In the 1940s, clubs could enter reserve teams in the lower divisions of the league. These teams competed with Second Division clubs but they could not win promotion to a higher division.
This system may seem odd to some but it had its advantages.
First, it gave senior clubs an excellent opportunity to blood new players in the hustle and bustle of league football, and, second, it made the competition much more interesting.
The MFA should, perhaps, take note of this format and consider its re-introduction in the current lower divisions. This would help to reduce the acute problem major clubs are facing in giving their young players much needed competitive experience.
This problem has become more evident since the Reserves League was abolished.
The 1947-48 Second Division league was the last one played in this format. The championship was divided into two sections. Each section was made up of four Second Division clubs and four reserve teams from the First Division.
The next season, the MFA placed all the Second Division teams in one section and the First Division reserve teams in another.
The winners of each section then played each other for the honours. In the knock-out competition, however, the clubs were all pooled together as in previous years.
In 1947-48, Section A was won by Luqa St Andrew's and Section B by Sliema Reserves. This meant that Luqa had won promotion to the First Division for the first time in their history irrespective of the result of the championship play-off.
Luqa proved their credentials when they beat Sliema Reserves 4-1 in the decider.
Luqa were worthy winners of the Second Division. Although closely followed by Floriana Reserves and Vittoriosa Stars in their section, they produced some excellent performances at the stadium that season.
Luqa continued to show fine form in the KO competition.
In the first round they beat Melita Reserves 6-1 and in the quarter-finals they had the better of Floriana Reserves 2-1.
In the semi-finals, however, Luqa came a cropper. They suffered an unexpected defeat to Vittoriosa Stars, a team they had already beaten in the league that season. In the other semi-final, ?amrun Spartans Reserves beat Senglea Athletics 2-0.
The Stars had a very strong team that season. After all, they had already collected the scalps of Marsa, Valletta Reserves and Luqa St Andrew's on their way to the final. They had ambitions of winning promotion to the First Division for the first time in their history. An ambition which, however, they had to wait until season 1952-53 to achieve.
They were favourites to win the final in 1948.
?amrun, however, were worthy opponents and their strong challenge made the contest all the more interesting. On their way to the final, the Reds had beaten ?ejtun United, ?abbar FC and Senglea Athletics.
The final was played on June 13, 1948. It was a hot day, more suitable for waterpolo than football. This did not detract from the excitment of the huge crowd at the stadium that Sunday morning.
The game developed into a tight enðcounter. Both teams had their chances but it was the Spartans who emerged victorious 2-0.
Season 1947-48 was typical of the late 1940s when football was still the only pastime of the majority of the Maltese. It was a time when crowds of around 6,000 were common on Sunday mornings at the stadium.