Fourth win for Sta Venera

Sta Venera Lightnings launched their second round commitments on a positive note after overcoming Rabat Ajax 1-0 in the only match played last Sunday at Pace Grasso. The other fixture, between Hibernians and Qormi, was called off due to a soggy pitch.

For the ever-improving Lightnings, this was their fourth win of the campaign. They climbed to second place in the standings alongside Melita on the 14-point mark, albeit the latter have a game in hand.

Although Sta Venera were the better team for long stretches, Rabat turned in a good performance which should augur well for their upcoming commitments.

Goalscoring opportunities were scarce in the opening 45 minutes with Sta Venera going close with free-kicks by Orianne Cassar and Fiona Mangion that were cleared by the Rabat defence.

Just before the break, Therese Briffa threatened again but her low shot was blocked by Rabat goalkeeper Christine Galea.

Sta Venera stepped up a gear in the second half and finally managed to break the stalemate on 63 minutes thanks to a Briffa goal. Then, Yanika Debono came close to adding another one for the Saints but her shot finished just wide.

As the minutes passed by, Rabat came more into the picture, pinning the Lightnings in their own half with their best chance falling to Marika Mizzi who shot wide from an inviting position.

Teams Line-ups:

Sta Venera: S. Costantino, R. Gatt, A. Vella, F. Mangion, O. Cassar, S. Bray, T. Briffa, M. Cardona, O. Micallef, Y. Debono, G. Calleja.

Rabat: C. Galea, H. Rota, C. Caruana, L. Saliba Farrugia, D. Debono, K.A. Brincat, M. Mizzi, M. Gibson, D. Agius, M. Farrugia, J. Bonnici.

Leading scorers: D. Theuma (Hibs) 13 goals; Y. Carabott (Hibs) 12 goals; D. Tonna (Hibs), S. Farrugia (Birkirkara) 9 goals.

Sunday's matches: 9 a.m. Birkirkara vs Mosta; 11 a.m. Raiders vs Melita; 1 p.m. Qormi vs Hibs.