Balzan 1
Elton 36;
Floriana 3
Darmanin 13; Verma 81; Cilia 84;

Floriana left it late to turn the tables on Balzan in what had become a rout in the closing stages.

A late goal rush which produced a spectacular free-kick by Aman Verma before substitute Trevor Cilia burst into the area to slot the ball past Matthew Camilleri, ensured the Greens their first win of the season that left them just behind early pacesetters Valletta, Birkirkara and Hibernians.

Facing a much-changed Floriana team, Balzan fancied their chances of an upset victory but Mark Wright’s side produced a plucky display to run out deserved winners.

Ivan Zammit, the Balzan coach, effected two alterations from the 2-1 defeat to Birkirkara as Malcolm Licari and Bjorn Bondin were preferred to Martin Deanov and Jonathan Francica.

Christian Caruana, who joined Balzan from Floriana this week, was named among the substitutes.

Floriana were coming from a turbulent week off the pitch after the club released Caruana and Christian Cassar.

Two of the five changes in Floriana’s starting formation were enforced upon coach Wright as Caruana left the club and Carl Tremarco was unavailable for the selection.

Goalkeeper Jurgen Borg was given the nod to start in goal as Ryan Darmanin, Owen Bugeja and Clyde Borg were handed first-team roles in Floriana’s 4-4-2 formation in which new striker Sunday Wasiu was the attacking spearhead.

The scoreboard showed six minutes when Elton rounded goalkeeper Borg but his shot was cleared off the line by Aaron Brown.

The early exchanges did little to lift the subdued mood of the meagre crowd that braved the inclement weather as creative football proved hard to come by.

But the Greens took the lead on 13 minutes. Owen Bugeja opened up the Balzan defence with a strong run on the left before serving Darmanin who fired home.

Balzan were back in the game, nine minutes from the end of the half. Renie Forace threaded a pass for Elton who hit the ball past Borg to restore equilibrium.

After the break, Caruana was up against his recent past as he was thrust straight into the thick of action.

Just before the hour stroke, Valdo Alhino came on for the disappointing Clyde Borg as the Portuguese was detailed to pull the strings in midfield. Alhino’s movement was causing Balzan problems and the he burst forward and guided a through-ball to Darmanin who created space for a shot but the striker’s effort was foiled by the assistant referee who flagged for offside.

Floriana’s possession count increased as the second half moved past the 75th minute. A cross from the right by Darmanin soared dangerously towards the Balzan box but Stefan Giglio cleared.

Pedrinho provided some much-needed spark for Balzan with a good move on the right flank before switching the ball to Dylan Grima whose grounder ended wide.

On 81 minutes, Matthew Mendy scythed down Brooke Farrugia and Verma smashed home a stunning 25-metre free-kick with a delightful strike that bent viciously away from Matthew Camilleri.

With Balzan forced to reshuffle their pack and chase the game, Floriana punished their flat-out approach with a quick counter-attack.

Darmanin carved the Balzan’s defence wide open with a surging run before serving Trevor Cilia who lobbed the ball over Camilleri.

Balzan
M. Camilleri-5, B. Bondin-4 (34 J. Francica-6), Y. Camilleri-5, R. Forace-6 M. Mendy-5 (83 M. Deanov), S. Giglio-6, Pedrinho-6.5, J. Pace-5, D. Grima-5, M. Licari-5 (46 C. Caruana-4), Elton-5.

Floriana
J. Borg-6, A. Brown-7, O. Bugeja-6.5, T. Farrugia-6, D. Pisani-6, K. Farrugia-5, B. Farrugia-7, A. Verma-7.5, C. Borg-5 (58 Alhinho), R. Darmanin-6.5, S. Wasiu-6 (76 T. Cilia).

Referee: Mario Apap.

Yellow cards: Pisani, Giglio, Calcado, Elton, T. Farrugia, Mendy.

BOV Player of the match: Aman Verma (Floriana).

Attendance: 684.

Standings