A coveted berth in the final of the U*Bet FA Trophy is up for grabs this evening as Valletta take on Ħamrun Spartans in the first semi-final of this season's KO competition at the National Stadium (kick-off 7.30 p.m.).

Valletta, who defeated Birkirkara 3-1 in the previous round, are considered as favourites to go all the way in the Trophy but cup ties are famed for throwing up surprises and Ħamrun delivered one in the quarter-finals with a 5-2 rout of Sliema Wanderers.

The convincing manner with which the Spartans shot down Sliema's bid to retain the FA Trophy can only have lifted their spirits ahead of what promises to be a gruelling encounter with a Valletta team deadset on striking success in this competition to ease the pain caused by their failure to win the BOV Premier League.

Ħamrun ought to derive further encouragement from their opponents' weakened resources as Valletta, the Spartans' fiercest rivals during the latter's glorious era in the eighties and early nineties, will be without a host of key players this evening.

Gilbert Agius, the Valletta captain, and Edmond Agius are ruled out by suspension, Jordi Cruyff is still sidelined with a nagging knee problem and midfielder Jamie Pace is struggling to shake off the knee injury he suffered in the early minutes of Malta's 3-0 defeat to Germany in last Thursday's friendly.

Pace had initially been ruled out of today's semi-final after preliminary checks indicated a sprain of his medial collateral ligament but reports suggest that the injury is not as bad as first thought.

Defender Luke Dimech is also out of the equation as he is serving a club-imposed ban and Irish striker Declan O'Brien rescinded his contract with Valletta earlier this month.

Ton Caanen, who has already announced that he will stand down as Valletta coach at the end of the season, is confident that his team will shrug off the absence of so many important players.

"We've got several players missing but we can still put together a strong line-up for this semi-final," Caanen told The Times. "I believe that the players have the determination and confidence to put on a good performance against Ħamrun."

Valletta haven't played a competitive match since their 4-2 victory over champions Birkirkara on the last day of the Premier League on May 5 as Malta's friendly against Germany in Aachen last Thursday meant that the Trophy semi-finals had to be moved back to the third week of the month.

There have been suggestions that this unusually long break at the end of the season may prove counter-productive for the four Trophy semi-finalists but Caanen is not unduly concerned.

"The mentality of the Maltese players must improve," Caanen said. "That said, the players here just move on and start to concentrate on the next game. My players have had time to think about the prospect of ending the season on a high if we win the trophy and their motivation is high.

"I don't think the pause after our final league game has blemished our atmosphere. Our performance against Birkirkara has given us a boost because we showed in that match that Valletta are the best team."

Caanen anticipates a stern challenge from Ħamrun but he is backing his team to cope with any hurdles their opponents might present this evening.

"In the first league game against Ħamrun this season, we were poor," Caanen said. "It was one of our worst performances but we still managed to win 3-2. In the second round, we beat Ħamrun 4-0 but past encounters count for nothing, especially in cup matches.

"Ħamrun have nothing to lose. Their self-belief is high after they beat Sliema 5-2 in the quarter-finals. They will be prepared to work really hard to beat us and qualify for the final but we're aware that Ħamrun are determined to produce their best performance of the season."

Steve D'Amato, the Ħamrun coach, backed Caanen's assertion by warning that his team fancy their chances of upsetting Valletta.

"It's a known fact that we're facing one of the strongest teams around," D'Amato said.

"They start as favourites to win, so the pressure is on them. Our path to the semi-finals was anything but easy as we eliminated St George's, Marsaxlokk and Sliema Wanderers but this positive run has increased our confidence.

"Our main target this season was to keep our place in the Premier League and we reached it with three games to spare. We genuinely believe that we can give Valletta a hard time."

Forward Ian Zammit, who joined Ħamrun on a short-term loan from Valletta in January, can't line up against his parent club after his dismissal in the win over Sliema cost him a one-match suspension.

This evening's semi-final will be Ħamrun's first match in three weeks but D'Amato is not overly worried about his team's lack of competitive action.

"We haven't had our best XI on the pitch for over a month because I brought several youngsters into the team for our final three league matches," D'Amato said.

"This long break from competitive football may have slowed our momentum but a Trophy semi-final is a big occasion and I'm sure my players will be up for the challenge."

The winner of today's tie will meet either Qormi or Tarxien Rainbows in Sunday's FA Trophy final. The second semi-final takes place tomorrow at the National Stadium at 7.30 p.m.