Swieqi United meet Valletta, Mġarr United face Lija Athletic
After a lengthy three-week break due to the international window, the women’s national championship returns this weekend with old foes Hibernians and Birkirkara set to cross swords at the Centenary Stadium.
For champions Birkirkara, this will be just their third outing of the season having missed two weekends of action due to their commitments in the UEFA Women’s Champions League.
Jose Borg’s have picked up two wins from both games, against Lija Athletic and San Ġwann, scoring 19 goals and conceding none.
Italian winger Marta Grosso leads the club’s scoring list with four goals while three players follow with a trio of goals each – Raina Giusti, Arianna Del Moral and Alishia Sultana.
The perfect start to the 2023/2024 campaign has put Birkirkara one game away from marking their 90th game unbeaten in the league.
Looking to deny Birkirkara this impressive milestone will be old rivals Hibernians who have also enjoyed a bright start to their campaign.
The Paolites share top spot with Mġarr United on 10 points after winning three of their opening four games of the season.
Keith Gouder’s side are also at the back of a hard-fought 2-1 victory over title challengers Swieqi United.
Summer signing Leah Ayres is currently the club’s top scorer with three goals so far.
Swieqi, on their part, will be in action on Friday against Valletta as they will look to bounce back to winning ways.
Saviour Darmanin’s team have won two of their three league games so far and three points against Valletta would help them stay in touch with the top part of the standings.
Ghana forwards Karima and Salamatu Abdulai lead the club’s scorers list with five goals each as the Owls have scored 16 goals in three games so far.
On the other hand, Valletta have six points after four league outings in their debut campaign.
In their latest league appointment, the Lilywhites defeated Lija Athletic 3-1 with in-form Anna Aloisio grabbing a brace as she has already scored five goals for her new club.
Meanwhile, Mġarr United face Lija as the Greens look to maintain their first place in the standings.
The Greens, who sit top on 10 points, eased past Mtarfa 8-0 with Joelma scoring four goals.
The Brazilian playmaker, who joined the club during the summer, is the league’s best scorer with six goals after four weekends of action.
Lija Athletic have only one point to show for their efforts so far having drawn 1-1 with San Ġwann on Matchday 2.
Elsewhere, San Ġwann and Mtarfa take on each other with the latter still looking for their first points of the season.
Simon Spiteri’s Mtarfa have been on the losing side in all of their opening three games.
San Ġwann have picked up one point so far, against Lija Athletic.
MD5 FIXTURES
FRIDAY
Hibernians vs Birkirkara – 18.00, Centenary Stadium
Valletta vs Swieqi United – 20.30, Centenary Stadium
SATURDAY
San Ġwann vs Mtarfa – 15.00, Dingli Ground
Mġarr United vs Lija Athletic – 17.30, Dingli Ground
Photo: Michael Azzopardi Photography.
