Few days ago our President, Dr. Anton Tabone, had an interview with the Times of Malta.

Click the link below to follow:

 

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Statistics 2018/2019 team:

Player	Date of birth	Minutes	Matches	Full match	Cautions	Expulsions	Goals	Captain
Lattes Emiliano Patricio	28.01.1985	2760	30	30	2	0	11	1
Da Silva Elton Alexandre	20.09.1985	2753	30	29	4	0	42	0
Sowatey Daniel	01.07.1994	2504	28	25	3	0	2	0
Bajada Jonathan	01.02.1991	2556	29	25	5	0	1	0
Mercieca Christian	07.06.1997	2200	28	12	3	0	9	0
Apap Ferdinando	29.07.1992	2176	25	21	7	1	6	25
Grima Lawrence	31.12.1995	1887	26	17	5	0	0	0
De Souza Maciel Henrique	12.11.1991	1785	20	17	9	0	14	0
Pace Jason	24.05.1994	1681	22	11	7	2	0	0
Parnis Adrian	19.09.1990	1913	22	19	0	0	0	4
Mizzi Andrew	02.03.1995	1800	29	13	3	0	6	0
Bajada Shawn Pierre	19.08.1983	1128	13	7	1	0	4	0
Galea Daniel	16.01.1986	847	11	8	0	0	0	0
Bezzina Michael Joseph	09.04.1992	969	24	5	1	0	1	0
Vella Joseph Mario	08.09.1998	935	14	4	5	0	0	0
Miloskovic Stanimir	21.12.1983	880	10	9	0	0	4	0
Azzopardi Justin	05.09.1992	281	6	2	0	0	0	0
Camilleri Christopher	02.10.1979	396	5	2	1	0	2	0
Montano Bejarano Miguel	25.06.1991	180	2	2	0	0	2	0
Debrincat Andrea	30.11.1995	369	13	1	0	0	2	0
Buttigieg Joshua	09.07.1997	84	6	0	0	0	0	0
Cremona Oliver	14.11.2001	104	5	0	0	0	0	0
					56	3	104

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Our captain, Ferdinando Apap, and our vice-captain, Adrian Parnis, are both nominated for the GFA Player of the year:

GFA Player of the Year
Apap Ferdinando – Victoria Hotspurs FC
Parnis Adrian – Victoria Hotspurs FC
Attard Shaun – Nadur Youngster FC

Our versatile midfielder, Emiliano Lattes, and our attacker, Elton Da Silva, are both nominated for the 1st Division Foreign player of the year:

1st Div. Foreign Player of the Year
Da Silva Elton – Victoria Hotspurs FC
Lattes Emiliano – Victoria Hotspurs FC
Barbosa Marcelo – Nadur Youngster FC

Our head coach, Gothard Conti, is also nominated for the Coach of the Year award:

Coach of the Year
Conti Gothard Victoria Hotspurs FC
Simoncic Alex Kercem Ajax FC
Vella Michael Nadur Youngster FC

We wish our players and coach the best for these prestigious awards.

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BOV GFA Cup Final
Gozo Stadium 5 May 2019

Nadur Y FC : 2 (L. Tabone 12’, D.M. Bustos 30’)
Bugeja, L.B. Da Silva, D. Farrugia, L. Tabone, I. Xuereb, M.J. Barbosa, D.M. Bustos, S. Attard, J. Buttigieg (M.P. Camilleri), L. Garcia Panesso, J. Parnis.

Victoria H FC : 3 (A. Mizzi 60’, S. Bajada 62’, E. Lattes 115’)
Parnis, F. Apap, L. Grima (M. Bezzina), C. Mercieca (J. Pace), A. Mizzi, J. Bajada, S.P. Bajada, H. De Souza Maciel, D. Sowatey, E.A. Da Silva, E.P. Lattes.

