Player of the Year Stephania Farrugia joins Malta’s century club

Just a few days after Dorianne Theuma bid farewell to football, Stephania Farrugia joined her in the century club of the Malta women’s national team.

Birkirkara captain Farrugia became Malta women’s second player to make 100 appearances.

Last week, former Malta captain Theuma retired after 118 matches, and she is still the all-time leading scorer with 26 goals.

While scoring goals was not Farrugia’s primary task, preventing them was a duty she has fulfilled with resilience and determination every single game.

Nonetheless, Farrugia still managed to find the net on five occasions against Andorra, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Estonia, Latvia and Switzerland.

The 32-year-old made her debut in a 2007 international friendly against Switzerland, in a match where a future centurion also played her first game – Rachel Cuschieri, who is two games away from the 100th cap with Charlene Zammit just three games shy.

“It is a significant moment for me,” Farrugia told the Times of Malta.

“It is a representation of all my sacrifices throughout my career.

“I am grateful for this moment as I never thought I would play 100 games with my national team.”

Farrugia is at the back of a domestic treble with Birkirkara, with her strong performances earning her the Malta Football Association Player of the Year award for the third time in her career.

She is now joint-second with former Malta international Tessie Agius in the all-time winners of this prestigious award, with Theuma leading with eight accolades.

Farrugia’s previous two awards were back-to-back between 2016 and 2017.

Three years before her international debut, Farrugia broke through Birkirkara’s first team making 14 appearances in the 2004-05 season.

The upcoming 2024-25 campaign will mark Farrugia’s 20th season donning the colours of the Stripes for whom she has now played 374 matches while scoring 123 goals in the domestic competitions.

Farrugia has been an instrumental player for the Stripes in the Champions League as well, having captained the team in their historic wins over Glentoran, of Northern Ireland, and Montenegro’ Breznica.

In Europe’s top club competition, the Malta defender played 28 matches.