Late penalty denies Spartans

Hamrun Spartans 1
Balzan Youths 1

Financial restraints and a meagre return of three points from 13 matches have earned Hamrun Spartans the undesirable tag of hot favourites to walk the plank down to Division One.

The fallen giants face a tall order to hang on to their status but yesterday's brisk performance in a 1-1 draw against Balzan Youths at the Centenary Stadium showed that Gencho Dobrev's team will not go down without a fight.

The only blemish on an otherwise positive evening was that Hamrun once more failed in their bid to gain their first win of the season that their enterprise deserved.

Balzan were also looking to increase their tally to strengthen hopes of avoiding the drop. Their performance, however, fell below expectations but for a late flurry which procured a string of chances that were thwarted by the Hamrun defence.

Stefano Grima was awarded a starting berth by Balzan coach Jimmy Briffa after he joined on loan from Sliema Wanderers. After eight minutes, Grima nearly marked his debut with a goal had his angled drive from the edge of the area not been touched away by goalkeeper Daniel Dengaky.

Gilbert Scerri, sharing Balzan's striking duties with Anthony EviParker, combined with skipper Jaroslav Marx, drifted inside from the left but Dengaky was well-positioned to stop his drive. Within a minute, it was Hamrun who had grabbed the lead.

Roderick Bajada, one of a host of Spartans' players believed to be courting interest from other clubs, enhanced his transfer value when despatching a low shot past Ernest Barry to punish some hesitant Balzan defending.

Hamrun may not have big-name players in the squad but their youngsters pranced around the pitch with renewed confidence after Bajada's breakthrough.

The efficient input of Jonathan Magri Overend and Stefan Sultana, two of the most experienced campaigners in the top flight, was also a big factor behind their more positive approach.

The sight of Dengaky charging out of goal to cut out a cross from the right had the Hamrun fans on the edge of their seats but after the Congolese no.1 seemed to have fumbled the ball when challenged by EviParker, he recouped ground and belted the ball away.

Three minutes from half-time, the Spartans nearly doubled their lead.

Sultana laced a pass down the inside-left channel towards the steaming Gaetan Spiteri. The Balzan defence was all at sea as Spiteri raced towards goal but hastened his conclusion as Barry rushed out to close the angle. The Hamrun striker's attempt trickled past the far post.

A powerful run by Kevin Borg down the right personified Hamrun's liveliness in the second part of the first half. After seeing the back of two opponents inside his own half, Borg's persistence won him a rebound just past the halfway line and his cross had Sultana turning cleverly to divert the flight of the ball towards goal. That fine effort ended just wide.

Balzan will have hoped that the interval would slow down their opponents' momentum but the early exchanges suggested otherwise.

Three minutes after the changeover, the Spartans should have increased their tally as Mauro Brincat advanced unimpeded on the flank before squaring the ball to Borg who hit the ball wide of the far post.

With the 'Marx-effect' nullified by Magri Overend's industry, Balzan came nowhere near the level of performances attained in their last few outings.

Briffa summoned Stefan Zahra from the bench to try and bring some forward focus to his team. Zahra replaced David Agius.

A header by EviParker flashed wide as Balzan pushed forward in numbers. The incoming Evano Briffa, who replaced Borg, stole the attention for the wrong reasons, conceding a penalty after he was judged to have touched the ball with his hand. Scerri made short work of the penalty to restore equilibrium with 18 minutes remaining.

Briffa could have made quick amends for his earlier mishap but his low shot was deflected away by Barry. The Spartans threatened again soon after, Keith Fabri's header sailing just over.

Nine minutes from time, Briffa was again prominent with a rising volley which Barry touched onto the crossbar before the danger was averted.

Caution ebbed away from both teams as the end of the game loomed larger. Briffa twisted and turned to unbalance the Balzan rearguard but Barry was alert to save the shot.

Hamrun s determination to chalk up their first win left them vulnerable to counter-attacks at the back.

They were lucky not to suffer a late killer blow when Scerri released EviParker who was dispossessed by Dengaky, the ball was retrieved by Zahra who had his attempt blocked and Neville Arpa's final effort found David Galea in the way.

In the dying stages, Dengaky again came to Hamrun 's rescue on Zahra's effort.

Hamrun: D. Dengaky, K. Borg (E. Briffa), D. Galea, J. Magri Overend (J. Debattista), G. Spiteri (J. Briffa), S. Sultana, N. Fasanelli, M. Brincat, K. Fabri, R. Bajada, A. Attard.

Balzan: E. Barry, S. Grima, D. Agius (S. Zahra), K. Curmi, S. Tellus, M. Caruana, N. Filipov (N. Gatt), J. Marx, A. EviParker, G. Scerri (K. Coleiro), N. Arpa.

Referee: Clayton Pisani.

Scorers: Bajada 19; Scerri 72 pen.

Yellow Cards: Fabri; Marx; Fasanelli; Filipov; Grima; Bajada; Attard.

MIA Player of the Match: Roderick Bajada (Hamrun Spartans).