After Extra Time

MATCH REPORT

In the last match of the Gozitan football season, which was the final of the BOV GFA Cup, champions Victoria Hotspurs obtained a 3-2 win over Nadur Youngsters so that they made the treble for the first time in their club history – GFA Super Cup, BOV 1st Division and BOV GFA Cup.  This was also Victoria’s second time that they won this second most important honour in Gozitan football and through this achievement they also extended a successful run that started the previous season as they won two championships, the GFA KO for the first division, the GFA Super Cup and the BOV GFA Cup.

In the final of the 46th edition of the BOV GFA Cup both Nadur Youngsters and Victoria Hotspurs had strong motivation to obtain the win.  Nadur were aiming to end a disappointing season, where they only finished runners up in the championship and also in the GFA KO competition for the first division, by winning the Cup for the ninth time in their club history; while the Hotspurs needed to win this trophy after an absence of more than twenty years.  It was also the fifth direct clash between the two main protagonists of the Gozitan football this season where the Hotspurs won two matches of the championship, the other match of the championship ended in a draw, while Nadur won the match between the two sides at the quarter finals stage of the GFA KO competition for the first division.

The Hotspurs were the favourites to win this competition and as expected they took the initiative of play from the early stages of the encounter.  On 9 minutes the Hotspurs produced a good move but a shot by Henrique Maciel got a deflection by the defence and goalie Gaetano Bugeja managed to block the danger.  Nadur replied on 11 minutes through a shot by Shaun Attatrd that was deflected to a corner by Victoria’s rear guard and from the resultant corner kick, taken by Daniel Mateo Bustos, Luke Tabone headed towards goal.  The defence blocked the ball on the fatal line but form the rebound the same player fired in goal form close distance.  Victoria seemed shocked and Nadur took the driving seat and started to administer play with some authority. The first attempt from Victoria towards Nadur’s goal arrived on 27 minutes when Emiliano Lattes took a short clearance form Nadur’s defence but his shot was weak and Nadur’s keeper neutralised the danger without difficulty.  Nadur doubled the score on the half hour mark through a direct corner kick by Daniel Mateo Bustos that surprised Victoria’s goalie and his defence.  On 36 minutes a shot from outside the area by Victoria’s Jonathan Bajada ended wide and one minute later Nadur could have created more danger but a shot by Marcelo Barbosa form a good position following a personal action ended high.  Nadur could have added another goal on 44 minutes but a good shot by Marcelo Barbosa was saved with some difficulty to a corner by Victoria’s goalie Adrian Parnis.

Nadur created also the first scoring opportunity of the second period that arrived on 49 minutes but an attempt by Leiner Garcia Panesso was blocked to a corner by Victoria’s central defender Daniel Sowatey.  From the resultant corner action Nadur’s Josef Buttigieg saw his attempt neutralised by Victoria’s keeper. The Hotspurs however were more determined and started to put pressure on Nadur’s rear guard. On 51 minutes Victoria’s Henrique Maciel had a good shot that ended high and on the hour mark the Citizens reduced the deficit when Ferdinando Apap addressed towards the goalmouth form a corner kick and Andrew Mizzi was at the right place to push the ball in goal.  The Hotspurs kept insisting and less than two minutes later they levelled the score when a direct free kick from long distance by Shaun Bajada surprised Nadur’s keeper Gaetano Bugeja.  The Hotspurs took full control of play and on 69 minutes a direct free kick by Shaun Bajada ended just over Nadur’s goal.  The Hotspurs were also dangerous in the first minute of stoppage time before the end of regular time but an attempt form a free kick by Elton Da Silva missed the target.  One minute later the Hotspurs could have scored a dramatic goal but a close ranged first timer by Andrew Mizzi following a free kick by Emiliano Lattes was saved with difficulty to a corner by Nadur’s keeper so that the score remained unchanged and the match had to go into extra time.

