Ħamrun Spartans 1
Grima 17;
Sliema Wanderers 1
A. Muscat 53;
Ħamrun Spartans failed to provide new coach Stefan Sultana with a dream start as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Sliema. Yet, they need not despair over this result.
With Sultana in charge after taking over from Jesmond Zammit, they showed perseverance in the opening half after taking the lead courtesy of Massimo Grima’s free-kick.
And the Reds retained some self-belief despite conceding an equaliser early in the second half.
Their improved display engendered some encouragement among their fans as that was a way of demonstrating the spirit and pride are still intact.
Sultana opted to field an unchanged side from the one that lost 2-0 to Mqabba, a clear sign he believes that the core of the problem could lie elsewhere.
Gaetan Spiteri was higher up the pitch behind lead striker Ribeiro. Out on the flanks, it was Kevin Sammut on the left and Dene Shields on the right in a 4-4-1-1 shape.
By contrast, Sliema coach Danilo Doncic made sweeping changes, albeit some were forced on him by suspensions.
Jerry Ani and Cleaven Frendo were dropped while Clifford Gatt Baldacchino and Josef Mifsud were suspended. Bulgarian midfielder Danail Mitev was also out as he completed a three-match ban.
Newly-signed Cameroon striker Anicet Eyenga was deployed at the top of a 4-3-2-1 formation with Trevor Cilia and Emiliano Lattes pushing up the wings while Ryan Fenech played in the hole in front of the midfield duo of Mark Scerri and Nikola Bogdanovic.
The opening 10 minutes were short of goalmouth action as the Wanderers, wearing ‘away’ yellow kits, withheld the Reds’ efforts.
That was until the 17th minute, when Rumen Galabov sent Spiteri crashing to end the Spartans’ first serious venture towards the Wanderers penalty area.
Grima produced a delightful left-foot strike that bent away from Henry Bonello’s despairing dive.
The Wanderers threatened shortly after but Mark Scerri flicked his shot straight into Borg’s grasp from a long distance.
In the 39th minute, Lattes delivered a fine cross to the far post which Eyenga managed to head in the direction of Fenech but Borg blocked.
Three minutes later, Fenech was guilty of poor finishing. Eyenga raced past Gianluca Calabretta on the left and passed to Fenech but the former Spartans midfielder fumbled when he was in an ideal scoring position.
The Wanderers reverted to 4-3-3 for the second period with Fenech and Cilia pushing forward to support Eyenga.
Just before the hour, Sliema were rewarded for their authority when Fenech squared to Alex Muscat who showed quick feet to work his way into a shooting position before despatching past Borg.
On the other side, Shields was proving a handful, setting up the first clear opportunity for the Spartans after the break.
The Scottish striker swivelled to fire goalwards at point-blank but Bonello somehow kept the ball out and the Reds striker was thwarted again on the rebound.
Ten minutes later, Shields sent a stinging shot over the Sliema crossbar after the rearguard had only half cleared Sammut’s cross.
In the 77th minute, Lattes ran clear on the left but, with Eyenga screaming for the ball to be played into the box, the winger went alone and shot into the goalkeeper.
Ani made his entrance with seven minutes remaining, replacing Eyenga.
Ani made an impact inside five minutes when he had a clear opening from Cilia’s delivery but dragged his effort just wide.
It was the final meaningful action as Sliema were left frustrated by their third consecutive draw while Sultana earned a useful point in his bid to pick up the pieces and revive a team that had lost its way since winning their last match against Tarxien in December.
Sliema Wanderers: H. Bonello-6, A. Muscat-7.5, N. Bogdanovic-7, M. Scerri-6.5 (88 R. Dalli), A. Eyenga-6 (83 J. Ani), T. Cilia-6, R. Fenech-6, R. Galabov-6, S. Bezzina-5, E. Lattes-6, B. Muscat-5.
Ħamrun Spartans: O. Borg-6, S. Bonnici-5 (72 D. Zerafa), G. Calabretta-5, R. Hartvig-7, M. Gauci-5, M. Grima-7, L.J. Agius-5 (78 D. Camilleri), K. Sammut-6, A. Ribeiro-5.5, D. Shields-6.5, G. Spiteri-6 (84 R. Mangion).
Referee: Kevin Azzopardi.
Yellow cards: Grima; Fenech; Gauci.
BOV player of the match: Alex Muscat (Sliema Wanderers).
Attendance: 1,017.