Ħamrun Spartans 2

Grima 65; Camilleri 84

Melita 2

Micallef 75; Galea 86

This was a stalemate that offered little resipite for Ħamrun Spartans and Melita as both teams came into the match badly in need of a win to boost their position in the standings following Rabat Ajax’s win over Balzan earlier on.

But at the end neither Ħamrun nor Melita were able to savour a winning return.

Melita were the fastest out of the blocks when Jean Pierre Attard hit the bar with a rasping drive from the distance after seven minutes.

Scoring opportunities were scarce in a quiet opening. The Spartans produced their first notable chance on 26 minutes when Massimo Grima almost conjured up the lead with a curling free-kick that hit the post.

The match fell into a lull but Melita almost grabbed an opener on the hour mark, when Cabanillas made inroads on the left before firing a vicious strike that was push away by Curmi.

But much against the run of play, the Spartans opened the score five minutes later. Grech’s delivery from corner soared into the box and Grima timed his jump to perfection to head past Philip Schranz.

Ħamrun almost increased their lead but Lattes’s grounder following a solo run, was cleared off the line by Luke Bianco. Melita looked shell-shocked but they refused to give up. The scoreboard showed 73 minutes when Ivan Tufegdzic zipped open the Spartans defence with a delicate ball for Cabanillas who timed well his run to pull Curmi off the line but Grech reading the Spaniard’s intentions came to his goalkeeper’s rescue.

Yet two minutes later, Julian Galea unleashed a swerving free-kick that sailed across the Spartans box, finding substitute Luke Micallef at the far post, to head behind Curmi.

The game ended with a flourish as the two pushed for the winner. Six minutes from time, substitute David Camilleri pounched on a short clereance by the Melita rearguard to place a precise  finish high into the top corner.

But Melita were not to be denied. Manuel Sierra Camacho suprised his opponents as he cut the ball back to Galea from a free-kick and the Melita forward beat Curmi with low shot.