During the first half of extra time the match continued to be well contested and with few open scoring opportunities as the main strikers were well controlled by the respective defenders.  On 100 minutes the Hotspurs had an attempt through Elton Da Silva that was weak and goalie Gaetano Bugeja saved without difficulty and during the first minute of stoppage time before the end of the first half of extra time the same Da Silva had a header form a corner action that ended wide.  Nadur’s best opportunity to regain the lead arrived on 110 minutes but a shot by Daniel Mateo Bustos missed the target so that five minutes later the Hotspurs scored the goal that decided the final of the prestigious competition when Victoria’s Shaun Bajada passed outside the area to Emiliano Lattes who fired in goal with a low shot that ended at the lower corner of Nadur’s goal.  Nadur’s reaction arrived two minutes later but a shot by Leiner Garcia Panesso ended just over Victoria’s goal.  On 119 minutes the Hotspurs could have sealed the win but Andrew Mizzi’s attempt form an ideal position ended wide.

At the end of the extra time Victoria’s players, officials and supporters started celebrations while the President of the Gozo Football Association Dr Samuel Azzopardi and the Chief Officer of the Bank of Valletta Mr Horace Laudi, together with other GFA officials presented the medals and trophies of the BOV GFA Cup.

Referee:  Darryl Agius

Source: gozofa.com

 

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Victoria Hotspurs won the BOV GFA Cup 2018-2019 after facing Nadur Youngsters in a direct conflict between Gozo’s best teams. The hard-fought match ended 2-2 on regular time, and therefore was forced into Extra time. Victoria’s winning goal was scored at the 10th minute of the second half of extra time play by Emiliano Lattes.

More information soon.

MATCH DETAILS

BOV GFA Cup Final
Sun 5 May 2019 – Gozo Stadium

Nadur Youngsters FC – FT (2-3 aet) – Victoria Hotspurs FC
Referee: Darryl Agius
12’ (1-0) Luke Tabone (Nadur Youngsters F.C.)
30’ (2-0) Daniel Mateo Bustos (Nadur Youngsters F.C.)
60’ (2-1) Andrew Mizzi (Victoria Hotspurs F.C.)
62’ (2-2) Shawn Bajada (Victoria Hotspurs F.C.)
115’ (2-3) Emiliano Lattes (Victoria Hotspurs F.C.)

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Newly crowned BOV Gozo Football League Champions Victoria Hotspurs will face Nadur Youngsters in the final of the BOV GFA Cup Final being played on Sunday 5^th May 2019 at 3.00pm.

Team coaches and players met the media to share their views for the upcoming final, during a press conference organized by Bank of Valletta and the Gozo Football Association. They were accompanied by Dr Samuel Azzopardi, President of the Gozo Football Association and Horace Laudi, Chief Officer at Bank of Valletta.

‘This is the second most prestigious honour of the season and a very coveted one’ said the GFA President. ‘We take this opportunity to thank our sponsors Bank of Valletta and also the MFA President Norman Darmanin Demajo, who just announced that he will not seek re-election for the support they have always shown us’

‘Bank of Valletta is a firm believer in the benefits of sports and its effect on the community,’ said Horace Laudi. ‘We have been working closely with the Gozo Football Association to raise the profile of the game in Gozo and we are very please that this game is being transmitted live on local television for the first time’.

‘Nadur is a very ambitious team and we have built a very strong team this season,’ said Nadur Youngsters coach Michael Vella. ‘We consider ourselves as the underdogs going into this final, however we have already beaten the Hotspurs’ this season and we are convinced that we have what it takes to win this major competition.

Victoria Hotspurs coach Gotthard Conti believes that his team is in very fine form. ‘This cup has eluded us since 1997  – we are in the best of forms this year, and we will be facing our biggest rivals this year during this final. This cup has eluded us since 1997 and we are in a prime position to break this negative record and lift the trophy this year.

Victoria Hotspurs Captain Ferdinando Apap said ‘Although we have already beaten Nadur twice this season, we are not looking back at these statistics but will be doing our utmost for the double’.

