by Hibernians are set to welcome Inter Women at the Tony Bezzina Stadium for a friendly as the two prepare to return to league action following the holiday period. A look three years on from Birkirkara’s record-breaking battle against Manchester United Women, shows that the story and the protagonists have changed, but the dreams of all remain very much the same.
Birkirkara Against United – A David & Goliath Match Remembered
Exactly three years ago, Birkirkara’s players faces were plastered on billboards as they dared face Manchester United Women. Though dominating the local game, Birkirkara knew they were in for a David & Goliath battle in Tony Bezzina Stadium, but high stakes were not something that this team would be shying away from.
‘Fully Reserved’ were the words emanating in anticipation of a record crowd. The match fulfilled the dream earning the record attendance for any women’s game in Malta (1,053) that stood until last June’s match against Cyprus that sealed promotion for Malta into League B (1,205).
Despite big defeat for the local side, the entire organisation of that match and all that unfolded on the pitch was a moment that proved that there was reason to believe that as a football fan, the feeling of a packed stadium for a women’s football match could someday be felt in Malta too. It was a moment to be proud of, seeing players who regularly trained after a full working day were taking to the pitch aware of the gulf but ready to take on a fully professional side containing EURO winners in its midst, but who at club level dreamed of reaching the knockout stages of European football at club level.
It was impossible the next day to not smile at the cultural irony of the backlash a Maltese political figure received for posing for pictures wearing the Manchester United shirt instead of Birkirkara’s following the match.
Though the pen was actively working, The Sporting Fan was still a project evolving under wraps. However, it was a heart-fluttering moment to sit in that crowd, an atmosphere further poking the internal compass to translate an idea into fruition.
In the time that expired since, The Sporting Fan hasn’t covered Manchester United Women again, and though they still chase a league title, they went on to fulfil their dream of European football but the trophy still eludes them.
However, it has been remarkable to watch Birkirkara lift another treble before ultimately seeing them relinquish to Swieqi United last season. The story continues to unfold as it appears that the crown is likely to change hands again as Haley Bugeja’s former team, Mgarr United, are setting themselves as favourites to claim the league title this year with a healthy gap already carved. San Gwann went into double digits for the first time and Valletta dipped their toes in the women’s game. Lija Athletic see-sawed and Mtarfa ceased to exist. England lifted another European title since, and Malta tasted the joy of promotion to League B twice, split by the heartbreak of relegation.
And throughout that time, Hibernians consolidated a young group of players and now coached by their former captain are hoping to break ground into new territory. Inter Women rose to the top of the Italian pyramid, recruiting a Maltese starlet along the way – Haley Bugeja – whose goal secured European football against Juventus at the end of last season and who has taken like a duck to water to this year’s challenges.
A New Chapter For Two Different Sides
The two are set to write a new chapter in their stories tonight as Hibernians take on Inter at their home stadium, the Tony Bezzina Stadium. Much like the battle between Birkirkara & Manchester United Women, it will feature an amateur side against a fully professional team, and there will be similar dreams, nerves and determination for a good performance among them.
It will be the first time the current crop of Hibernians’ players will play a match on home turf with their club, with the domestic league not played in the stadium since the club returned to the league from hiatus in 2022. Inter’s Bugeja will be familiar with the turf having played for Malta in another VisitMalta tournament held two years ago, but it will be a different experience with her club and against a former enemy from her Mgarr United days.
As noted above, though Hibernians as a club has one of the richest histories in the domestic women’s game in Malta, the current Paolites feature a young group, with several high-potential players hoping to find an early footing against European opposition for the first time with their club.
However, they will take heart to be led by a former player of Inter’s rivals, the Bianconeri, in Nicole Sciberras. In goal, one expects that Maya Cachia’s time in Italy will also boost the defence. However, the match is primed for anyone who is bold enough to rise to the challenge.
Still, the Paolites will be aware that they will face gruesome opposition as Inter is expected to deploy their army in search of building practice ahead of their top clash against Juventus next weekend. Though Inter’s number seven is well known to the locals, it is a squad stacked with talent, including Germany’s former captain Lina Magull, Belgium’s Tessa Wullaert, Hungary’s captain Henrietta Csiszar and just a handful of Italian talents including Elisa Polli.
As always, there will be the tactical battle on the dugouts as Hibernians’ Martina Borg will be looking to find a way to set up her side to effectively frustrate Inter against the experience of Gianpiero Piovani. On his part, he will be seeking to get the best of his team ready for the Serie A.
Three years on from the last time a Maltese side faced a European giant in a friendly at the Stadium, it’s unclear whether Hibernians’ players faces will be on billboards alongside Inter’s, but perhaps a Maltese side and an Inter-wearing Maltese starlet could muster enough natural interest to test the game’s reaches in attendance irrespectively. At least, if a Maltese political figure is caught wearing Inter’s shirt instead of Hibernians’ they will be forgiven, as long as they’re donning Bugeja’s name of course.
The match begins at 19:00 and will be played at the Tony Bezzina Stadium. More women’s football will be ready to kick-start at 20:30 at the Centenary Stadium as the Assikura Women’s Youth League returns to action from the Christmas period, with Lija-Mgarr facing Swieqi United.
Lead Images: Brandon Bonett / Inter Women
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