Sirens Ritter Sport and Exiles Ferretti, seeking their first points of the season, figured in the penultimate first-round BOV Premier League match with the northerners managing to beat their opponents in yet another close contest.

Marco Risso’s team owed their victory to better team work but were mostly thankful for captain David Cutajar who netted half of his team’s eight goals.

Apart from pressing the accelerator in the second session, which they won 3-0, they also weathered the handicap of several expulsions, resulting in Jurgen Borg and Csaba Kiss fouled out in the last session.

Exiles, on their part, tried to battle it out but were guilty of more than a handful man-ups.

Cutajar gave his team an early lead before Romain Blary equa-lised off an inch-perfect 30-metre pass from goalkeeper Ian Bugeja for the opening session to end all square.

Sirens showed better fare in the second quarter to score three times in succession through Zack Mizzi, Kiss and Alex Attard for a 4-1 lead midway through.

The northerners block had been more effective despite Exiles’ failing on five consecutive man-up sets.

Abortive exchanges and a sixth frittered extra-man set by Exiles at last had the Sliema whittling down the gap to 4-2 through Peter Borg before two goals from Vojaslav Cupic levelled matters.

However, a brace from Cutajar, the second on a suspicious two-metre infringement, made it 6-4 before the end of the third session.

Meanwhile, Sirens’ list of expul-sions grew longer as Rizzo instruc-ted his lads to go for tighter marking.

Two goals at both ends, scored by Cutajar and Zarb Cousin for Sirens and Borg and Cupic for Exiles, had made it 8-6.

That how it stayed till the end.

Otters Nivea and Marsaxlokk ASC featured in another close contest in the First Division which had fortunes shifting before a final push by Paul Dimech’s team earned them the points.

The Gozitans led 4-2 after the first session, with all their goals being well-taken after Marsaxlokk had taken an initial 1-0 advantage.

Hungarian Robert Kovacs stood out in the second quarter when he netted four goals as the south-erners recovered to nose 6-5 in front.

Otters fought back to level the score in the third session with Ionut Necsulescu reaching his hat-trick and Peter Kovacs scoring his second after Karl Scicluna had given his team a temporary 7-6 lead.

The advantage alternated in the final quarter.

Otters, with George Attard having been expelled earlier in the second session on three fouls, stayed the better side.

Necsulecsu’s five goals as did those by Kristoff Martin and Karl Scicluna, two each, had been vital for their team.

Otters 11
Marsaxlokk 9

(4-2, 1-4, 2-1, 4-2)

Otters: N.Grixti, G. Attard 1, G. Zammit, G. Tabone, E. Farrugia, A. Cachia, K. Scicluna 2, D. Schembri, A. Edward, S. Dimech, K. Martin 2, I. Netsulestu 5, K. Grima Scott 1.

Marsaxlokk: A. Xuereb, A. Bajada, M. Agius, E. Meli, K. Grech 1, K. Mock, A. Galea, C. Bugeja, R. Kovacs 4, P. Kovacs 3, L. Friggieri, T. Camilleri, G. Zammit 1.

Refs: P.Balzan, A. De Raffaele.

Sirens 8
Exiles 6

(1-1, 3-0, 2-3, 2-2)

Sirens: A. Grech, Z. Mizzi 1, M. Grech, J. Napier, A. Babay, C. Kiss 1, J. Borg, D. Cutajar 4, A. Zarb Cousin 1, A. Attard 1, S. Micallef, M. Caruana, J. Cremona.

Exiles: I. Bugeja, J. Rizzo Naudi , N. Paris, D. Pace Lupi, R. Blary 1, N. Portelli, J. Spiteri Staines, V. Cupic 3, K. Grixti, P. Borg 2, S. Galea Pace, D. Borg, K. Lanzon.

Refs: M. Angilleri, M. Biano.

Playing today
18.00 Ta’ Xbiex vs Valletta
19.15 San Ġiljan vs Neptunes

Premier League

Division One