Daniel Mateo Bustos in his first season in Gozitan Football said ‘This is the last match of the season and we do not want to finish this season without any honours. Following yesterday’s semifinal, we are already stepping up our preparations to bring this honour home.’

This final will also pit the league’s top scorers, Victoria’s Elton da Silva who is the competition’s scoring leader with 30 goals, followed closely by Nadur’s Marcelo Barbosa with 27 goals to his name.

Source: bov.com

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BOV GFA Cup Semi-final
Gozo Stadium – 1 May 2019

Xewkija T FC : 1 (R. Buttigieg 62’)
Grima, M. Tabone, C. Bugeja, C. Antunes Pavlidis, R. Buttigieg, G. Hili, J. Cefai Bonnici (M. Xerri), J.M. Vella, M. Stojanovic, H.T. Barbosa Honorato, D. Bogdanovic.

Victoria H FC : 4 (E.A. Da Silva 11’, 29’pen, 55’pen; C. Mercieca 56’)
Parnis, L. Grima, C. Mercieca (J. Buttigieg), J. Pace, A. Mizzi, J. Bajada (M. Bezzina), S.P. Bajada, H. De Souza Maciel, D. Sowatey, E.A. Da Silva, E.P. Lattes.

MATCH REPORT

Victoria Hotspurs registered a 4-1 win over Xewkija Tigers in the second semi-final of the BOV GFA Cup so that the champions of Gozitan football can aim to end a successful season by winning the double.  The Hotspurs are also trying to win this competition for the second time in their history after more than twenty years. In this match the Hotspurs confirmed their good moment of form and practically made sure of the qualification by scoring the four goal within the first hour of play.  Xewkija, who were the holders of this competition, were expected to produce a serious challenge to the champions, but they seemed fragile at their defence and ended up suffering from Victoria’s breaks so that they compromised their chances to defend the honour during the first part of the encounter.  Victoria’s striker Elton Da Silva was again a main protagonist in the win for his side as he scored three of the four goals and created various other good scoring opportunities. This was also the fifth match between the two sides this season. Xewkija won the match between the two sides of the first round of the championship but the Hotspurs won the other two matches from the second and third round of the championship, and won also the Super Cup at the beginning of the 2018/2019 season.

The Hotspurs could have opened the score within the first minute of play but a shot by Shaun Bajada was partially saved by Xewklija’s keeper Mark Grim and form the rebound Elton Da Silva failed to take advantage of the situation so that the ball was cleared from the area by the defence.  Xewkija replied on 5 minutes with an initiative by Barbosa Honorato but goalie Adrian Parnis managed to clear the ball to a corner and to avoid danger within his area. Two minutes later Xewkija’s Rodney Buttigieg and a shot from a good position that was blocked to a corner by central defender Daniel Sowatey and on 11 minutes the Hotspurs opened the score when Elton Da Silva took the ball from Xewkija’s defence and as soon as he entered the area he concluded in goal with a low shot.  Xewkija’s immediate reaction arrived on 13 minutes through a shot by Joseph Mario Vella that was saved well by goalie Adrian Parnis and one minute later Victoria’s Shaun Bajada had an attempt that was neutralised by Xewkija’s keeper Mark Grima.  Victoria increased their momentum and maintained pressure on Xewkija’s defence for a good part of the first half. On 243 minutes a shot by Victoria’s Emiliano Lattes was again saved by Xewkija’s goalie and the same goalkeeper was well placed on 37 minutes to save a shot by Elton Da Silva who exchanged the ball with Shaun Bajada before addressing towards goal.  On 28 minutes the Hotspurs were awarded a penalty for a foul by Christian Bugeja on Henrique Maciel and Elton Da Silva converted from the spot kick to make it 2-0 for his side.  On 38 minutes the Citizens could have added another goal but a first timer by Emiliano Lattes following a pass by Christian Mercieca was blocked in time by Xewkija’s Milos Stojanovic.  Xewkija’s best opportunity to reduce the score arrived on 41 minutes through a strike by Claudio Antunes that ended just wide.

