Hibernians With Solid Opening Win Against Valletta

Hibernians opened their season with a 3-0 victory over debutants Valletta FC Women, in front of a near capacity crowd at Dingli Ground. Sarah Urpani and Martina Borg scored on either side of half-time to give Hibernians a comfortable lead, before Kayleigh Chetcuti sealed the victory for the Paolites late in the match.

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As mentioned in his pre-match comments, Keith Gouder gave Zeeyana Jivraj her debut. In front of her was a four-piece defence. Chloe Ellul and Alessia Caschetto started on the right and left flank respectively. Meanwhile, Emma Zammit partnered Amy Busuttil in the centre of the defence. In front of them, Nicole Sciberras and Kayleigh Chetcuti stood in the midfield, while Martina Borg occupied the favoured attacking midfield role. Sarah Urpani started on the left wing, while Nyorah Celeste occupied the right. Alexis Espitia was the central striker.

On the other hand, Valletta’s Denis Guerra favoured a trusted line who has more experience in the league. Sabrin Blihi started in goal, who was protected by Georgiana Mifsud and Michela Bonello Ghio. Gaia Antonelli and Eunice Micallef provided the width. Monique Sultana started in midfield alongside Laura Muscat, while Miriana Conti and Alicia Mifsud occupied the wings. Francesca Bartolo was the furthest in the centre of midfield, just behind striker Anna Aloisio.

A Single Spark In An Otherwise Lackluster First Half

Hibernians were the team to enjoy the opening stint of possession, but were frustrated for long durations by a Valletta side who were initially sat deep, thus taking away the threat of runners in behind. In the occasions that the Valletta defence pushed up, Hibernians’ runners were soon met with the presence of Sabrin Blihi who was more than happy to clear out her lines.

A congested midfield provided plenty of hard-fought battles which saw limited real opportunites. Of the few created, Hibernians were the most threatening from the two teams. A free-kick into the first twenty minutes of the match saw Kayleigh Chetcuti find Martina Borg, but her volley was met with the figure of Georgiana Mifsud. Half-hearted appeals of ball-handling were waved away by the referee. Nicole Sciberras connected with a delivery from Chloe Ellul a few minutes later but her header went straight into the hands of Blihi.

At the other end, Valletta’s Francesca Bartolo also struck from distance to mark her team’s first attempt, but she too was just off-target. Miriana Conti was also determined in her approach, winning a free-kick in the middle of the park to enable her team to get up the pitch. However, Gaia Antonelli’s attempt to get Anna Aloisio behind the defence was thwarted by Amy Busuttil.

Meanwhile, Sabrin Blihi’s willingness to rush off her line disrupted Hibernians’ attemps to get runners behind the defence. In response, Martina Borg opened up a bit of space and struck from distance but was wide of the mark. However, her idea was the right one. In fact, Sarah Urpani broke the deadlock two minutes from the end of the first half with a long-distance strike. Alexis Espitia drifted wide and laid the ball toward Hibernians’ number eight, who noticed Blihi off her line and struck straight into the near left top-corner, to send the Paolites into the break with the lead.

Half-Time Score: Hibernians 1 – 0 Valletta

Hibernians Extend Lead

The two coaches opted for changes at the break. Keith Gouder gave Leah Ayres her debut against her former team, replacing Nyorah Celeste. The change saw Alexis Espitia moved into the wide-right while Ayres occupied the centre role. Meanwhile, Denis Guerra also handed a first appearance to Suzanne Farrugia Sacco, who replaced Alicia Mifsud on the right wing.

Valletta looked more positive in their play as the second half kicked on and fashioned one of their best chances seven minutes into the half. Miriana Conti found Anna Aloisio who struck from the edge of the six-yard box, but debutant Zeeyana Jivraj did well to deflect the shot away.

As expected, Valletta’s more attacking stance left spaces behind, which Hibernians capitalised on a few minutes later. Alexis Espitia drove a cross toward captain Martina Borg, who placed into the bottom left corner to double the Paolites’ lead. The two linked in a similar manner around ten minutes later, but Borg could not convert.

At the other end, Valletta churned through the gears with the intensity in the match going up a notch. Miriana Conti was one of the standouts in cajoling the team forward, once more attempting to release Anna Aloisio, but Jivraj was quick to collect. A few moments later, Valletta’s number nine capitalised on some miscommunication at the back by winning the ball high up the pitch and tried to curl a shot into goal, but Jivraj was equal to it once more. Francesca Bartolo, Suzanne Farrugia Sacco and Gaia Antonelli also attempted a few shots but were not quite on the money with their strikes to truly trouble the goalkeeper as the match wore on.

The two coaches both opted to make late substitutions with Denis Guerra fielding Sara Bonello Ghio in replacement of Laura Muscat four minutes from time, while Keith Gouder gave an early rest to Chloe Ellul, Martina Borg and Alexis Espitia. Debutants Demi Gauci Maistre and Martina Cortis took to the field alongside Cristina Hili.

Kayleigh Chetcuti sealed the finish for Hibernians with a strike from the right wing to complete a 3-0 victory. Martina Cortis grabs the assist.

Next Matches

Valletta FC will face Mtarfa on Friday 1st at the Centenary Stadium at 8:15 pm. The two sides will come into the match looking for their first points on the board following their opening defeats.

The following day, Hibernians will battle it out against Mgarr United in the second match of next Saturday’s double-header at Dingli Ground. The match will be played at 9 pm.

Lead Image: Hibernians FC

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