Ghajnsielem have made a very positive start to their second round commitments, gaining four points from two matches in the space of four days. In another match from Division One, Xaghra United gained an important victory over Kercem Ajax.
Ghajnsielem 2
Nadur Youngsters 2
In the first match from the second round, title hopefuls Ghajnsielem were surprisingly held to a draw by bottom-placed Nadur Youngsters.
Coming after their heavy defeat against Xewkija Tigers, the Blacks looked a demoralised lot. On their part, Nadur offered stiff resistance and, on this evidence, they look capable of recovering ground in the league.
Ghajnsielem enjoyed the better start, opening the score in the sixth minute through Daniel Bogdanovic who pounced on a rebound from goalkeeper Vella following a free-kick by Mbueko.
Nadur staged an immediate reaction and obtained a deserved equaliser in the 21st minute from a penalty, awarded for a foul by goalkeeper Mercieca on Anthony Portelli. Cedieric Nkwanko converted from the spot.
Four minutes from the end of the first half, Ghajnsielem went close to re-establishing their lead with a free-kick by Bogdanovic that was well saved by goalkeeper Vella.
Yet, from the ensuing counter-attack, Nadur surged ahead, Nkwanko depositing the ball behind Mercieca from an angled position after receiving from Portelli. Ghajnsielem levelled the scores just before half-time through Kalenga Ndayi's close-range shot.
Exchanges remained balanced after the restart. Nadur were dangerous with efforts by Simoncic and Meilak, while Ghajnsielem's goal-scoring attempts were created by Bogdanovic and Ndayi.
Late in the match, both sides could have sneaked victory. Nadur's goalkeeper Vella foiled Bogdanovic on two occasions, and, at the other end of the pitch, Nkwanko's lob in the 90th minute ended just wide.
Referee: Reno Refalo.
Kercem Ajax 0
Xaghra United 1
Xaghra United moved to within a point from Kercem Ajax after taking maximum spoils from their direct clash on Wednesday.
Gaining control of proceedings from the start of the match, Xaghra had an early effort from Daniel Olalekan saved by Kercem keeper Aktpan and another attempt by John Camilleri that was cleared off the line by Mario Cutajar.
Nenad Veselji could have put Kercem in front but concluded wide from an ideal position.
Xaghra scored the decisive goal in the 23rd minute with a low shot by Olalekan. The latter spoiled his good deed for Xaghra when getting a red card for a foul on Camilleri.
Kercem brought more incisiveness to their approach at the start of the second half. A free-kick by Mark Marlow ended just high and an effort by Cutajar was saved by the Xaghra custodian. Fifteen minutes from time, Cutajar was sent off for dissent.
Kercem had their best opportunity to equalise in the 88th minute but Gotthard Conti concluded poorly with the goal at his mercy.
In the last seconds of the match, Kercem goalkeeper Aktpan denied substitute Babayaro scoring a second goal for Xaghra.
Referee: Alan Mario Sant.
Zebbug Rovers 1
Ghajnsielem 4
Ghajnsielem completed a double over champions Zebbug Rovers to reclaim top spot in the standings. They have a two-point gap on Xewkija who have two games in hand.
The return of Damian Iriele and better understanding between strikers Daniel Bogdanovic, scorer of a hat-trick, and Kalenga Ndayi, bolstered Ghajnsielem who showed a marked improvement from their recent outings.
The Rovers surprised Ghajnsielem when they took the lead after seven minutes through Jude Utulu following a cross by Philip Cardona.
Ghajnsielem took some time to recover from this early setback but their morale was lifted by a 19th minute equaliser from Bogdanovic. The former Malta international tapped the ball home following a typical move by Ndayi.
A minute later, Zebbug goalkeeper Reggie Cini, another former Malta player, saved well from Bogdanovic but before the break, Ghajnsielem turned the result in their favour.
A free-kick by Bogdanovic was not held by Cini and Ndayi guided the ball home from close distance. Until the end of the first half, Cini was kept busy by attempts from Bogdanovic, Iriele and Ndayi, while Zebbug's Leandro produced a good effort in the 45th minute that ended just wide.
After the break, Ghajnsielem held more of the initiative but Touali and Silvan Galea wasted good chances to get Zebbug back on level terms.
In the final stages of the match, the Rovers went all out in search of an equaliser but they ended up suffering two killer blows from Ghajnsielem.
Bogdanovic scored twice in the last seven minutes to notch up a personal hat-trick and give Ghajnsielem an emphatic 4-1 success.
Referee: Roberto Buontempo.