The Hotspurs continued to be more offensive after the break and on 49 minutes Xewkija’s goalie Mark Grima was well placed to block a free kick by Shaun Bajada.  One minute later the Hotspurs were awarded another penalty for handling by substitute Manwel Xerri in a challenge with Henrique Maciel and Elton Da Silva increased the lead for his side by placing in goal with the shot form the spot kick.  Xewkija were shocked and on 56 minutes the score became 4-0 when Henrique Maciel released Christian Mercieca who had his first attempt that was stopped by the crossbar and from the rebound the same striker pushed the ball easily into an open goal.  Xewkija scored their consolation goal on 62 minutes through a header by Rodney Buttigieg following a free kick by Joseph Mario Vella and for the rest of the encounter Xewkija tried hard to score more goals but they were denied from scoring on more than one occasion with good interventions by Victoria’s keeper Adrian Parnis.  On 68 minutes Victoria’s keeper blocked a good effort by Joseph Mario Vella and two minutes later the same keeper neutralised an attempt by Christian Bugeja following a prolonged action within Victoria’s area. The Hotspurs replied on 71 minutes with a low shot by Elton Da Silva that was saved by Xewkija’s keeper and one minute later Xewkija’’s Barbosa Honorato had a goal that was disallowed for an offside infringement.  On 79 minutes Victoria’s goalie Adrian Parnis made another difficult intervention following a header by Barbosa Honorato from a free kick by Daniel Bogdanovic and the same keeper made the best save of the afternoon to block a strike by Claudio Antunes on 81 minutes. The Hotspurs could have scored more goals in the following minutes but on 82 minutes a low shot by Shaun Bajada after receiving from Elton Da Silva was saved by Xewkija’s goalie Mark Grima and the same goalkeeper also saved an effort by Henrique Maciel on 85 minutes.  Xewkija’s last opportunity to score a second goal arrived one minute later but a shot by Christian Bugeja was saved to a corner with difficulty by Victoria’s goalie Adrian Parnis.

Referee: Slobodan Petrovic

Source: gozofa.com

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GFA BOV Gozo Football League Division I
Gozo Stadium – 28 April 2019

Victoria H FC : 4 (E. Da Silva 2’, 45’; C. Mercieca37’, E. Lattes 79’)
Parnis (D. Galea), L. Grima, J. Azzopardi, C. Mercieca (J. Buttigieg), A. Mizzi, J. Bajada, S.P. Bajada (M. Bezzina), H. De Souza Maciel, D. Sowatey, E.A. Da Silva, E.P. Lattes.

Nadur Y FC : 2 (Sh. Attard 11’, M. Barbosa 88’)
Vella, L.B. Da Silva, T. Souza Da Silveira, D. Farrugia, L. Tabone, I. Xuereb, M.J. Barbosa, D.M. Bustos, Sh. Attard, J. Buttigieg, J. Parnis.

MATCH REPORT

In the last match of the BOV Gozo Football League of the first division 2018/2019, Victoria Hotspurs, who were already mathematically champions before this encounter, celebrated the honour won for the second consecutive season and for the 13th time in the club history with a comfortable 4-2 win over Nadur Youngsters.  These two teams were the main protagonist and challengers for the title this season but at the end the Hotspurs prevailed as they managed to obtain positive results in the direct clashes and also because the Hotspurs did not miss the opportunities to obtain full points from all the matches against the less quoted sides.  With this win the Hotspurs registered their 19th win from 21 matches in the championship so that they ended with a total of 58 points, nine more than the same Nadur who placed as runners-up of the championship. It was also the second win for the Hotspurs over Nadur from four clashed this season as the Citizens won the match between the two sides of the first round of the championship but conceded a defeat in the match from the first round of the KO competition for the first division.  The other match between the Hotspurs and Nadur, that of the second round in the championship, ended in a draw.

