucas Macula’s effort to end the first half a goal up. They also went near on a couple more occasions early in the second half, which was more evenly balanced.
But as luck would have it, Balzan scored in the 64th minute when Olivier Rommens beat goalkeeper Darijan Zarkov for the leveller, which disappointed Gżira greatly.
Mosta ….. 0 Sirens ….. 0
The sharing of the spoils in this scoreless draw did not satisfy any of the respective supporters. For Sirens, who are almost doomed, a point means very little. It just improved their placing a point above the bottom team. Mosta had the chance to widen their gap from fellow strugglers but failed. They stay involved in the relegation struggle.
Mosta created enough chances in the first half to make it their day. But in the end, they failed to turn their superiority into goals and, in the second half, allowed Sirens to make an improvement and even come back to share proceedings, although they, too, were never a threat.
Premier League standings at end of Match day 15
Team Pts
Ħamrun Spartans 38
Floriana 35
Sliema Wanderers 30
Marsaxlokk 25
Hibernians 24
Birkirkara 21
Naxxar Lions 21
Balzan 19
Valletta 18
Mosta 16
Gżira United 15
Santa Lucia 12
Sirens 07
Gudja United 06
