Valletta edge past Rainbows

Valletta started their title defence on a positive note as a goal from substitute Jonathan Caruana earned them a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Tarxien Rainbows.

As expected it was Valletta who made all the running but for all their territorial dominance they struggled to break down a solid Tarxien defence.

In the first half, Valletta overwhelmed their opponents but they could not hit the jackpots as efforts from Shaun Bajada, Ryan Fenech and William Barbosa went off target.

After the break, Valletta continued to dominate but they had to wait till the 68th minute to finally hit the breakthrough when from a Gabriel corner kick, Caruana headed firmly past Tarxien goalkeeper Nicky Vella.

Tarxien defender Orosco Anonam was voted as the BOV Player of the match.