Hibernians 3
Jorginho 16, 36, 50 pen;
Valletta 1
Bajada 82;

Hibernians marked their elevation as the new aristocrats of Maltese football in emphatic fashion yesterday.

Basking in the sunshine and the glow of their title triumph, Hibernians turned on the style to outclass rivals Valletta with a performance that encapsulated the qualities that delineated their amazing march to the BOV Premier League title.

Having sealed their mission with three games to spare, Hibs strode on to the pitch yesterday knowing that nothing untoward would spoil their feast but there was no let-up.

It was a masterclass of attacking football with Brazilian striker Jorginho further endearing himself to the elated Hibernians fans with a brilliant hat-trick that took him level with former team-mate Luis Edison ‘Tarabai’ on 25 goals at the summit of the scorers’ list.

While Jorginho captured the headlines, Andrew Cohen was not far behind as the inspirational Hibernians captain produced another scintillating showing much in keeping with his form throughout the season that has made him one of the leading contenders for the MFA footballer of the year award.

A 3-1 victory over their biggest adversaries, who finished the game with 10 men, provided a perfect ending to a remarkable season for Hibernians, delighting their numerous fans who ran on to the pitch as referee Clayton Pisani sounded the final whistle, a black-and-white tide of emotion sweeping across the Ta’ Qali pitch.

The players joined in the celebrations which reached a climax when Cohen lifted the BOV Premier League trophy amidst a cascade of golden confetti.

Indeed, this will go down as a golden season for the club from Paola as their team dominated the championship from the outset, finishing a massive nine points ahead of runners-up Valletta, scoring 97 goals, conceding only 24 and losing only one match in the process.

A festive atmosphere reigned at the National Stadium with the boisterous Hibernians fans daubing the enclosure white and black.

A loud cheer went up in the air before kick-off when the guest DJ announced that Norman Darmanin Demajo, the head of the Malta FA, was going to present a souvenir to Tony Bezzina, the long-serving president of Hibernians, to mark the Paola club’s 11th championship success.

The afternoon clearly belonged to Hibs but a good number of die-hard Valletta fans took up residence in the Millennium Stand to support their team.

Hibernians coach Branko Nisevic, a figure of composure throughout the season as well as during yesterday’s celebrations, selected a familiar line-up that, with the exception of Brazilian striker ‘Tarabai’, now plying his trade in South Korea, featured all the players who have made a hefty contribution to the club’s triumph.

Young goalkeeper Jurgen Borg had been outstanding in the goalless draw against Birkirkara but Nisevic did the sensible thing of recalling Henry Bonello, back from suspension. There was also a return for Rui De Gracia Gomes after the Equatorial Guinea defender completed a three-match suspension.

Speculation that Ryan Fenech has been suspended by Valletta was nipped in the bud as the midfielder was named in a strong line-up.

The only notable absentee for the outgoing champions was defender Steve Borg whose season has been ended by a knee injury that requires surgery.

The game started on a deflating note for Valletta as, after just 90 seconds, Jonathan Caruana picked up what looked like a serious knee injury after sliding in to ward off a menacing Jorginho drive.

As the Malta defender was carried off on a stretcher, Nigerian Hillary Paul Ikenna came on as a replacement.

There was a scare for Hibs moments later as an overhit backpass from Bjorn Kristensen soared dangerously towards goal, forcing Bonello to track back before heading the ball away.

Lateef Elford-Alliyu was first to the loose ball but his close-range effort was kept out by Bonello.

Veteran defender Luke Dimech was having a torrid time tracking Cohen as the ageless Hibernians captain took up an advanced position alongside Jorginho in Hibs’ typical 3-5-2 formation.

Valletta’s 4-1-4-1 approach had Elford-Alliyu as its attacking fulcrum with Abdelkarim Nafti and Hamza Barry on the wings and Shaun Bajada and Roderick Briffa under instructions to flit into dangerous positions from midfield.

Chants of ‘campioni, campioni’ resonated around the stadium after Hibs surged ahead on 16 minutes.

Kristensen, playing at the tip of Hibs’ midfield, was the architect as his astute through-ball set up Jorginho who shook off Dimech before rifling past Pietro Marino, the Valletta goalkeeper.

A speculative lob from Barry almost surprised Bonello on 20 minutes but the Hibernians goalkeeper blocked with the aid of the crossbar.

Jorginho was proving a handful for the bulky City defenders with his pace and direct movement. This was palpable on 26 minutes when the Brazilian, latching on to a long clearance from Rodolfo Soares, left Ikenna in his wake but his progress was halted by the back-pedalling Dimech.

Close to the half-hour, Valletta threatened to equalise as Briffa’s floated pass landed at the feet of Barry but the Gambian’s effort was parried away by Bonello.

