BOV Amateur League II MD21 Review: Msida secure win to keep promotion hopes alive, Dingli triumph, Rabat get convincing win

BOV AMATEUR LEAGUE II 2025/26
MATCHDAY 21

Msida St Joseph 2-1 Kalkara United
Champions Kalkara United bumped into their third defeat of the campaign as Msida managed to beat the Grand Harbour side by the odd goal in three in the early Sunday afternoon Sirens Stadium kick-off. It was a deserved victory for the Saints, a must-win clash as the win means they remain fully engaged in the promotion tussle with Dingli and Mdina.

Remarkably, Kalkara opted to start with several regulars on the bench, including goalkeeper Liam Lagana, defender Josmar Sammut, veteran striker Ryan Dalli, winger Mario Jude Dominicus and playmaker Miguel Perez-Jimenez. The last three entered the fray in the second half.

Msida had a slight upper hand in the opening phase and were awarded a penalty on 29 minutes when Rhys Gove brought down David Akindele in the box. Thomas Grima stepped up but Kalkara goalie Keith Dimech made a splendid save to deny the Msida striker. But barely two minutes later, Akindele was the fastest to kick Msida ahead from close-range, fully anticipating on some indecision in the Kalkara defence. The champions produced little to nothing up front in a disappointing first half.

Kalkara did show some more urge after the change of ends, but it was Msida who remained the team who created the most danger. On the hour, former Valletta midfielder Llywelyn Cremona doubled with a tap in at the second post from a Mattei Cini cross, much to the delight of the Msida faithful. Not much later, Akindele missed two clear chances, the first one a header while the Nigerian striker miskicked the second from an ideal angle, before being replaced with another speedster, Japanese winger Nobokatsu Tsuchiya.

On 77 minutes, Kalkara substitute Luke Farrugia pulled one back with a free header at the second post from a Dominicus cross, which spurred a flood of attacks towards the Msida goal. With four minutes left, Jonathan Mallia brought the house down with a splendid save on a Perez Jimenez scorcher. Not much later, Mallia did well to save a Dominicus header without many problems. But the late rally proved to be futile with Msida bagging an important three points, keeping maximum pressure on Dingli.

Dingli Swallows 4-1 Gharghur
In the last match of Sunday at the Victor Tedesco Stadium, Dingli Swallows showed no mercy towards Gharghur, beating the team of coach Alan Friggieri 4-1 with two goals in each half, two each from Ronaldinho Daley and Jurgen Gerada. It was the win Dingli needed to consolidate second place, on pole position to join Kalkara United into the third tier of the Maltese football pyramid.

The Swallows started brightly as expected with Gerada having an effort that was saved by Leon Seisun. The team of coach Nicolai Caruana had another good chance on 12 minutes when Matteas Caruana made some space in the box, but his shot was well blocked by Seisun, who kept his team into the match at this point. But nine minutes later, the first goal arrived courtesy of Daley who smashed his shot into the net. Barely a minute later it was 2-0 with another excellent effort by Gerada as Dingli continued to impose themselves.

Six minutes after the change of ends, the match was over as a contest when Gerada grabbed his brace and Dingli’s third goal. Three minutes later it was 4-0 with Daley scoring from an indirect free kick with a clever low shot, his 20th goal of the campaign. Gharghur did grab a consolation goal as, three minutes from time, Dante Camilleri beat substitute goalkeeper Gianluca Pisani. The Swallows will seal their promotion with a win against Mdina Knights this Sunday.

Mdina Knights 2-3 Santa Venera Lightnings
A stormy encounter at Sirens Stadium on Sunday night descended into controversy, as bottom side Santa Venera Lightnings edged past Mdina 3-2 in a match that ultimately extinguished the Knights’ promotion ambitions.

The fixture, which produced a staggering four red and eleven yellow cards, spiralled into chaos in its closing stages. Central to the post-match debate was the official’s handling of key incidents, including the disallowing of a late Mdina equaliser and a disputed dismissal involving Jake Sciberras. The Mdina player appeared to be the victim of a headbutt from Santa Venera’s Michael Theuma, yet both players were sent off, a decision that sparked outrage among the Mdina ranks and contributed to a disorderly conclusion that required police intervention.

