Rabat 0 Sliema 2
Newcomer Luigi Ruggiero's brace earned Sliema Wanderers a comfortable 2-0 win over Rabat Ajax. A red card for Rabat Ajax defender Clive Brincat 11 minutes from time, proved to be the turning point when Sliema Wanderers finally broke the Magapies' resilience.
Officials from Wales took charge of this match as part of a twinning agreement signed between Malta FA and their counterparts from the Wales Football Association.
Bryn Markhem Jones was referee, Lewiss Edwards and Daniel Beckett his assistants and Richard Harrigton the fourth official.
Prior to kick-off, Sliema President Keith Perry presented a memento to club striker Ivan Woods in recognition of his 400 Premier league matches.
The early exchanged were brisk.Inside the first minute, Jonathan Azzopardi, the Rabat goalkeeper, fisted away a dangerous shot from Alex Muscat and the defender scissor-kicked the rebound over the top as the Wanderers sought to make an early statement of intent.
After a lull in creative football, Rabat stirred around the 34th minute mark. David Azzopardi rampaged down the left flank before delivering an inviting the ball into the box and Cauchi, reading John Mintoff's intentions, got behind the back-pedalling defender before Henry Bonello saved his effort.
At the other end, six minutes later, Azzopardi rescued the Magpies from another potentially damaging situation when he did well to dive at the feet of Miguel Ciantar.
Sliema mentor Alfonso Greco tweaked his formation at half-time as debutant Luigi Ruggiero came on for the dissappointing Ariel Laudisi.
As expected Sliema enjoyed more possession but Rabat were well-drilled and coped with the pressure with Ivan Carapic cuting a prominent figure at the heart of the defence. So, it was inevitable that Rabat relied on set-pieces to put some pressure on Sliema. In the 66th minute, Sliema goalkeeper Bonello, fumbled a seemingly innocous free-kick by Yan Cauchi with Luca Martinelli on spot to clear away the danger.
The Wanderers were threatening on the right flank thanks to the pace and direct running of Ruggiero. In the 73rd minute, the Italian striker outfoxed the Rabat defence and laid the ball to the sprinting Matias Muchiardi who shot just wide.
The turning point of the match came six minutes later, when Clive Brincat was sent-off after he earned a second yellow card for time-wasting. At this point, sensing his opponents' difficult moment, Greco pushed Ruggiero and Muscat high down the flanks to stretch the Rabat defence .
And the Magpies' defence crumbled after 84 minutes when Ruggiero found space on the left flank, swiveled around his marker Gesualdi and unleashed a swerving shot that squeezed between Azzopardi and his near post.
In the closing moments, the Italian applied the killer touch, when the nippy striker deftly the ball over onrushing Azzopardi before depositing the ball into the net.