BALZAN 3 TARXIEN RAINBOWS 2
Balzan put the fight for the last Championship Pool berth with Naxxar Lions to the last 90 minutes when they managed to see off Tarxien Rainbows with a last-gasp strike by Josè Luis Negrin in a pulsating match.
Jesmond Zerafa’s troops surged into a two-goal lead inside the opening 35 minutes. A hiding loomed large for Tarxien Rainbows against their fired-up opponents. Tarxien had been second best for most of the first half but they were a different lot after the break. Making his bow for Tarxien, Demba Toure made an immediate impact on the team with a well-taken brace to level matters but Balzan refused to settle for a draw. Their bold approach was rewarded when Negrin unnerved the Tarxien defence to score the all-important goal.
Balzan monopolised possession and took the lead just shy the half hour mark. Balzan defender Andrew Scicluna’s header deceived the Tarxien goalkeeper who lost balance and spilled the ball into the path of Negrin who tapped the ball home.
Micallef illuminated the game with an excellent goal five minutes later. Running into the box to meet Pedrinho’s pass, the striker fired a pulverising shot which gave Vella no chance.
Tarxien managed to catch another glimpse of Bartolo’s goal as, in a counter-attack, Pulo ran past his marker but his shot was an anti-climax. The Rainbows narrowed the deficit on the cusp of half-time. Jorge’s inswinger was met by Toure who despite being sandwiched between two defenders, rammed his shot through Bartolo’s legs and into the net.
The goal gave Tarxien confidence as the Rainbows began to pass the ball better. Their improvement was evenident when Manuel Caruana’s speculative shot at goal arched over the stranded Bartolo but finished on the woodwork.
Having the wind at their backs, Tarxien continued to surge forward and the scores became level on 66 minutes. Jorge’s inswinger from corner was missed by Bartolo who was outjumped by Toure. The Senegalese’s looping header above a host of players and dropped into the net. Balzan looked stunned.
The force was with Tarxien now. In the 78th minute, Toure raced through the midfield from the right before squaring to Jorge who tried his luck with a shot from outside the penalty area but his effort was blocked by Bartolo.
Yet, Zerafa flagged his intention to go for broke as introduced Ryan Darmanin for Dylan Grima and switched to a three-pronged attack. Darmanin was soon in the thick of things, when the laky forward’s astitute backheel released Negrin who shot just wide. But the Spainard was not to be denied moments later when his elusive feet caught Tarxien on the wrong foot to beat Vella with a low drive.