Santa Venera introduced veteran defender Jeffrey Chetcuti into the starting line-up for the first time since early December. Approaching his 52^nd birthday, the former Malta international delivered a commanding performance at the heart of defence, playing a pivotal role in the Lightnings’ resilience. Up front, Desire Koiba emerged as the standout performer, earning man-of-the-match honours after troubling the Mdina defence throughout the contest.

As anticipated, Mdina controlled possession for large spells but struggled to penetrate a disciplined Santa Venera backline. Against the run of play, the Lightnings opened the scoring on 25 minutes with their first meaningful attack, as Ayrton Buhagiar converted from close range following a Jordi Farrugia delivery. The goal unsettled Mdina, and just before the interval, Koiba doubled the advantage, finishing clinically from a Liam Aquilina assist.

Mdina responded in stoppage time when Ivan Bojovic struck the post, allowing Jordan Vella to capitalise on the rebound and reduce the deficit, reigniting hopes of a comeback.

The Knights emerged from the break with renewed urgency, pinning Santa Venera deep in their own half. However, it was the Lightnings who struck again just before the hour mark, with Koiba producing an excellent individual effort after being set up by Zak Francica to make it 3-1.

Mdina’s task became even more difficult on 63 minutes when Nichail Muscat was dismissed after receiving two yellow cards in quick succession. Despite the numerical disadvantage, Mdina continued to press however, and were rewarded on 79 minutes when Isaac Spiteri headed home from a Matthew Borg corner to narrow the gap. Moments later, goalkeeper Wayne Chircop St John kept Mdina in contention with a crucial save to deny Koiba a hat-trick.

The match reached its most contentious phase in the closing minutes. Spiteri appeared to have equalised for Mdina, only for the goal to be ruled out for hands-ball after a prolonged delay by the referee, a decision that drew visible frustration and raised questions over its timing and certainty.

Tensions escalated further in the dying moments when an off-the-ball incident involving Theuma and Sciberras resulted in both players being shown straight red cards, despite strong claims that Sciberras had been the recipient rather than the instigator of the altercation.

What followed was complete disorder, with several Mdina players and officials confronting the referee. The situation deteriorated to the point that police entered the pitch, while the official in charge opted to bring proceedings to an abrupt end. Indeed, a match to forget for the real football lovers.  

St George’s 1-3 Ta’ Xbiex
A fixture at the Mosta Ground last Sunday that appeared to carry little weight in the overall standings, ultimately produced a highly contentious encounter.

St George’s began brightly and threatened as early as the fifth minute, when Matthew Gauci slipped a through ball into the right side of the area for Jaden Camilleri, whose effort was well saved by goalkeeper Brandon Debono. The early pressure continued and in the 11^th minute, Renato Garcia Conceição’s corner to the back post was met by Kurt Vella, whose header struck the upright.

Despite the strong start for the Blues, it was Ta’ Xbiex who took the lead in controversial circumstances in the 34th minute. Kane Micallef delivered a free-kick from the left into the box, where Aaron Mizzi appeared to guide the ball into the net with his hand. Amid strong protests from St George’s players, the referee allowed the goal to stand. The decision sparked further repercussions, as Kurt Vella was shown a straight red card for dissent, leaving his side a man down.

The dismissal shifted momentum in Ta’ Xbiex’s favour and they nearly doubled their lead just before the interval when Andrei Spiteri’s cross drifted dangerously towards goal, forcing the St George’s goalkeeper to tip the ball over the bar.

The Pioneers continued to push after the restart, but it was the Blacks who came close to double when Antoine Attard’s in swinging free kick was parried to the edge of the area, where Warren Azzopardi volleyed over. Not long after on the other sie, Matthew Gauci tried his luck from distance, narrowly missing the target. Two minutes later, another opportunity fell to St George’s when a low cross from Kenneth Aquilina was only partially cleared into the path of Owen Galea, whose effort was comfortably gathered by the goalkeeper.

Ta’ Xbiex extended their advantage on the hour, with Neil Borg capitalising on a defensive error. The team of German mentor Thomas Westphal continued to threaten and in the 70th minute Mizzi picked out Nathan Belhadj with a lofted pass down the right, but his attempted chip drifted just over the crossbar. The Saints responded five minutes later, pulling a goal back through Jaden Camilleri, who capitalised on a misjudged clearance, with the ball deflecting off him and into the net before a defender could intervene.

