During the 70-odd years of competitive football in Malta, there were many instances when the clubs rebelled against the game’s authorities.
Those, however, were the days when football was controlled by the owners of the Empire Stadium.
The MFA did not have the financial strength to impose its will on its members and the management of the ground. It was, therefore, something of a novelty when, in 1984, the clubs went on strike and temporarily brought the Premier League to a standstill.
In August 1984, the top-flight clubs took an important step forward in their quest to gain more recognition from the MFA.
Representatives of the clubs met on Saturday, August 25, in Floriana to form the Premier League Standing Committee (PLSC). The main objective of this committee was to gain more say in the running of the game on the island.
Victor Tedesco was voted as the committee’s first president, George Bonello DuPuis assumed the role of vice-president, while Benny Pace and Alfred Cauchi were nominated secretary and assistant secretary respectively.
Two members, preferably the club’s president and secretary, represented each team in the Premier League.
The new committee did not waste much time. Its first step was to arrange a meeting with Dr George Abela, the MFA president.
The two sides met in what was described in the press as a very cordial meeting. The clubs explained their position and made suggestions but, when the MFA appeared to be dragging its feet, they decided to force the pace by taking drastic action.
Things came to a head when the Premier League matches Sliema Wanderers vs Marsa and Floriana vs Hamrun were transferred to Pace Grasso. This change was necessary because the pitch at the National Stadium was unfit for play.
In an urgent meeting of the Premier League Standing Committee held on January 3, 1985 the clubs demanded that from the following Sunday all matches had to be played on Wednesdays and Sundays at Ta’ Qali.
The MFA was not prepared to give way to threats. It was only willing to discuss the clubs’ grievances in its own time, which happened to be the next council meeting on January 10, 1985.
In the circumstances, perhaps, it would have been wiser for the clubs to accept the council’s proposal but common sense was waved aside and they insisted that their demands be put into action.
On Sunday January 5, Floriana were due to play Hibernians while Valletta were to play against Marsa.
The four clubs, however, refused to honour their fixtures. In the meantime, the MFA held an urgent meeting with the Premier League Standing Committee (PLSC) to stop the teams’ actions but the clubs refused to budge.
The league programme was not held and the council charged the four clubs for failing to honour their fixtures.
In the meantime, both the MFA and the PLSC held long talks with the Minister of Sport, Lorry Sant.
An agreement seemed to be in sight but, since the MFA insisted on charging Hibernians, Floriana, Valletta, and Marsa, the remaining four clubs officially informed the MFA that they were not going to honour the league programme of January 12. In fact, these matches were not played.
This ensured that none of the clubs would benefit of any sanctions which any MFA imposed on the rebels.
The clubs had made their point. There was solidarity between them and they felt strong enough to take further actions if ever they were needed.
The MFA took the hint but, at the same time, it was not prepared to give way to threats. Therefore, at the council meetings of January 10 and 17, the Premier League clubs were found guilty and the championship was suspended indefinitely.
The clubs were fined and they lost the points of the matches which were not played. The league was re-started on January 26 after a cooling-off period of 25 days.
From the start of the second round, the clubs’ share of the gate-money was increased from 38 to 50 per cent.
The clubs were satisfied and the MFA had safe-guarded its authority. In the end, everyone was happy.
On Saturday, February 17, Żurrieq beat Ħamrun Spartans 2-1 in the most controversial match of the season.
Twanny Agius was harshly criticised for his refereeing. This was nothing new. Referees cannot please both sides and one team or the other is always disputing his decisions.
This time, however, events took a much more sinister turn. During the night of February 20 and 21, a bomb was placed on the doorstep of Agius’ residence. It was a violent and idiotic act, which shocked the whole sporting fraternity.
The authorities expressed solidarity with Mr Agius. The members of the Malta Referees Association, however, were not satisfied with statements. They wanted protection, and, in an extraordinary general meeting, they decided to take drastic action.
To draw the attention of all those concerned, they decided to boycott the Premier League programme of Saturday and Sunday February 23 and 24.
In the circumstances, one would have expected the MFA to be sympathetic to the referees’ plight.
Nevertheless, as usual, the MFA took a different view of the situation.
The council wanted the league programme to go ahead as planned, no matter the cost.
Therefore, after appealing to the referees to suspend their action, and bringing in officials from England, the referees were out-manoeuvred and the following weekend they were back in action.