Patrick Curmi officially became the new coach of Hamrun Spartans on Monday after putting pen to paper on a one-year deal with the once-mighty Premier League club.

Curmi succeeds Bulgarian Atanas Marinov. He will start his quest of turning the club's ailing fortunes next Monday when the squad starts its preparations for the new season at the Tedesco Stadium.

For the former Marsa, Pietà and Lija coach, this will be a second stint with the Spartans.

In the mid-90s, Curmi was handed the responsibility of the team after the dismissal of Italian player-coach Orazio Sorbello.

At Hamrun, Curmi will be working with a largely young squad formed of players he already knows when in charge of the youth sector at the Mile End a few years back, along with the late Toni Bajada.

Veteran Stefan Sultana, who holds the UEFA 'A' Licence in coaching, will be assisting Curmi while continuing his duties as a striker for another campaign.

"This second experience at Hamrun is a huge challenge for me," Curmi told The Times yesterday.

"I'm aware of the hard times the club is facing at the moment, even though, I guess, much was blown out of proportion. The new committee is looking to put things back in order. I'm sure they will see the club out of this difficult situation and on more stable lines.

"We know the new season will be a tough one for us. The main objective should be to retain our Premier League status as early as possible. We have a young, but talented, squad. But, I'm still confident that these players can do well and put the club back on solid foundations."

The new Hamrun administration only took office last week after a rather protracted period to conclude the annual general meeting. However, the first steps to put the house in order at the struggling club were already made.

Yesterday, an application for an operating licence for the forthcoming season was filed at the Malta FA.

That meant all Premier clubs, including Valletta and Floriana, have now applied for a licence.

Hamrun are currently seeking to retain all their players in the senior squad, including Congo goalkeeper Daniel Dengaky, even though skipper Charlo Magro is said to have already reached an agreement with ambitious southerners Marsaxlokk.

Floriana are also after the signature of midfielder Roderick Bajada. The transfer, they contend, will make up for the money they are owed by Hamrun in the David Galea move some four years back.

But, it seems that the Spartans' committee has now decided not to part with any of their upcoming players.

Bajada, however, is not the only Hamrun player being courted by Floriana. Defender Graham Bencini is another name on Ziya Yildiz's wanted list and the Greens are expected to launch a bid for the 24-year-old shortly.

Meanwhile, negotiations between Marsaxlokk and Floriana over the loan transfer of wing-back Richard Buhagiar seem to have hit a snag.

The fee which takes the 31-year-old to the southern club for another season seems to be the stumbling block here. With the transfer season opening yesterday, Buhagiar could be placed on the transfer list if the issue is not settled.

Eviparker move to Pietà still on hold

Pietà Hotspurs have agreed in principle with Marsa to sign teenage Nigerian striker Anthony Eviparker.

However, the Hotspurs are not ready to fork out the money and complete the deal unless Marsa produce documents which show that the transfer prohibition on the Division One club has been lifted.

The Hotspurs, likely to have another pre-season training camp in Italy this summer, recently secured Malcolm Licari's services for another two years. Italian Mauro Di Lello is set to stay put for another term.

This week, top Pietà officials will conduct a series of talks with non-contracted players in coach Ray Farrugia's squad. Sources said the club could put some of the out-of-contract players on the transfer list.

Chartered flight to Riga

Sliema Wanderers will organise a chartered flight to Riga for the team's Champions League away match against Skonto on July 23.

The Sliema contingent leaves Malta for Latvia on July 21 and will return on July 25. The price, which includes flight, accommodation and hotel transfers, is Lm250.

Those interested in travelling with the Wanderers should contact club president Robert Arrigo or secretary John Bugeja for further details.