Malta win in Latvia

Malta 32
Latvia 19

The Malta rugby team chalked up their second successive away win in the FIRA-AER Division 2B as they beat Latvia 32-19 in an enthralling qualifier in Riga yesterday.

Damien Neill's men, who won 9-6 in Sweden last October, built their emphatic win on a strong first-half display.

Malta scored three tries to race to a commanding 25-0 lead.

The Latvians made a reaction after the restart in a bid to get back in contention but another try from the visitors settled the match in Malta's favour.

Malta's bright display yesterday will certainly raise their spirits ahead of Saturday's qualifier against group leaders the Netherlands. The winner of the Hibs Ground clash is likely to finish top of the standings at the end of the first round and also progress to the next phase of the 2011 World Cup qualifiers.

James O'Brien, who plays for National One League club Waterloo in England, was a new face in Neill's formation after the UK-based player impressed the Malta coach during last week's training camp in Bath.

O'Brien soon made his presence felt when he put Malta ahead with a try before the returning Paul Marzella extended Malta's lead to 8-0 when he converted a penalty.

The Latvians were struggling to control Malta's pace in attack and Oliver Sacco added a second try for the hosts that was ably converted by Marzella.

The Australia-based Marzella compounded Latvia's misery when he fired the ball through the posts from a penalty.

Matthew Mirabelli rounded up a fine performance for Malta when he dashed over the line for another try that was again converted by Marzella.

After the interval, O'Brien struck again with his second try of the day that was converted by the sharp Marzella.

The Latvians tried to make a game of it and managed to bridge the gap to 32-19. But their comeback fell short as the gritty Maltese held on to a merited win.

The Malta contingent are due to return home this evening at 7.30.

Other result: Netherlands vs Sweden 36-24.

Standings: Netherlands 9 points; Malta 7; Sweden 5; Croatia 4; Latvia 3.