by Birkirkara will be welcoming San Gwann at the Centenary Stadium at 19:00 as the two grapple for a place in the semi-finals of the MFA Jubilee Cup. Billy Mock and Julian Camilleri reflected on their side’s recent exploits. The two noted that the women’s game’s numbers limit the enthusiasm for a new competition, arguing that the battles are already well rehearsed, but underlined the desire to make the most of it.
On A First Clean Sheet & Building An Attacking Threat
Birkirkara and San Gwann will be undergoing a second meet in just two weeks as the two battle for a place in the semi-finals of the MFA Jubilee Cup. The previous match saw Birkirkara pull away in the second half for a 7 – 2 victory.
Birkirkara head into it on the back of a commanding 6 – 0 win against Valletta, marking the side’s first clean sheet and also variation in the manner of creation and scoring.
Billy Mock disagreed it was a perfect performance, but gave a balanced take, “We were rather careless in distributing the ball in the first half, but we solved the problem from corner set-pieces. I’m quite happy with our second half performance, with the ball moving from one player to another with accuracy. This gave Valletta no chance to respond back.”
As to the unblemished defence, “I was satisfied with the clean sheet, too. But to be honest, Valletta lost their best forward midway through the first half. However, yes, still our back-four is improving game after game.”
On the other hand, San Gwann soaked plenty of pressure in defence but could not put enough attacking response to Hibernians, with the Paolites eventually finding their way through with three goals.
However, Julian Camilleri hit back at the rhetoric on the need for the attacking unit to work more to give the defence respite and worry their opposition with, “It’s not easy to just say you need to attack. There are many details to consider when deciding how to attack. It cannot be just to launch the ball forward without care. You must be sure that there is the right opportunity to make the most of it, because you risk being caught in transition. Another aspect is that you must consider the fitness and physicality of the team, without the ball and in response when winning it back.”
Jubilee Cup: Repetition With Attempts To Find A Way To Learn
The competition brings with it a knockout feel which brings a change from the league routine for the sides. However, both coaches remarked the competition will pit them against well-known opposition given just the six teams in the women’s game.
In fact, questioned about whether he believes the competition will give the team a different challenge to aim for, Billy Mock replied, “We are not playing a league game. It’s the Jubilee Cup. Therefore I might give more playing time to our young players. It’s the result against development. In this case, I will try to find a balance.”
San Gwann’s Julian Camilleri remarked the change in silverware doesn’t represent too much change, “You can’t say there is a different challenge. We are just six teams and compete for three trophies. We keep the same aim and try to do our best.”
Questioned regarding the ripple effect that a first victory over the top four opposition could have on their season, Julian Camilleri replied, “I don’t believe our last result against Birkirkara was deserved. We conceded a lot of soft goals and missed a lot of chances. We must push and believe that we can challenge. We must maintain our discipline without the ball and give our best. As always, the team who does the least mistakes will take home the result.”
The two teams will take to the pitch at the Centenary Stadium at 19:00. Penalties will decide the team progressing should the two remain locked at the ninety.
Lead Image: Michael Azzopardi
Stay up to date by following The Sporting Fan on social media: Instagram ~ Facebook ~ X
