Hibernians 0
Sliema Wanderers 0
The title race took an unexpected twist last night as Hibernians dropped two potentially costly points after their match against Sliema Wanderers ended goalless.
After champions and title hopefuls Valletta had opened up a two-point gap at the summit following their 2-0 victory over rivals Floriana on Saturday, the onus was on Hibs to beat Sliema and reclaim top spot.
Hibs were universally regarded as surefire favourites to make light of Sliema's challenge but the Wanderers made a mockery of pre-match forecasts with a tenacious performance that rattled their more-quoted opponents.
Goalkeeper Simon Agius, handed a rare start due to the injury-related absence of Henry Bonello, epitomised Sliema's gritty approach yesterday, the former Floriana netminder stealing the limelight with a sequence of extraordinary saves, including from a first-half penalty.
The flawless Agius was rightly named BOV player of the match but all 10 Sliema players who finished yesterday's high-octane encounter deserve credit for their valiant efforts. It speaks volumes of Sliema's resolve that they held out for a draw despite playing for an hour with 10 men after John Mintoff was red-carded for two bookings.
Hibs were understandably distraught at the end of the match as the draw left them one point behind Valletta with only two matches left.
Mark Miller's troops played their hearts out and created a spate of scoring chances but they just could not find a way past Sliema and their defiant goalkeeper.
Although the Paolites left the National Stadium ruing their ill-luck and Sliema's uncompromising approach, their performance yesterday was generally devoid of creativity. Moreover, they were shaky in defence as Sliema, despite being forced on the backfoot for long stretches, also wasted a hatful of scoring opportunities.
Goalless stalemates are usually boring affairs but this one bucked that trend. It was a pity that such a keenly-contested match ended on a sour note as seats were thrown onto the pitch from the section occupied by Hibs fans after the final whistle.
There was also a few skirmishes outside the stadium as some hot-heads approached the other side of the enclosure from the outside and began to throw stones and other objects towards rival fans before the police brought the situation under control. No injuries were reported but the police are believed to have made a few arrests.
Adrian Pulis was drafted back into Hibs' starting XI after completing his rehabilitation from a hamstring problem. Malta defender Aaron Xuereb has yet to regain his fitness after a series of injuries but he was named among the substitutes.
The playing resources at the disposal of Sliema coach Stephen Azzopardi were diluted by injuries and suspensions. Ivan Woods and Roderick Bajada were serving a one-match ban while goalkeeper Henry Bonello and Costa-Rican born striker Victor Ortega Coto were sidelined with injuries. Daniel Severino, currently at loggerheads with the Sliema committee, was absent from the 18-man squad.
On the plus side, Branko Nisevic and Miguel Ciantar received the medical go-ahead to start.
Early on, Cohen tested waters with a long-range piledriver that flew just wide. The Hibs livewire was prominent again on 15 minutes with a well-struck free-kick but Agius fisted the ball away for a corner.
The Paolites' optimism rose when referee Alan Mario Sant pointed to the spot after Soares Borges's cross came off Ian Azzopardi's outstretched hands. Terrence Scerri stepped up for the penalty but his low drive was blocked by Agius.
Scerri thought he had atoned for his penalty miss when he fired a shot into the net but his joy and that of the Hibs fans was cut short by Ingmar Spiteri's raised flag.
Agius's fine intervention heightened the spirits of the Sliema fans as well as the scores of Valletta faithful in the stands. The two, or rather three sets of fans, began to tease each other as the atmosphere on the terraces became more animated.
Dronca powered through the middle but his rising effort flashed wide as Sliema showed signs of life in attack.
However, their task became more complicated when Mintoff, having just been booked for time-wasting, received a second yellow card for an unorthodox tackle on Cohen, Agius then thwarted Hibs with brave blocks from successive efforts by Cohen and Clayton Failla as Hibs strove to make their numerical advantage count.
At the other end, Matthew Bartolo unnerved his former team with a strong run down the left. The pacy winger ran towards the byline before cutting the ball back towards the steaming Alex Muscat who tumbled to the ground as he was challenged by Jonathan Caruana. Sliema's sights were drawn to the referee but their hopes were dashed as Sant deemed that Muscat had dived and booked the Malta wing-back.
Inside the opening two minutes of the second half, Failla charged into the box to reach Cohen's return pass but his rising shot was too weak to trouble Agius.
Despite being down to 10 men, Sliema refused to wilt. The Wanderers created the best chance of the second half when Miguel Ciantar stormed clear on the right, outpaced Caruana and served Dronca at the far post. The Romanian lunged forward to hit the ball but his far-post effort was repelled by Muscat and his follow-up effort squirmed wide.
Hibs' riposte was immediate, Agius foiling Failla by pushing his shot over the bar. The former Floriana goalkeeper then brought the house down with a magnificent diving save to fist away Pulis's close-range volley.
Twenty minutes into the second half, injury forced Miguel Ciantar to abandon proceedings. His void was filled by Mark Scerri who was making his comeback after a knee injury kept him out for two months.
Hibs were finding it hard to infuse a semblance of fluidity into their play as the industrious Sliema kept their composure and tactical shape.
Muscat, switched to attack following the withdrawal of Ciantar, got on the end of a deflected pass but his shot ended just wide of the near post.
Hibs' evening appeared to take a turn for the worse when Scerri was taken off on a stretcher after suffering an injury. He was replaced by Xuereb.
Nine minutes from time, Sliema almost snatched the lead. Substitute Noel Turner swung in a cross from the left, Muscat came out to block Nisevic's header but the ball fell invitingly to Dronca who missed from point blank.
Hibs upped the tempo of their game as the end approached but Sliema dug in. As the match drifted into stoppage time, even Muscat, the Hibs goalkeeper, surged upfield to supplement his team's attacking charge.
Deep into stoppage time, a goalmouth melee in the Sliema box ended with Soares Borges guiding the ball into the net but the 'goal was disallowed as the Congo-born striker was adjudged to have struck the ball with his hand, much to the chagrin of the Hibs supporters.
Hibernians
M. Muscat-6, J. Caruana-5, E. Herrera-5 ('81 L. Grech), A. Pulis-5.5, J. Pearson-5.5, C. Callejas-6.5, T. Scerri-4 ('76 A. Xuereb), A. Cohen-6.5, R. Galabov-5, Z. Soares Borges-4, C. Failla-6.5.
Sliema Wanderers
S. Agius-9, A. Muscat-6.5 ('90 A. Mercieca), I. Azzopardi-7, K.P. Farrugia-6. B. Nisevic-7, M. Ciantar-7 ('65 M, Scerri-6), M. Bartolo-7 ('81 N. Turner), J. Chetcuti-6.5, L. Dronca-7, I. Ciantar-7, J. Mintoff.
Referee: Alan Mario Sant.
Missed penalty: Scerri (H) 22.
Yellow cards: Mintoff; Muscat; Failla; Herrera; Scerri; Soared Borges.
Red card: Mintoff (S) 34.
BoV player of the match: Simon Agius (Sliema Wanderers).