A minute later, Nisevic was also forced to make his first substitution as Soares was stretchered off. He was replaced by Keith Tanti.

The afternoon got better for the champions as, 10 minutes from half-time, they increased their lead. Fastening on to Cohen’s excellent pass, Jorginho darted behind the Valletta defenders and slotted past the onrushing Marino.

Jorginho looked to be on a mission to reel in Tarabai at the top of the scorers list as his well-taken double took him on 24 goals, one behind his Brazilian compatriot.

Valletta’s woes increased two minutes into the second half when Marino was shown a straight red card for hauling down Jorginho in the box after the Brazilian had again outpaced Dimech as he raced on to a long pass.

Nicholas Vella, who had just come on for Nafti, was beaten by Jorginho’s low drive as the Brazilian completed his hat-trick.

Three goals up and a man to the good, Hibs were in the driving seat and their supporters in delirium. Jackson Lima was thwarted by Vella while Cohen was high from the distance.

Tame and timid in the first half, Valletta switched to damage-limitation mode.

They briefly interrupted Hibs’ dominance when Barry sped into the box but De Gracia Gomes and Andrei Agius intervened to defuse the danger.

With 19 minutes left, Clayton Failla was unlucky not to get in on the act as his thunderous free-kick, from long range, rattled the upright.

Valletta did manage to score a consolation goal eight minutes from time thanks to Bajada whose audacious lob from the distance caught Bonello by surprise but the champions had long been home and dry.

Hibernians
H. Bonello-6, R. Soares-6 (33 K. Tanti-6), A. Agius-7, R. De Gracia Gomes-7, M. Dias-6 (83 T. Tabone Desira), A. Cohen-7.5, J. Lima-6.5, C. Failla-6.5, B. Kristensen-7 (63 J. Degabriele-6), J. Bezzina-6, Jorginho-9.

Valletta
P. Marino, J. Caruana (3 H. Ikenna-4), I. Azzopardi-5, R. Camilleri-5, R. Fenech-5, H. Barry-5, R. Briffa-6, L. Elford-Alliyu-5 (75 L. Cremona), S. Bajada-6, A. Nafti-4 (48 N. Vella-5), L. Dimech-4.

Referee: Clayton Pisani.

Yellow cards: Dimech.

Red card: Marino (V) 47.

BOV player of the match: Jorginho (Hibs).

Attendance: 3,890.

Aftermatch comments

Branko Nisevic (Hibernians coach): “The way we have won the league this year is a once in a lifetime achievement and I think the target to do it better in the future will be very hard. From the very beginning the team was functioning very well and all the tactical adjustments we effected throughout the season worked perfectly well. We faced some very strong teams but we always managed to win the important matches and I only have words of praise for the players who really could not have done better.”

Clayton Failla: “Throughout the season, we were very consistent and superior to our opponents in every match bar against Balzan. Today (yesterday) we will celebrate but as of Monday, it would be business as usual as the season is not yet over and we want to win the double.

Jorginho: In the last few matches, I was entertaining the idea of adding the top-scorer accolade to the championship. I was aware of being so close to Tarabai (Luis Edison) so I trained hard to reach this objective as well and I’m pleased to be sharing this award with him.

Andrew Cohen: We have been waiting for this moment for several years and it feels absolutely amazing to be crowned champions. I believe that Hibernians are worthy winners as we were the team that have scored the most goals and conceded the least.

Final standings

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Hibs	33	27	5	1	97	24	56
Valletta	33	22	3	8	74	30	47
Birkirkara	33	19	7	7	59	31	43
Balzan	33	17	8	8	59	45	42
Floriana	33	13	11	9	58	51	36
Sliema	33	10	9	14	50	56	26
Naxxar	33	9	9	15	40	51	25
Qormi	33	8	9	16	40	55	24
Tarxien	33	8	9	16	35	60	23
Mosta	33	9	6	18	38	72	21
Pietà H.	33	6	8	19	30	58	16
Żebbuġ	33	5	6	22	37	84	12

Note: Mosta to face Gżira United in a relegation-promotion play-off on Friday.

Champions last 10 years

2005-06: Birkirkara
2006-07: Marsaxlokk
2007-08: Valletta
2008-09: Hibernians
2009-10: Birkirkara
2010-11: Valletta
2011-12: Valletta
2012-13: Birkirkara
2013-14: Valletta
2014-15: Hibernians

League titles

Sliema Wanderers - 26
Floriana - 25
Valletta - 22
Hibernians - 11
Ħamrun Spartans - 7
Birkirkara - 4
Rabat Ajax - 2
St George’s - 1
Marsaxlokk - 1
KOMR - 1