Msida St Joseph 1
Sliema Wanderers 4
Stephen Azzopardi's reign as Sliema Wanderers coach got off to a positive start yesterday as the Blues recorded a 4-1 victory over Msida St Joseph to leapfrog Floriana at the top of the standings.
But Sliema's new coach could never have imagined the circumstances that saw his team gain a somewhat flattering first victory under his charge. The Wanderers needed two stoppage-time goals to move clear of Msida who had no fewer than three players sent off in the space of 11 second-half minutes.
Azzopardi has a lot to do to get Sliema's crop of talented players to raise their performances to the expected levels and stay in the hunt for the league title. Yesterday, the Wanderers were forced to chase the result after falling 1-0 behind and with the two sides tied at 1-1 at the end of the first half, it seemed that the Blues were going to sweat to clinch the three points.
When Orosco Anonam put Sliema ahead in the second half, the match was still evenly-poised but Msida's hopes all but disappeared when three of their players were expelled.
Cameroon striker Priso Doding was the first to head to the dressing room after receiving two bookings inside the first 15 minutes of the second half.
Trailing 2-1 and playing with a player less was already a tall order for the Saints but matters became more complicated for them when Dino Cachia and Stefano Grima were also shown a red card.
Despite this triple setback, Msida still managed to limit the damage to a bare minimum before finally succumbing to two late goals.
Unable to field the suspended Ivan Woods and the injured Jeffrey Chetcuti, Azzopardi opted to recall Noel Turner to Sliema's starting XI as Nesko Milovanovic started among the substitutes.
Still reeling from the defeat against Pietà Hotspurs and the unexpected departure of former coach Ray Farrugia, the Wanderers were looking to bounce back with a resounding win over an Msida team languishing in the bottom part of the table.
The suspension of Brazilian striker Pedrinho certainly did not help the cause of Msida coach Patrick Curmi who handed Andrè Formosa a starting role.
Surprisingly, it was Msida who took the lead inside the first quarter. Adrian Farrugia executed a corner from the right, Brazilian Gilberto Dos Santos hit a strong shot against the crossbar but Patrick Borg nipped in to head home.
Goalmouth action was conspicuously lacking in the early stages but on 29 minutes, the Blues drew level. Roderick Bajada chipped a free-kick towards the penalty area, Brian Said headed the ball towards the centre and Aleksandar Madzar headed in from close range.
Five minutes from half-time, Doding forced Murphy Akanji into a fine save as the Sliema custodian pushed the ball away for a corner.
Seven minutes into the second half, Sliema came close to going ahead. Borg failed to clear a seemingly harmless ball and as Msida goalkeeper Manuel Bartolo moved forward to grab the ball, Madzar powered through but his shot rattled the post.
A minute later, however, there was little the Saints could do to deny Sliema as Etienne Barbara crossed for Anonam in the centre of the penalty area and the Nigeria-born midfielder did well to head into the net despite appearing to lose his balance as he made contact with the ball.
Having turned the tide in their favour, Sliema were now in a position to control proceedings as things took a turn for the worse for Msida just after the hour when Doding was sent off for two cautions.
The problems for Msida were far from over as midway through the second half, Cachia was sent off by referee Adrian Casha, back in the Premier League fray after a long absence, for lashing out at an opponent.
As tempers flared, Msida defender Grima was also dismissed after he appeared to hit Barbara in the face. Casha had no option but to produce the red card for the third time, leaving Msida to play the final 17 minutes with eight men. Despite their massive numerical handicap, Msida created a tense moment for the Blues rearguard as Pio Sciriha's free-kick was hastily cleared away in the last 10 minutes.
With the clock weighing down and Msida defending gallantly, the five minutes of added time proved too much for Curmi's troops. Their resistance wavered as Sliema substitute Matthew Bartolo and Roderick Briffa struck two late goals for a final 4-1 scoreline.
Msida: M. Bartolo-6.5, P. Sciriha-6.5, S. Grima, P. Borg-6, T. Farrugia-6, D. Cachia, A. Formosa-6 ('77 S. Vella), A. Farrugia-6, A. Spiteri-6 ('50 L. Micallef-6), P. Doding, G. Dos Santos-6.
Sliema: M. Akanji-6, A. Muscat-6.5, I. Azzopardi-6 ('86 I. Ciantar), B. Said-6.5, N. Turner-6.5 ('67 N. Milovanovic-6), R. Bajada-6.5 ('76 M. Bartolo-6), O. Anonam-7, A. Madzar-7, R. Briffa-6.5, S. Pace-6.5, E. Barbara-7.
Referee: Adrian Casha.
Scorers: Borg 15; Madzar 29; Anonam 53; Bartolo 90; Briffa 90.
Yellow Cards: Doding; Milovanovic; Micallef.
Red Cards: Doding 62; Cachia 71; Grima 73.
BoV Player of the Match: Etienne Barbara (Sliema W.).