In this match Nadur held more possession but they found it extremely difficult to convert their play into good scoring opportunities, while the Hotspurs protected their area with an organised defence, despite the fact that they had skipper Ferdinando Apap missing due to a suspension, and were more direct with their play so that they created continuous danger through their main striker Elton Da Silva.  The same Da Silva scored two goals in this match and ended up the top scorer of the championship with 30 personal goals, three more than Nadur’s Marcelo Barbosa who only managed to score one goal in this encounter.

The Hotspurs had an excellent start and opened the score in the second minute of play through a low shot by Elton Da Silva who entered the area with a personal action.  Nadur’s immediate reaction was sterile and on 10 minutes the same Da Silva could have doubled the score but his attempt was well saved by goalie Franklin Vella.  Nadur, however, managed to clinch the equaliser one minute later when Marcelo Barbosa passed inside Victoria’s area to Shaun Attard who turned around his direct opponent and fired in goal form an ideal position.  On 21 minutes Nadur could have turned the result in their favour but a close ranged shot by Marcelo Barbosa was well blocked by goalie Adrian Parnis and in an immediate reply by the Hotspurs a free kick by Elton Da Silva ended just wide.  On 24 minutes Nadur’s Marcelo Barbosa came once again face to face with Victoria’s keeper but the latter was well placed and saved the danger with a decisive intervention. On 36 minutes Nadur’s keeper managed to save a free kick by Shaun Bajada with some difficulty as he also had a pressure to recover the ball in a second attempt from Victoria’s striker Henrique Maciel.  One minute alter the Hotspurs regained the lead when Nadur’s defence failed to clear the ball from the area and Christian Mercieca was well placed and fired in goal from close distance.  Victoria’s Shaun Bajada as again dangerous on 39 minutes through a free kick from long distance that ended just high and on 42 minutes Nadur’ Marcelo Barbosa once again had a good effort that was blocked by Victoria’s keeper Adrian Parnis.  One minute later a strike by Nadur’s Daniel Mateo Bustos ended just high and on 45 minutes the Hotspurs added another goal through Elton Da Silva who concluded a personal action with a shot from an angled position.

Nadur tried to produce a reaction after the break and on 51 minutes a shot from a good position by Marcelo Barbosa ended away from Victoria’s goal.  On 55 minutes Victoria’s Christian Mercieca had an attempt form an angled position that ended wide and one minute alter Victoria’s Elton Da Silva arrived on the ball inside Nadur’a area before the goalkeeper but the strike sae his lob aimed towards an open goal that ended wide.  Nadur continued to suffer Victoria’s breaks and on 67 minutes the Citizens were again dangerous through a header by Daniel Sowatey from a corner kick by Christian Mercieca that ended high. On 69 minutes Victoria’s keeper Adrian Parnis blocked a good shot by Daniel Mateo Bustos and three minutes later the Hotspurs replied with a good move where Henrique Maciel unmarked Elton Da Silva but the latter had a shot on the run that missed the target.  The Hotspurs scored their fourth goal on 79 minutes when Elton Da Silva defended the ball inside Nadur’s area and passed to Christian Mercieca, who prolonged to serve Emiliano Lattes with a shot on the run that ended in goal.  Nadur’s second goal arrived on 88 minutes through Marcelo Barbosa who concluded a personal action with a lob from an angled position.

After the final whistle the President of the Gozo Football Association, Dr Samuel Azzoaprdi, and the Regional Manager of the Bank of Valletta, Mr Horace Laudi, in the presence of other officials of the association, presented the medals to all Victoria’s players and staff and the trophies to Victoria’s captain Ferdinando Apap and vice-captain Adrian Parnis among the celebrations of the numerous supporters that continued at the club’s premises in Victoria.

