But it was in the second half that his absence was sorely missed, that is, when Marsaxlokk took control of midfield. Playing for the first time without Ryan Fenech, the Spartans appeared to be doing well in the first half. But they will do well to keep fighting till the very end. Luck seems to have deserted the Spartans in their final matches and nothing seems to be going right for them. Patrick Curmi’s boys fought back admirably to come back from behind to control a match which appeared to be difficult till the end of the first half.įor the Spartans, it was their fourth consecutive defeat and they remain in sixth place on 19 points, just two ahead of Qormi and three above Sliema. The southern seasiders now have 22 points and mathematically need just two points to be there, always if Sliema and Qormi win their remaining two matches. This victory enabled Marsaxlokk to make a strong step forward in their efforts to finish among the Top Six. The latter once again ended on the losing end on Friday evening as they lost their match against Marsaxlokk 3-2. On the other hand, the three points have enabled Qormi to overtake Sliema – from eighth to seventh place – and they still entertain hopes of making it to the Top Six, possibly at the expense of Hamrun Spartans. As has already been said before, Hibernians will have to play much and much better if they are to avoid trouble in the second phase. In the second half, they reduced the tempo and Hibs tried to come back into the match, but Miller’s side appeared to be resigned to their fate. In the first half, they dominated their opponents and missed a good number of chances before they eventually took the lead. Qormi richly merited their win, but had they lost two points or all of them, it would have only been their fault. The Yellow Blacks did well to beat lowly Hibernians by a solitary goal – a defeat which has definitely condemned the Paolites to play in the Relegation Pool when the second phase arrives. The Blues are now forced to win their last two first phase matches and hoping Hamrun, Qormi or Marsaxlokk miss the bus to go through or force a decider. This defeat has made it even more difficult for the Blues to make it to the Top Six, more so after Qormi’s 1-0 win over Hibernians in the previous match. After an encouraging start in which they also went near twice to opening the scoring, they fizzled out to a superior outfit and rarely did they appear capable of forcing their way back into the match. He has already made a big impact on his debut and should help his side consolidate top spot till the end of the season with a certain amount of ease.įor Sliema, it was a completely different story. Valletta returned to winning form against Sliema on Saturday after having been held to a goalless draw by Marsaxlokk the previous week.Īfter an encouraging start by Sliema, Valletta took almost complete control and after Terence Scerri gave them the lead, it was obvious where the three points were going.Įven when Sliema reduced the arrears just before the interval from a penalty, in the second half, the Blues did not produce the goods they required to save the game as City continued to dominate, scoring two further goals in the process, two from newcomer Fenech and another from top scorer Scerri.īefore Saturday’s match and soon after Fenech’s transfer, some fans questioned the wisdom of Valletta and the player himself, on such a move saying that it would be difficult for him to find his place in a side already well equipped.īut Fenech quickly responded to those critics with a superb performance that included two picture goals.
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