Earning promotion to the top division is an achievement in its own right but such feat becomes extra special when it is attained by the only club in the country that still has an amateur status.
Melita delighted the football purists earlier this month when securing promotion to the BOV Premier League.
Not only that but the Reds, under the guidance of former Malta midfielder Martin Gregory, were crowned Division One champions after edging fellow promotion challengers Rabat Ajax 1-0 in a last-day title decider courtesy of a Julian Galea goal.
“The satisfaction at winning promotion to the Premier League was immense,” Gregory told The Times.
“The achievement takes on added significance when you consider that this group of players have been together since the days when Melita were in the lower divisions plus they are all amateurs and products of the club.”
Having narrowly missed out on promotion in 2010/11, Melita were determined to return to the top flight of Maltese football for the first time since the early sixties.
“Last year, we lost a promotion play-off,” Gregory said. “Our target is always to improve on the previous season and that meant that we had to aim for promotion.
“To be honest, our target was to get into the Premier League but to go up as champions was the cherry on the cake.
“It was just reward for the hard work of all the people at the club.”
Melita are probably keen to bring in some reinforcements during the summer and strengthen their chances of avoiding relegation but Gregory reckons that is a tall order for the club, given that their amateur status precludes them from paying their players.
“It’s not always possible (to sign new players),” Gregory said. “Our objective is to survive but because we have an amateur status, it’s difficult to bring in new players.
“That said, I also believe that the players in the current squad deserve to represent the club in the Premier League for all the sacrifices they’ve made.”
It is generally agreed that the quality of the foreign players can have a massive effect on teams’ fortunes, especially in the Premier League.
Serbian midfielder Jovan Vukanic and Spanish wing-back Manuel Ramon Sierra Camacho turned out regularly for Melita this season and Gregory is hopeful that the club manage to unearth some strong foreigners who satisfy the criteria to represent the Amateurs next season.
“We’ve had some foreign players in the team in the last two seasons but these had a job outside football,” Gregory said.
“It’s a difficult situation for us but we will try to find a solution like we have in the last two years. Obviously, these have to be better than we already have.”
Gregory himself is leading by example as he has rejected the overtures of Sliema Wanderers to stay with Melita.
“I’ve been very honest on this,” Gregory replied to a question about interest from other clubs. “Keith Perry (Sliema president) is my friend and he had asked me if I would be interested in coaching Sliema Wanderers.
“My reply was that if Melita gained promotion to the Premier League, they (Sliema) can forget it but if not, then we could talk. Now that we have reached our Premier League objective, there’s no way I will abandon this club.”
Vella delivers
Like Gregory, Silvio Vella is a former Malta stalwart who has enhanced his coaching credentials after leading Rabat Ajax to the elite division after a lapse of 11 years.
“At the start of the season, our main goal was to make sure of our Division One status and be competitive,” Vella said.
“But, as the season progressed, we managed to stay in touch with the leading teams and that increased our motivation to challenge for promotion.
“We have a young team but the players had great enthusiasm and were really willing to prove themselves. I believe this was one of the key factors behind our promotion success.”
Rabat’s efforts to convince Vella to take over as coach have been vindicated as the former Malta youth mentor has steered the club to back-to-back promotions.
“It’s all about going forward and after winning promotion from Division Two, the target was to go up to the next level,” Vella said.
Having started his playing career with Rabat before moving to Hibs, Vella is delighted to have played a part in leading his home club back to the top echelon.
“Rabat Ajax are my home team,” Vella said. “I left them early to join Hibs but Rabat will always remain my first club.
“Our promotion to the Premier League has given me a lot of satisfaction but it has been a collective effort. We’ve all worked hard for this success.”
Unlike Melita, Rabat can go out and sign how many players they wish but Vella insisted that the club are treading with caution.
“I’m in constant talks with the committee to see what the club can afford to spend for next season,” Vella said.
The Rabat coach is expected to retain the players who formed the backbone of the team this season and is willing to extend the loan deals of Hibs’ Yan Cauchi and Clifford Gauci, of Valletta.