Now that the classification in the first and second division leagues has been defined, the real tussles to determine the champions in the two categories will take off today.

First-placed Neptunes, in the top division, and Marsascala, in the second tier, face Sirens and Valletta respectively.

Neptunes and Sirens are involved in the first of a three-match series of play-offs to proceed to the final and Marsascala will contest the opening tie of a three-match final for the second division title against the City team, back in local competition after several years.

Whoever came out with the idea of discarding the worth of the traditional league format was aware that at the end of the day the matches that mattered were the play-offs involving four out of the five sides in the first division and two out of the four in the second.

The idea, endorsed by the clubs and with the ASA officials also inclined for this innovation, was to extend interest in the destination of the honours till the very end and among as many teams as possible.

However, the new system has other drawbacks besides having too many teams restarting with a clean sheet. The factor of demotivation when the outcome of a match is of no tangible interest to one or the two teams involved stands out.

Such was the case with San Ġiljan when they faced Exiles last Friday and Sliema played Sirens on Tuesday, not to mention other matches where only prestige was at stake.

In these last years there was no question of the title issue being decided prematurely, as some may contend in order to justify the introduction of the play-offs.

The destination of honours in previous league competitions played over multi-rounds was practically always decided in the last matches.

The latest was last year when Sliema were still in with an outside chance of winning the title when meeting Neptunes in their last match towards the end of the league season.

Stale matches

Only that in recent years the race for the title was a two-horse contest since there was a huge disparity between the Neptunes-Sliema tandem and the other two or three teams.

An added drawback was that stale matches normally involved the less-fancied teams since there was no relegation.

As for the first division, the other unknown factor this year was the composition of the semi-finals in the play-offs series.

With Neptunes outclassing all opposition, what may have raised some eyebrows was the possibility of the next three teams jockeying for positions in the table in order to avoid or meet certain opponents.

Thankfully, that did not materialise as the second and third places were decided with more than half of the second round matches still to be played, with the gap between the teams leaving very little room for this speculation.

True, these two spots in the standings were only determined on Tuesday but that did not matter as the teams occupying these positions eventually were to meet each other, the first two ties being scheduled for tomorrow and Sunday.

At this point all one can say is that the spoils collected by four out of the five teams in the top division, too many for that matter, can be compared to feathers which are dispersed into the air from a ripped pillow on a windy day.

Anyway, the real sporting battles start now and by September 10, at the very latest, champagne will start flowing off the uncorked bottles.

As for the league format the feel-ing is that this ‘backdoor’ system will have to be reviewed.

Programme

Playing today: 5.15 p.m. Marsascala vs Valletta; 6.30 p.m. Neptunes vs Sirens.

Tomorrow: 5.15 p.m. Sliema vs San Ġiljan; 6.30 p.m. Sirens vs Neptunes.

Sunday: 5.15 p.m. Valletta vs Marsascala; 6.30 p.m. San Ġiljan vs Sliema.