MALTA - GEORGIA 1
Malta battled to a deserved draw against Georgia this evening and won its first point in Group F of the Euro 2012 qualifiers.
The Maltese side turned in arguably its best performance of the last two years as it held Georgia in an entertaining match at the National Stadium.
Bristling with confidence, Malta put pressure on Georgia from the initial whistle but when the latter opened the scoring against the run of play, fears of another collapse by the home side resurfaced.
Thankfully, the Maltese players stayed focused and captain Michael Mifsud boosted their spirits with an excellent equaliser only 11 minutes after Georgia's opener.
Malta had further chances to move ahead but in the end, the Maltese players were just happy to settle for the draw and their first point after eight qualifiers.
Malta coach John Buttigieg made one change from the Croatia game, defender Jonathan Caruana replacing Manny Muscat.
The hosts started confidently as they took the game to Georgia. André Schembri's run towards the penalty area was halted by Zurab Kizhanishvili who was yellow-carded for his offence.
Briffa's ensuing free-kick came off Georgia's defensive wall. Michael Mifsud went close with a sizzling shot that Georgia goalkeeper Nukrui Revishvili pushed away for a corner.
Georgia had been subdued in the opening stages but their first attack produced a goal. David Targamadze's corner from the right sailed towards Jaba Kankava who was several metres away from goal but his looping header flew above Andrew Hogg, the ball hitting the underside of the crossbar before dropping beyond the goalline.
Not for the first time, Malta had complicated matters for themselves by conceding a soft goal but to their credit, the home players maintained their composure. They quickly regained their earlier fluency to score a stunning equaliser thanks to captain Michael Mifsud who, in quick movement, pulled away from Kakha Kaladze before hitting a thunderous drive that gave Revishvili no chance.
It was Mifsud's 30th international goal as the prolific striker consolidated his place at the top of Malta's all-time scorers' list.
Four minutes past the half-hour, Hogg did well to push away Otar Martsvaladze. Another fine Malta move saw Cohen pull the ball back for Briffa who crossed for Andrei Agius but the latter's header was saved by the Georgia goalkeeper.
Late in the first half, Cohen swapped passes with Mifsud but the Hibs playmaker blasted high and wide.
Georgia coach Temur Ketsbaia will surely have demanded an improvement from his team at half-time as the visitors had been outfought by Malta in the first period.
Five minutes into the second half, Georgia created a good move as Grigalava set up Alexander Iashvili but the latter's drive drew a good save from Hogg.
Malta didn't take long to find their rhythm. Close to the hour, Ryan Fenech was carried off on a stretcher after being injured by Guram Kashia's clumsy tackle. Daniel Bogdanovic came on for Fenech. The new Blackpool forward was conspicuous when he veered infield from the left before firing a strong shot that Revishvili turned away for a corner.
Georgia had a good opportunity of their own as second-half substitute Shota Grigalasvhili guided a through-pass to Vladimer Dvalishvili but the latter's strike was blocked by Hogg.
The Malta goalkeeper was prominent again when touching away a dangerous effort by Alexander Kobakhidze, a second-half substitute.
John Hutchinson fired wide for Malta after being teed up by Mifsud as the score remained unchanged, much to the delight of the home fans.
Malta
A. Hogg, J. Caruana, G. Sciberras, A. Agius, R. Fenech (60 D. Bogdanovic), R. Briffa, M. Mifsud, A. Cohen (90 I. Woods), J. Hutchinson, A. Schembri (76 J. Pace), C. Failla.
Georgia
N. Revishvili, J. Kankava, G. Kashia, K. Kaladze, G. Grigalava, Z. Khizanishvili, J. Ananidze (77 A. Kobakhidze), O. Matrsvaladze (65 S. Grigalashvili), A. Iashvili (61 V. Dvalishvili), L. Kobiashvili, D. Targamadze.
Referee P. Van Boekel (Netherlands).