Mallia strikes twice to boost Stripes

Birkirkara 3
Hibernians 2

"We wish you a merry Christmas," chanted the Birkirkara fans at the National Stadium yesterday.

Occasions for merry-making have been few and far between for the Stripes so far this season, what with their unending injury woes and the failure of their new foreign imports to make the desired impact.

With Christmas just a few days away, Birkirkara finally received a much-yearned tonic as they edged Championship Pool rivals Hibs 3-2.

Still decimated by injuries, the Stripes showed resilience as they grimly held on to their slender lead after they had made the most of their opponents' dismal defending late in the first half.

Hibs, who had led for just 11 minutes after Andrew Cohen's opener, toiled to drag themselves back in contention in the second half but in the end, their glaring mistakes at the back, particularly by goalkeeper Mario Muscat, cost them dear.

Stephen Azzopardi, the Birkirkara coach, selected an all-Maltese formation for this match. Italian midfielder Angelo Paradiso yesterday followed French-Moroccan winger Hatim Sbai through the exit door.

Polish goalkeeper Andrzej Bledzewski failed to recover from an ankle problem, Argentine-born midfielder Dario Larossa is sidelined with an ankle injury and Italian defender Guido Gallovich started on the subs' bench.

The options at Azzopardi's disposal were further depleted by the groin problem plaguing Etienne Barbara, who came on in the second half, and the head wound suffered by Mark Anthony Bonnici in training on Thursday.

The presence of Precious Monye in the VIP area of the National Stadium yesterday can only be viewed as a strong indication that Birkirkara are considering taking the Nigerian defender back on board next month.

With Udo Nwoko ruled out by suspension and Ndubisi Chukunyere omitted from Hibs' first XI by coach Robert Gatt, Argentine midfielder Pablo Doffo was the only foreign player to begin yesterday's encounter.

Thirteen minutes into the game, Patrick Borg, Birkirkara's young midfielder, tested waters with a rising shot from a long range but Muscat saved easily.

In their first telling foray into Birkirkara's half after 16 minutes, Hibs might have edged ahead.

Terrence Scerri, scorer of all four of Hibs' goals in their 4-0 rout of Marsa, jinked his way into the box but his curling effort flashed against the far post. As the ball bounced back in the centre of the box, Hibs players closed in but Scerri's second attempt was repelled by Sean Sullivan.

The pressure remained on the Stripes though and their state of confusion was there for all to see when Cohen's grounder from outside the penalty area squeezed between Sullivan and his right-hand post.

Birkirkara had the look of a disjointed team in these early stages with their makeshift defence, featuring Jonathan Holland as sweeper, showing signs of wariness.

Yet, Birkirkara's fragile confidence received a boost after 26 minutes. Drifting infield from the right, William Camenzuli evaded a challenge before unleashing a thunderous drive. Muscat managed to get his gloves to the ball but it slipped through his grasp and dropped into the net.

Scerri may have restored Hibs' lead but his angled effort from inside the box was blocked by Sullivan. But Birkirkara, now pushing forward with more menace, took advantage of more shambolic defending from Hibs to deliver a quickfire double punch.

When Muscat came off his line but failed to anticipate Jean Pierre Mifsud Triganza, the ball was quickly driven back to Michael Galea who sent in a teasing cross from the right and George Mallia stretched his feet to volley the ball into an empty net. This came on 39 minutes. Barely a minute late, it was 3-1 for Birkirkara, Mallia heading home a cross from Matthew Calascione after more woeful defending by Gatt's men.

It came as no surprise that Gatt's changes at half-time concerned two players from his backline. Goalkeeper Muscat and defender Roderick Briffa made way for Alex Camilleri and Julian Vella respectively.

Early in the second half, Mifsud Triganza's curler finished just wide .

The match officials sparked a bout of criticism from the Birkirkara fans who felt that a challenge on Mifsud Triganza warranted a free-kick. From the ensuing action, Hibs almost narrowed the deficit as Cohen floated the ball towards the advancing Scerri but the latter's shot was wide.

Eleven minutes into the second half, Camilleri fumbled a cross-shot from Calascione but he reacted quickly to hold off Michael Galea's attempt to capitalise on the rebound.

In no time, the match officials had to deal with another controversial episode when Sullivan, having been caught by Xuereb's extended foot as the latter chased a cross from Scerri, stood up and appeared to barge into the grounded Hibs defender. Referee Joe Attard booked Xuereb but Sullivan escaped punishment.

Needing a goal to raise their hopes of a comeback, Hibs piled up the pressure on their opponents by exploiting Cohen's intelligent movement and Scerri's robust presence.

These two players combined to pull a goal back for the Paolites, Scerri chipping the ball over the on-rushing Sullivan after Cohen had sent him clear with a great through-pass.

It was now Birkirkara's turn to experience some tense moments in defence. A header from Jonathan Caruana was off target and at the other end, Camilleri sprinted away of goal to anticipate Mifsud Triganza.

As the second half wore on, Birkirkara gradually regained a semblance of composure to share the exchanges with Hibs. Two efforts from the distance by Scicluna and Barbara were saved by Camilleri.

Birkirkara: S. Sullivan-5.5, P. Borg-5.5 ('66 G. Gallovich-5), L. Galea-6 ('89 C. Micallef), R. Sammut-6, W. Camenzuli-6, M. Calascione-5.5, M. Galea-5.5, J.P. Mifsud Triganza-5.5 ('73 E. Barbara-6), J. Holland-7, K. Scicluna-6.5, G. Mallia-7.

Hibs: M. Muscat-4 ('46 A. Camilleri-5.5), A. Xuereb-6, K. Cassar-6 ('87 A. Zahra), R. Briffa-4 ('46 J. Vella-5), J. Caruana-6.5, P. Doffo-6, M. Bartolo-6.5, T. Scerri-6.5, A. Cohen-7, C. Failla-5, E. Agius-5.

Referee: Joe Attard.

Scorers: Cohen 17; Camenzuli 26; Mallia 39, 40; Scerri 67.

Yellow cards: Scerri; Mallia; Camenzuli; Xuereb; Scicluna; Sammut.

BoV player of the match: George Mallia (Birkirkara).

Fixtures

Today (Tedesco Stadium)
12.45 p.m. Msida vs Pietà Hotspurs
2.45 p.m. Marsa vs Sliema Wanderers.