Floriana down plucky Mqabba

Floriana 2
M. Briffa 53; Wasiu-Akkani 83
Mqabba 0

Premier League side Floriana, as expected, moved into the next round of the Anniversary Cup competition when they beat Mqabba 2-0 at the Tedesco Stadium with their goals coming in the second half.

The First Division side performed admirably and at a par with the Greens, if not better.

The only difference that separated the two teams was Floriana's better finishing in attack as Mqabba either wasted their chances or were deprived by bad luck.

Mqabba started the match on the offensive trying to stun Roddy Collins's team with an early goal.

In fact, after only a minute, Patrick Borg hit a scorching volley with Floriana keeper Juergen Micallef, deputising for Bernard Paris, tipping the ball away for a corner.

Floriana hit back immediately and a Ryan Darmanin header, following a Jonovan Simmonds corner, finished just over.

The two sides were finding the going tough to find extra spaces as both sets of defences were enjoying the upper-hand.

Although Floriana looked the brighter side, Mqabba were well-disciplined and certainly not overawed by the occasion.

On 24 minutes, Claudio Calleja tried his luck from outside the area with the ball finishing inches wide of Micallef's goal.

Two minutes later Mqabba should have taken the lead when Martin Anastasi was put through by Omar Grech, but the Mqabba striker dallied his finishing and the danger was eventually cleared.

Mqabba continued to show a lot of promise and just before half-time it was Micallef who produced a superb save to keep out a Calleja header from a perfect Grech centre.

At the other end, Floriana veteran Brian Said had an effort stopped in style by Kris Calleja.

Floriana came out with more verve in the second half and forged ahead on 53 minutes when substitute Marlon Briffa hit home from close in after Wasiu had nodded the pass from a Said free-kick.

Twenty minutes from time, Grech embarked on a solo run but shot just wide from outside the Floriana box as Mqabba tried to get back into the reckoning.

However, luck was not on their side yesterday.

A Glenn Barry 'goal' was cancelled after the advantage rule was ignored by the referee. To rub salt into the wound, from the ensuing free-kick Calleja saw his shot scraping against the woodwork.

Floriana made the game safe seven minutes from time when Wasiu-Akkani slotted the ball home from close range following a Pablo Doffo delivery inside the opponents' box.

Floriana
J. Micallef, J. Briffa ('71 J. Brincat), D. Pisani, B. Said, O. Bugeja, J. Simmonds, L. Agius ('77 R. Brincat), P. Doffo, O. Anonam ('45 M. Briffa), R. Darmanin, S. Wasiu-Akkani.

Mqabba
K. Calleja, M. Bonnici, P. Grima, P. Borg, M.A. Psaila, G. Barry, C. Calleja ('77 S. Magro), J.P. Muscat, J. Fenech, O. Grech, M. Anastasi ('62 M. Gauci).

Yellow cards: Anastasi, Fenech, Bugeja, Muscat.

Referee: Esther Azzopardi.

Other Cup tie

St Patrick 0
Żebbuġ Rangers 0
(aet; St Patrick win 4-3 on pens)

Referee: Tristan Farrugia Cann.

Red cards: M. Pullicino (SP) 15; G. Saliba 81 (ŻR).