The goal gave the Harbour side refreshed hopes and on 79 minutes, Sebastian Perdomo came close to reducing the deficit further, striking the base of the post with a half-volley. However, Ta’ Xbiex secured the result four minutes from the end, when Vitor Hugo released Antoine Attard down the left, and his low pass found Timmy Thomas in the centre, who finished calmly into the bottom corner.

There was still time for one final chance in stoppage time, as Attard and Thomas combined neatly before Attard squared for Nicholas Scicluna, who fired over the bar. In the end, Ta’ Xbiex emerged with all three points, though the match will likely be remembered as much for its contentious moments as for the football itself.

Ghaxaq 1-4 Siggiewi
In the second kick-off at Sirens Stadium last Sunday, Siggiewi clinically overturned Ghaxaq’s resistance with a 4-1 score. Although Ghaxaq had their moments, Siggiewi had no difficulty with the team of coach Johann Zammit who, in all probability, need to re-apply for their BOV National Amateur League II status this summer. It was the sixth consecutive defeat for Ghaxaq who have, once more, been struggling this season despite some encouraging victories over St George’s, Marsaskala and the reverse First Round fixture over Siggiewi. 

After Shamizen Buhagiar came close for Ghaxaq on nine minutes, forcing Clyde Aquilina into an excellent save, it was Siggiewi who took the lead eight minutes later when Edward Bugeja headed home a Roderick Taliana corner. On 27 minutes, Ghaxaq drew level thanks to a stunning and well-placed free-kick by Ian Muscat, one of the best goals at the Sirens Stadium this season. Siggiewi re-took the lead on 32 minutes with Tyrone Grech, unmarked at the second post, kicking home from another Taliana corner. There were opportunities on each end while on 36 minutes, Aquilina did well to block a Craig Deguara attempt.

Ten minutes after the break, Juan Manuel Artiaga Roa released Taliana who, unmarked, blasted wide, wasting a huge opportunity to put the game to bed. On 74 minutes however, Taliana did score the 3-1 for Siggiewi after some good work by substitute Mason Fiteni. In stoppage time, Siggiewi sealed the issue thanks to a wonderful individual action by Artiaga Roa, who coolly beat Frendo for a fourth time.

Marsaskala 0-3 Rabat Ajax
On Sunday at the Mosta Ground, Rabat Ajax returned to winning ways as they defeated Marsaskala with a 3-0 score-line. It was a deserved victory for the Magpies, who are ending a disappointing season as the giants of Maltese football in the 1980s have faltered incredibly into a modest fourth tier club. The technical staff gave several minors a try during the 2025/26 campaign, but realised they had to reverse a gear, banking on established players such as Zachary Tanti, Aidan Azzopardi, Sean Abela and goalkeeper Jean-Matthias Vella, who are all in their 30s.

The Magpies were clearly a better side right from the start, going close with an Andy Camilleri effort from outside the area which was saved by goalkeeper Matthias Scerri on six minutes while nine minutes later, a free kick by Azzopardi ended high. Rabat took the lead on 19 minutes when Tanti received an assist from the right and beat Scerri with a low shot from inside the area.

Marsaskala, who did introduce many youngsters with success under the guidance of coach Roger Mifsud, replied with a powerful Luca Pace effort which was neutralised by Vella on 22 minutes, while five minutes later, a fine Dale Valletta effort was deflected into a corner. However, three minutes from the end of the first half, Rabat threatened once again, this time with Jamie Camilleri whose close-range effort which was saved in two attempts by the Marsaskala custodian.

Five minutes in the second half, Victor Mbata tested Scerri with a cross following a good move on the left and one minute later, a free kick by Azzopardi ended just wide. On 56 minutes, Mbata all alone in front of the goalkeeper was unlucky to hit the crossbar with a shot from the edge of the area.

Rabat finally doubled on 79 minutes thanks to Mbata who hit low past Scerri following as assist by Azzopardi. Five minutes later, Tanti sealed the outcome of the game by added another, hitting low past the Marsaskala goalkeeper off a corner by Abela from the left.