Lija Athletic and San Gwann Earn First Points in Draw

Lija Athletic and San Gwann ended the match level 1-1 at Dingli Ground. Shania Gheiti opened the score but Vanessa Honorio Carneiro equalised for Lija in the second half. Lija Athletic saw a goal cancelled. The tense match featured plenty of skirmishes which escalated to San Gwann’s Martina Schembri being sent off and Edera Marmara being substituted out for fear of following her late in the match.

Team News

Lija Athletic’s Jethron Azzopardi fielded Christiana Pisani in goal. Sarah Caruana partnered Amy Galea Gingell in the centre of defence, while Rachel Mifsud and Samira Bouzid provided the width. Captain Simone Buttigieg orchestrated in midfield alongside Nell Zarb Cousin and Edera Marmara who was just further forward. The width was provided by Mariah Schembri and Katryna Grech, while Vanessa Honorio Carneiro was the focus in attack.

Meanwhile, Justyne Caruana kept her place in goal for San Gwann. Coach Julian Camilleri stuck with a back-three despite the absence of captain Annabelle Rapa. Instead Nicole Camenzuli was flanked by Kirstie Vella and Fatma Al Girbi. The team had to contend with a last minute change due to an injury during the warm up, which saw debutant Kya Mamo take to the pitch instead of Shania Borg. Rabab Mhalli and Nilayza Attard provided the width in midfield, while Chaimaa Tourki and Martina Schembri were in charge of the centre of midfield. In front of them, Andjela Kricak took the captain’s armband and provided attacking support to the front two of Shania Gheiti and Kya Mamo.

San Gwann Start Brightly

It took some time for the two sides to settle into the match, with both sides initially losing possession quite cheaply in attempt to launch long-balls which were lacking the required accuracy. Both sides fired a couple of warning shots but it was San Gwann who broke the deadlock through Shania Gheiti a quarter of an hour into the match. A long ball from Al Girbi released San Gwann’s number eighteen who got away from her marker and found the back of the net.

Having found their lead, the Yellows settled more into the match and their passes out wide started to really hurt Lija Athletic. Despite this, the newcomers stood strong to block shots and earned themselves a breather through hold-up play by Honorio Carneiro. Despite this, San Gwann kept piling forward winning a number of free-kicks which almost paid dividends when Nicole Camenzuli picked out Shania Gheiti. However, Pisani was alert to the danger and punched out the ball to safety.

Lija Athletic’s Denied Goal

Things started to become more heated when a series of decisions pertaining to a number of corner kicks saw complete confusion between the signals from the referee and the linesman. It gave rise to a level of frustration at the officials from the benches, players and those in the stands, which kept increasing throughout the match. Despite these initial corner-kick decisions mostly going San Gwann’s way, the Yellows were unable to capitalise on their attacks.

The final minutes of the first half saw Honorio Carneiro win a free-kick for Lija but also get booked for dissent at the referee due to him not producing a card against her aggressor. The Reds kept their resolve and elation ensued as Sarah Caruana delivered a free-kick behind the defence which saw Katryna Grech run free. Her shot was denied by San Gwann’s goalkeeper Justyne Caruana before a tap in by Rachel Mifsud found the back of the net, only for the goal to be denied by a questionable offside flag.

Half-Time Score: Lija Athletic 0 – 1 San Gwann

Lija Athletic Find The Equaliser

There were no subsitutions at the break but three minutes into the half Jethron Azzopardi brought on Elisa Xuereb in replacement of Samira Bouzid. Xuereb took the left-wing forward role, while Mariah Schembri retreated to the left-back role. The change boosted the pace up front and Lija started churning through the gears in search of the equaliser.

A free-kick inside the first four minutes of the half saw goalkeeper Christiana Pisani try the shoot from around thirty yards, but her counterpart was equal to it. Although Caruana attempted to get San Gwann up the field quickly, noting the gaping goal left by Pisani, Lija’s captain Simone Buttigieg made one of her numerous tackles throughout the match to ensure her team had time to get back into shape.

The Reds upped their intensity, but San Gwann still kept doing well to win set-pieces, although Lija’s defence stood tall and were quick to release the counter. They were rewarded into the sixty-fifth minute when Sarah Caruana drove into the midfield and launched a ball for Vanessa Honorio Carneiro to chase. Lija Athletic’s number nine showed great composure to get the ball under control before chipping the goalkeeper to find the net.

Lija had a chance to complete the comeback a couple of minutes later as Nell Zarb Cousin released Katryna Grech on the right wing, but her outswinging shot toward the far post kept curling wide.

Schembri Sent-Off

Noting his team losing the midfield battle, Julian Camilleri brought on Sarah Cioffi in replacement of Kya Mamo. She took the central role, pushing Andjela Kricak to the wing instead of Nilayza Attard who moved into the forward line. Cioffi almost got immediate purchase after striking from the edge of the box five minutes into her appearance, only to be denied by the crossbar. Although Nilayza Attard attempted to head in the rebound, she could not generate enough power and Pisani was well positioned to collect.

The two sides kept going toe to toe with tackles flying in. Both were on the hunt to improve their result but also desperate not to be on the losing end. Things escalated when San Gwann’s Martina Schembri was sent-off following a double booking for a foul on Lija’s number nine, Honorio Carneiro.

Despite falling down to ten, the Yellows kept up the attacks, while Lija Athletic were hunting down every ball to stay in it. Lija’s captain Simone Buttigieg in particular was leading by example while coaxing her team to stay in the match alongside Katryna Grech. However, on the wing, the battle between Edera Marmara and Rabab Mhalli also kept building. The two were at each other’s throat throughout and following more than one skirmish Mhalli dropped to the ground clutching her face with a loud groan that dismayed Lija’s number ten who had to be calmed down by her teammates.

She was let off with a booking, which San Gwann argued should have been a red, prompting a louder cacophony of complaints from the camp. Seeing his player losing her calm, Jethron Azzopardi opted to bring on Hayley Muscat in replacement for the final throes of the match. Neither team were able to trouble the goalkeepers much after that, ending the match 1-1.

Next Matches

The draw sees the two teams get their first points on the board, meaning that following the second weekend only Mtarfa are yet to grab a point. Mgarr United and Hibernians also shared the spoils in the later fixture.

Lija Athletic will next face Hibernians on Friday 8th September in a 20:45 kick-off at Centenary Stadium. Meanwhile, San Gwann FC look ahead to a tough battle against Swieqi United who will return to action following a bye-week due to their fixture against Birkirkara being re-scheduled because of Champions League preparations for the Stripes. The match between San Gwann and Swieqi United will be played on Saturday 9th September at 20:30, following the encounter between Valletta and Mgarr United which starts at 18:00.

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