Match Preview: Birkirkara vs Swieqi United

The Assikura Women’s League returns tonight with the top-of-the-table clash between Birkirkara and Swieqi United at the Centenary Stadium (20:15 CET). With plenty of players on form and this year’s encounters having thrown up every possible result, the two coaches were reluctant to pick a winner between the two. They also weighed in on the importance of a recurring broadcast to give a wider sense of the women’s teams in the domestic league.

Three Matches, Three Different Results

The two teams head into this one following wins in their first matches of the final phase. Birkirkara triumphed by another big scoreline against Mgarr United, while Swieqi United managed to edge out Hibernians for the first time this season.

Speaking of the win against the Greens, Birkirkara’s coach Jose’ Borg said, “Our second phase started with a good victory against Mgarr. However, I was not too happy with the performance because I believe we could have done much better.”

Meanwhile, Saviour Darmanin relished the victory over Hibernians, “It was important to get the victory against Hibernians, and it was also positive that we did not concede a goal. First half we needed to improve on some things, but we did well in the second to get the victory.”

This will be the fourth time the two teams will be meeting this season. Swieqi United won the first encounter at the death, while the two could not be separated in the second league encounter. Birkirkara delivered a victory in the Super Cup final to snatch their first win over the Owls this season, but are yet to overcome them in the league. The Stripes currently lead the table and Swieqi United by four points.

Jose’ Borg said, “Swieqi United are a team who we still need to beat in the league. Considering the previous encounters, I expect the match to be a tough one. We might have the slight advantage in having a four-point lead so we have a slight cushion and they know that they have to beat us at all costs if they want to win the league. I think it’s more of a mental game. The two teams are level, so I expect a great game.”

His counterpart Saviour Darmanin is eyeing further success against Birkirkara, “This year we won the league match and drew the second one, so Birkirkara are yet to win against us in the league. They did win the cup final but I think we had positives to bring into this match from that one as well, especially from the first half. Like any match we must take the positives and put them together so that we can reduce the gap to Birkirkara. On their part they could be happy with a draw, although I expect them to try to get the win. However, we focus on ourselves and how we can win the match tactically.”

On Form

The two teams are yet to be beaten this calendar year and have been also displaying solid defences. Birkirkara’s quartet of Marta Grosso, Arianna Del Moral, Veronique Mifsud and Alishia Sultana have been grabbing quite a few goals in recent games. Asked about the importance of this link-up play between them, Jose’ Borg responded, “This is a great advantage to have in the sense that most of the striking force is scoring goals. We do not have a top scorer, but rather a number of players who are all scoring, which I see as an advantage to my end. I’m sure they will continue linking well for the game with Swieqi.”

Meanwhile, Swieqi United have been without their leading striker Salamatu Abdulai in the last two games but have been still enjoying wins thanks to goals by Karima Abdulai, Shona Zammit and Jessica Dimech. Youngsters Kaysia Micallef and Michaela Cachia continued to make key appearances in the team grabbing a number of assists.

Probed about the balance in characters within the team to get victories, Saviour Darmanin said, “A number of youngsters who are doing well, earning themselves recurring appearances through their performances. However, as a coach you must look at who can do the best performance in each game from a tactical perspective. The players that I have, no matter how young or experienced are important for the squad to get the job done.”

In this regard, the coach also welcomed the return of Jade Flask, “Certainly, Jade’s return from injury is an important boost for the team and she’s also getting to a stage when she can take more minutes. Of course, when a player returns from a long-term injury you must be cautious and assess things game by game.”

The coach summed up his comments, “Certainly we have a squad who is capable of winning against the team who have dominated so much in the past years, as we showed this year. Despite this, we must stay focused because ultimately what matters is the team who lifts the honours at the end.”

More Visibility For The Women’s Game

The top of the table clash has been picked up for broadcasting on the national sports channel, TVM Sports+, which can also be live-streamed here. It will be the second league match to be broadcast in the span of a week, after the Birkirkara against Mgarr United match was also picked last week.

Asked about the recurring pick and the differences that this game brings for the spectators, Birkirkara’s coach Jose’ Borg said, “It’s great. We had good feedback last week about the game against Mgarr United. This game will be different for the spectators who will be watching at home. The teams have good midfield and defences which might result in a lot of changes in possession. However, it’s a top clash game, so of course as we know these games can be more closed, but it’s a very important game and ultimately both will be trying to get the points so it should be entertaining.”

Meanwhile, his counterpart Saviour Darmanin also praised the pick in blowing open the door for more to get hooked into the domestic league, “The broadcasts are a positive thing to promote women’s football and the different styles of play that teams adopt. One hopes that this continues to be a frequent occurence so that more are enticed to come to the games, because unfortunately the attendances in women’s football matches still leave much to be desired, especially when one considers domestic league matches.”

The match will be played at the Centenary Stadium, with kick-off set at 20:15 CET. For those unable to make it to the stands, the match can be watched on TVM Sports+.

Lead Images: Lara Schembri

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