Fenech steps down as Qormi president

Matthew Fenech has stepped down as president of Qormi FC, the Premier League club announced yesterday.

In a statement signed by PRO Anthony Thorne, Qormi said Fenech had decided to end a three-year tenure due to work pressure but he remains committed to the club and will continue to serve in the committee as vice-president.

Fenech will be replaced by Redeno Apap who returns to head the club for a second spell.

Contacted by The Times yesterday, Fenech said that he took the decision to relinquish his duties due to new work commitments that had left him with little time to dedicate to Qormi FC.

“This was a difficult situation but in the end I took this decision for the benefit of the club,” Fenech said.

“In the near future, I will have to dedicate more of my time to other matters unrelated to football due to new commitments in my business. The club would have suffered badly had I stayed as president. This was the best way to go I suppose but Qormi remain my club forever and I shall continue to occupy the post of vice-president and give my contribution when necessary.

“With Redeno Apap the club is in safe hands. He is a natural choice to fill my void. Apap has been the driving force of Qormi FC for many years and I’m sure he has enough experience to see the team reaching its objectives for the coming season.”

Fenech was first elected Qormi FC president three years ago when he took over from Apap. During this spell the Yellow-Blacks won promotion to the Premier League and succeeded in retaining their status for two successive years.

Last season was Qormi’s best ever. Not only did they play in the Championship Pool but the team also reached the final of the FA Trophy and were a whisker away from qualifying to the Europa League but lost a play-off against Sliema Wanderers in an end-of-season decider after both teams had tied for third place in the final standings.