Referee: Etienne Mangion

Source: www.gozofa.com

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Victoria Hotspurs FC added yet another prestigious award to their ever-growing collection when they were voted in by a jury as the “2018 Team of the Year”.

The Gozo Sports Board, within the Ministry of Gozo, organises this annual event to award the most prominent athletes and teams in Gozo during the year. The event was held under the auspices of the Hon. Minister of Gozo, Dr. Justyne Caruana, at the Grand Hotel, Mgarr on the 26^th April 2019.

Dr. Anton Tabone, President of Victoria Hotspurs FC, collected the award on behalf of the Club.

“It is with great satisfaction that our Club has won this prestigious award which adds yet another trophy to our memorable 2017/8 season which saw Victoria Hotspurs win the 2017/8 Gozo Football League with record points, together with the Gozo First Division Knock Out Cup. This is the result of hard work put in by everyone at the Club – committee members, team manager, coaches, players and supporters – who altogether pulled in one direction. It is of great satisfaction and pride that our efforts have been recognised by the Gozo Sports Board. We will continue striving towards excellence in our work to the benefit of our Club but also towards the good of sports in Gozo” commented Dr. Tabone.

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GFA BOV Gozo Football League Division I
Gozo Stadium – 14 April 2019

Xewkija T FC : 2 (C. Bugeja 47’, S.A. Martinez Villa 53’)
Grima, J. Azzopardi, M. Tabone, S.A. Mrtinez Villa, C. Antunes Pavlidis (L. Cilia), G. Hili, J. Cefai Bonnici (R. Buttigieg), J.M. Vella, J. Saliba (C. Bugeja), M. Stojanovic, D. Bogdanovic.

Victoria H FC : 7 (E.A. Da Silva 3’, 86’, 89’; H. De Souza Maciel 12’, 32’; C. Mercieca 50’, E.P. Lattes 84’)
Parnis, F. Apap, L. Grima, C. Mercieca (A. Mizzi), J. Pace, J. Bajada, S.P. Bajada (J. Azzopardi), H. De Souza Maciel (M. Bezzina), D. Sowatey, E.A. Da Silva, E.P. Lattes.

MATCH REPORT

Victoria Hotspurs registered an impressive 7-2 win over Xewkija Tigers in the penultimate match of the championship for the two sides and with the points obtained they became mathematically champions of Gozitan football for the second consecutive season and for the 13th time in the club history.  The Hotspurs needed a point from this match to be mathematically sure to retain the main honour in Gozitan football for another season but all the players, officials and supporters were determined to earn their success through a win. The Citizens came out more aggressive and scored three goals during the first half despite having skipper Ferdinando Apap sent off just before the half hour mark.  After the break the Hotspurs resisted well to Xewkija’s reaction and made sure of the win with three late goals. With this result then Hotspurs confirmed their superiority in the BOV Gozo Football League of the first division for another season as they managed to obtain eighteen wins from twenty matches, they were the team who conceded less goals and had an excellent forward line where Brazilian striker Elton da Silva remain the hot favourite to win the top scorer table as he scored twenty-eight goals.

