SK Victoria Wanderers and Kercem Ajax have secured their place in the First Division Knock-Out final after winning their respective semi-final matches against Qala Saints and Xewkija Tigers, respectively, at Kerċem Stadium over the weekend.
Victoria Wanderers kept alive their hopes of defending the Knock-Out title by defeating Qala Saints on penalties.
After extra time, the match ended in a 1-1 draw, but the Wanderers prevailed 4-3 in a penalty shootout.
The semi-final was an entertaining and evenly contested match, with qualification hanging in the balance until the end.
The Wanderers made the better start and took the lead on 16 minutes through Sam Harland.
Qala hit back in added time of the first half when Ibrahim Mohammed found the net with a fine strike.
The second half and extra time were evenly matched, with neither side managing to find a winner, and the contest was eventually decided from the penalty spot.
Qala’s Gilberto Carrara, Matteo Camilleri, and Gustavo Lemos scored three from the five penalties, but Sergipe’s penalty kick was saved by the goalkeeper, while Gabriel Cardona’s shot ended wide.
On the other hand, the Wanderers converted all four of their penalties through Jose Wilkson, Caique Souza, Mateus Gomes and Sam Harland, to book their place in the final.
In the second semi-final, Kerċem Ajax recorded an emphatic 6-1 victory over Xewkija Tigers, further underlining their ambition to challenge for the major honours in Gozitan football.
The match was a direct clash between two of the championship’s leading sides, who are yet to concede a defeat in the league.
Despite the final scoreline, the match was keenly fought for long periods, with chances created at both ends.
However, Kerċem were more disciplined and determined, taking better advantage of their scoring opportunities and defending well to prevent Xewkija from getting back into the game.
Kercem took a commanding two-goal lead in the first half through Andrea Debrincat in the 19th minute and Isaias Cruz seven minutes later.
Xewkija attempted tried to fight back but were wasteful in front of goal. In the 67th minute Mateus Lima extended Kerċem’s advantage.
Xewkija pulled one back in the 71st minute with a superb strike from Claudio Frances, but Kerċem made full use of the space left at the back in the closing stages.
Isaias Cruz made it 4-1 in the 85th minute and then Kerċem were awarded a penalty three minutes later, but Nenem’s effort was saved.
However, Kerċem quickly made amends by scoring twice more in stoppage time, with Mateus Lima finding the net in the second minute of added time and Mario Henrique completing the rout in the fifth minute.
Division Two
Sannat Lions secured a crucial 4-2 victory over St Lawrence Spurs.
This was a direct clash between two top sides, and the result not only gave Sannat a three-point lead at the summit but also handed St Lawrence their first league defeat.
Sannat appeared to be heading for a comfortable win after Igor Nedeljkovic struck twice in the first half (13, 33) to give them a 2-0l lead.
However, St Lawrence mounted a strong comeback early in the second half and restored parity with goals from Felipe Augusto (46) and Gabriel Debrincat (61).
The match then opened up, but Sannat regained the advantage in the 71st minute through Tristan Grech before Nedeljkovic completed his hat-trick with a fourth goal in the 86th minute to seal victory.
Żebbuġ Rovers earned their first points of the season with a 2-0 victory over Oratory Youths, moving off the bottom of the table.
The match was evenly contested for much of the encounter, but Oratory were reduced to ten men in the 67th minute when Christian Cardona was shown his second yellow card and sent off.
Żebbuġ capitalised on the numerical advantage and scored twice late on through Haraan Goncalves Barbosa (79) and Jake Sacco (90) to secure the win.
NEXT FIXTURES
SATURDAY – KERĊEM STADIUM
GFA DIVISION TWO
Munxar vs Għarb Rangers 13.00
Oratory Y. vs Sannat Lions 15.15
SUNDAY – GOZO STADIUM
GFA DIVISION ONE
Kerċem vs Qala Saints 13.00
Xewkija vs Għajnsielem 15.15
