Birkirkara’s Alejandro Mendoza (left) trying to catch up with Luis Edison, the Hibernians striker.Birkirkara’s Alejandro Mendoza (left) trying to catch up with Luis Edison, the Hibernians striker.

BOV Premier League leaders Birkirkara will have to do without four regular players for their next Championship Pool match this weekend after bans were handed to Alejandro Mendoza, Paul Fenech, Rowen Muscat and Rod-rigo Pereira, yesterday.

Mendoza and Fenech will be serving a one-match ban each for incurring a red card during the top-of-the-table match against Hibernians at the National Stadium, on Sunday.

Muscat and Pereira collected their fourth yellow card in a tense encounter that ended one-all after a controversial finale during which a stoppage-time Clayton Failla penalty, awarded for a dubious foul on Obinna Obie-fule, cancelled Shola Haruna’s 90th-minute opener for Birkir-kara.

Luckily for the Stripes, who retained a two-point lead over Hibs at the top, their next match (on Saturday) will be against the misfiring Mosta side who lost all seven matches so far in the Championship Pool.

In their previous match, played in March, Birkirkara thumped Mosta 7-1.

Melita sanctions

Another Premier League side hit hard by the Disciplinary Com-missioner sanctions yesterday were Melita.

The lowly Amateurs, all but doomed to Division One football next season, had three players – Matthew Borg (two matches), Karl Vella Petroni (one match) and Manuel Sierra Camacho (one match) – suspended.

Moreover, Melita will be playing their next match on Sunday (against Balzan) with coach Patxi Salinas again barred from the dug-out. The Spaniard will also have to serve a one-match ban following his dismissal in last week’s 3-1 upset to Qormi.

Three other Premier League players were also handed one-match bans yesterday.

Defender Adrian Borg, of Ħamrun Spartans, is ruled out of the derby match against Qormi tomorrow, defender Rodolfo Soares will skip Hibs’ clash against Sliema on Saturday, and Valletta will be without striker Michael Mifsud for the match against Tarxien on Sunday.

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