HAM

The first round of the Blue Label National League came to an end on Sunday with reigning Champions Rabat taking all three points in their direct clash against Sliema and thus ending the round at the top of the table. Sliema remain on seven points with The Hunters’ Tower Rest while Poiatti Qormi, thanks to an emphatic 4-0 victory over White Hart move up to four points still with a big say in proceedings.

P W D L F A PTS
Rabat Depiro 4 3 1 0 5 2 10
The Hunters’ Tower Rest. YS 4 2 1 1 6 4 7
Sliema Hs 4 2 1 1 6 5 7
Poiatti Qormi 4 1 1 2 6 5 4
White Hart 4 0 0 4 3 9 0



Sliema Hs 0 vs. Rabat 1
H.T. 0-1
Umpires: Reno Cremona and Charles Micallef

In the first game of the day Rabat beat Sliema with a solitary first half goal and assured themselves of top spot at the end of the first round of matches. At the same time they inflicted the first defeat of the League on Sliema Hs. Like most of the matches so far, the game was balanced with both sides giving as much as they got. The goal, when it arrived, was set up by the Sliema attack! During their best patch of the first half, a missed place pass between the Sliema attackers allowed Rabat to break and outnumber the Sliema defence. Jason Vella held up the ball well on the right and then picked out Josef Antonelli who had the easiest of tasks to tap in from close range.

This goal was to prove decisive even though both sides created enough chances to increase the score.

White Hart 0 vs. Poiatti Qormi 4
H.T. 0-2
Umpires: Joe Lewis and Robert Aquilina


In the second game of the day Poiatti Qormi started out the stronger side but despite initial period of pressure, the White Hart defence to their credit, held out with little difficulty. Ironically it was White Hart who had the best scoring opportunity at this stage of the game. After a quick break, Luke Busutill Leaver found himself alone in the dee but goalkeeper Chircop saved his reverse hit.

Poiatti’s efforts were rewarded a few minutes later however, when after the White Hart defence had half cleared the ball, it fell in front of Frankie Bugeja who hit it straight into the roof of the net to make the score 1-0. Qormi pressed home their advantage and a few minutes later, following a short corner move, the same Bugeja hit in goal number two.

These two goals took the punch out of White Hart and during the second half they rarely threatened the Qormi defence. Poiatti went three nil up when Phillip Magri picked the ball up from midfield dribbled past two White Hart defenders and then slotted the ball into Galea's right hand corner. The game was dead and buried a few minutes later when Magri was picked up unmarked in the dee and he easily placed the ball beyond Galea to make the score 4-0.

Next Sunday, the second round of the National League will get underway with Poiatti Qormi playing Sliema Hs at 11.00 a.m. In the first round the encounter ended in a 1-1 draw.

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