The Hotspurs could have opened the score in the second minute of play as Shaun Bajada passed to an unmarked Christian Mercieca who saw his low shot from close distance that ended wide.  However, one minute later Victoria opened the score as a curling shot by Elton Da Silva got a deflection by a defender and the goalkeeper, the ball hit the post and ended into an open goal.  Xewkija continued to suffer Victoria pressure during the opening minutes and on 12 minutes Xewkija’s goalie Mark Grima was called to make a good intervention to block a shot from an angled position by Elton Da Silva and from the rebound the defence failed to clear the danger so that Henrique Maciel placed easily in goal.  Three minutes later the Citizens could have added another goal but a strike by Shaun Bajada hit the cross bar and from the rebound Henrique Maciel failed to take the opportunity to conclude from an ideal position.  The Hotspurs had a goal scored by Christian Mercieca that was disallowed for an offside infringement. The Hotspurs suffered a setback on 29 minutes when they were reduced to ten players on 29 minutes when Ferdinando Apap was shown a straight red card for a foul away from the action on Claudio Antunes.  The Hotspurs however continued to dictate matters and on 32 minutes they added another goal through a curling shot by Henrique Maciel following a personal action that ended out of the reach of Xewkija’s goalie.  During the final stages of the first half Xewkija tried to be more adventurous and on 33 minutes a header by Claudio Antunes following a cross by Joseph Cefai was well saved by goalie Adrian Parnis.  On 42 minutes Xewkija’s Daniel Bogdanovic entered Victoria’s area with a personal action but ended on the floor following a challenge from Lawrence Grima but the referee waived play-on despite protests from Xewkija’s players.  The same Bogdanovic protested for another penalty one minute later when he ended again on the floor inside Victoria’s area as he tried to pass through two opponents. In the following action the Hotspurs operated a counter break but Elton Da Silva failed to conclude the action.  On 45 minutes a header by Xewkija’s Claudio Antunes from a cross by Milos Stojanovic ended on the roof of the net.

Xewkija maintained their momentum after the resumption and reduced the score on 47 minutes when a shot by Claudio Antunes was partially saved by goalie Adrian Parnis and form the rebound substitute Christian Bugeja arrived on the ball at the edge of the area and concluded in goal with a shot on the run. On 50 minutes Xewkija could have scored another goal but substitute Rodney Buttigieg incredibly missed the ball following an inviting low pass by Joseph Azzopardi.  In the following action the Hotspurs operated a fast counter break where Emiliano Lattes unmarked Christian Mercieca who fired in goal with a fine strike.

Two minutes later the Hotspurs could have added another goal but Xewkija’s goalie Mark Grima made an important intervention to block a shot by Christian Mercieca.  On 53 minutes Xewkija scored the second goal when a header by Claudio Antunes from a corner kick by Gennaro Hili was saved to another corner by Victoria’s goalie Adrian Parnis and form the same corner kick by the same Gennaro Hili, Claudio Antunes headed inside the area and Sergio Arturo Martinez Villa concluded in goal with an overhead kick.  However, before the restart the same Martinez Villa was sent off by the referee for fighting with Victoria’s goalkeeper in an attempt to recover the ball from the net and the two sides continued the match with ten players each on the field of play.  Xewkija were demoralised and as time passed by the Hotspur regained full command of play and started to create more dangerous actions. On 57 minutes a shot by Elton Da Silva was well saved to a corner by goalie Mark Grima and form the same corner action a shot by Christian Mercieca was turned to another corner by Xewkija’s keeper.  One minute later goalie Mark Grima was called to make another good save to block a shot by Emiliano Lattes. On 71 minutes a strike by Victoria’s Henrique Maciel missed the target and one minute later Emiliano Lattes entered Xewkija’s area but tried to pass the ball to Elton Da Silva instead of trying to hit the target but Xewkija’s defence recovered in time and cleared the danger.  Xewkija’s best scoring opportunity during the last part of the encounter arrived on 80 minutes but a header by Claudio Antunes form a good position following a free kick by Daniel Bogdanovic ended just wide. The Hotspurs scored their fifth goal on 84 minutes when Xewkija’s keeper partially saved a close ranged shot by Elton Da Silva and Emiliano Lattes placed in goal from the rebound.  Two minutes later Elton Da Silvaincreased the lead with a low drive from the left hand side of the area following a personal action and less than a minute later the same striker had another attempt that was well saved by Xewkija’s keeper.  On 89 minutes Elton Da Silvamade the final score 7-2 for the Hotspurs when he entered Xewkija’s territory with a personal action and concluded in goal with a low shot.  With this goal Da Silva registered a personal hat-trick and also regained leaderships the top scorer of the top championship with 28 goals.

Referee: Stefan Pace

Source: http://www.gozofa.com

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