Battling Stripes score late equaliser

Birkirkara 1
Hibernians 1

An 85th-minute Jean Pierre Mifsud Triganza goal earned 10-man Birkirkara a deserved point from this clash with championship rivals Hibs.

Despite having to play for almost the entire match with ten players, following the dismissal of keeper Saviour Darmanin after only seven minutes, the gallant Stripes never threw in the towel. They fell behind to an Andrew Cohen goal but Stephen Azzopardi's team kept battling hard and their efforts were rewarded with Mifsud Triganza's equaliser that rescued them from defeat.

Coach Azzopardi must have left the stadium delighted with the performance of his players. But at the back of his mind he will certainly be worried with the prospect of having to face his next match against Floriana without an experienced goalkeeper if Justin Haber fails to recover in time. If not, Birkirkara will have to turn again on young Joshua Galea to defend their goal.

Hibs have only themselves to blame for not bagging all the three points. For the second time this season they did not profit from numerical advantage. As was the case in their one-all draw with Sliema on January 30, they seemed unable to unlock Birkirkara's tight defence.

Once they went in front, Robert Gatt's players failed to kill off their opponents and in the end they were made to pay dearly as they conceded a late equaliser that saw them losing second place in the standings and damaged their title challenge in no small way.

Azzopardi faced a selection nightmare before naming his starting XI with no fewer than five regulars out injured.

Striker Etienne Barbara joined the list of unfit players that had already included Antoine Zahra, Justin Haber, Roderick Briffa and Michael Galea. Moreover, Precious Monye and Mark Anthony Bonnici sat out due to suspension.

Gatt had no such problems as he boasted a full complement. Essien Mbong returned from suspension to run the Paolites' midfield.

The match had an explosive start. After only three minutes Haruna Doda was denied by the upright when he turned past his marker but his low shot was deflected onto the woodwork by Mario Muscat, the Hibs goalkeeper.

Hibs' reply arrived soon after. Mbong picked Scerri with a perfect pass, the Malta U-21 forward raced through, chipped the ball over Darmanin and went down in a challenge with the keeper outside the box.

The ball missed the target by a whisker but that was not the end of it for Darmanin. He was sent off for a professional foul after linesman Joseph Camilleri drew the attention of referee Adrian Casha to explain the incident.

The decision sparked huge protests from the Birkirkara clan, triggering minor skirmishes in the Stripes' end with police moving in quickly to restore order.

Azzopardi had no other option but to throw into the fray young Galea who replaced another promising club product Thomas Caruana. The Bir-kirkara coach inevitably had to change his module with Haruna Doda retrieving in midfield, leaving Mifsud Triganza in a lone striking role.

Galea was soon called into action. He charged out of his lines to close the way for Scerri. The Hibs forward showed quicker reflexes but his conclusion was cleared off the line by Lucian Dronca.

On 21 minutes, Ndubisi Chukunyere went agonisingly close to give his team the lead when he outsmarted his marker before rifling a shot that just skimmed the upright.

Hibs were piling up all the pressure on the Birkirkara defence but their first real scoring opportunity came four minutes from the break when Andrew Cohen saw his angled shot blocked in time by Camenzuli.

A minute from the interval Antoine Zahra's agility unnerved the Birkirkara defence before putting Scerri through. Galea did well to rush out and block in time.

A minute into the second half Scerri was first on a Cohen free-kick but his header was kept out by Galea. The Paolites were holding all the initiative but they were struggling to find any gaps in the solid Birkirkara defence.

On 55 minutes, Scerri was floored in the area and protested for a penalty but the referee saw nothing untoward and instead booked him for simulation. A minute later Cohen tried his luck from the distance but his shot finished over.

Just before the hour, Gatt roped in Chidozie Nwankwo for Roderick Baldacchino as he looked to add more punch to his team forward line.

In the 62nd minute Camenzuli had an insidious free-kick that was fisted away by Muscat.

Hibs broke the Stripes' resistance on 71 minutes when Chukunyere's cross was controlled in the area by Cohen who fired a low shot into the back of the net.

Nwankwo should have doubled Hibs' advantage four minutes later but shot well wide of Galea's goal.

Birkirkara were still not down and five minutes from time their efforts were rewarded when Nwoko drifting a cross towards Mifsud Triganza who headed home past Muscat.

Hibs were stunned and tried to push forward to regain the advantage but they never threatened the Stripes who managed to hang on to a well-earned point.

Birkirkara: S. Darmanin, L. Galea-6, R. Sammut-6, W. Camenzuli-8, H. Doda-7, C. Nwoko-7, T. Paris ('7 J. Galea-7), L. Dronca-7, J.P. Mifsud Triganza-7, G. Mallia-7, A. Ciantar-7.

Hibernians: M. Muscat-6, A. Pulis-6, A. Xuereb-6, R. Mintoff-6, E. Mbong-7, P. Pullicino-6, N. Chukunyere-6, T. Scerri-7, A. Zahra-7 ('70 D. Camilleri), R. Baldacchino-6 ('59 C. Nwankwo), A. Cohen-6.

Referee: Adrian Casha.

Scorers: Cohen 71; Mifsud Triganza 85.

Yellow Cards: Xuereb, Ciantar, Scerri, Chukunyere.

Red Card: Darmanin 7.

Player Of The Match: William Camenzuli (Birkirkara).