[attach id=246929 size="medium"]Malta Football Association president Norman Darmanin Demajo with Sunday. Photo: Chris Sant Fournier[/attach]

The fortunes of an abandoned dog that was left tied to a fence over the weekend changed dramatically yesterday when it was adopted as the official mascot of the Malta Football Association.

Association president Norman Darmanin Demajo said the dog, currently named Sunday after the day it was found, would be kept at Noah’s Ark animal sanctuary in Mellieħa – which rescued it from a sure death – for as long as needed.

Then the MFA would find a good home for the animal.

“However, the dog will have national team duties and will promote football and awareness about cruelty to animals,” he said.

The dog had been found tied to a wooden fence in a Mellieħa field after spending the night in the cold and rain.

Fabio Ciappara, from Noah’s Ark, said the dog was shivering so much it could barely sit. The rope was barely a foot long, so the poor thing could not even rest its head on the ground.