by Mgarr United and Hibernians will close down proceedings at Dingli Ground tonight at 20:30. The clash is tightly poised with both teams coming into it off the back of a winning start and both coaches, Ryan Vella and Kenneth Costantino, urging their teams to maximise points.
Strong Starts
The opening weekend led to a wide contrast of emotions for different teams. Mgarr United and Hibernians were among those who will feel they hit a high from the off. However, both know that they will need to keep pushing throughout the season, if they are to truly mount a title challenge.
The Greens powered past Mtarfa by a heavily one-sided scoreline of 14-0, with several players getting in on the action. Coach Ryan Vella was pleased with the variety on display to get the victory in his first official match in charge, “We’re very pleased with our last performance. It is not only because of the result, but because of showing good attacking play throughout the game. We worked on a lot of attacking patterns during training, so it was very nice to see it come out during the match.”
Hibernians made sure to kick off the Assikura Women’s League with a bang after earning a 2-0 victory over Swieqi United. The side looked like a well-oiled machine with Kenneth Costantino opting for a changed system.
However, the Hibernians coach suggested that the decision to deploy the chosen formation was exactly intended to get the best out of the available players, “Personally the system is just a way of placing players in a position to bring out the best of each individual and the team. We emphasise more on the style of play, retaining balance and making use of our individual strengths.”
Maximising Strengths
Mgarr United Ryan Vella gave a starting debut to the Villegas sisters, as well as Yanina Mendez and Veronique Mifsud. They appeared to have settled within an established core group of players, with the Greens’ ticking nicely. Despite this, Valeria Villegas had to be substituted early, with Ryan Vella suggesting that the decision on whether she will be on the pitch today to be made closer to the kick-off.
However, there was also a positive for the team in the return of Amber Grech who got in among the goals in her first appearance back. Ryan Vella was keen on her contribution to the team, “Amber was one of our best performers before she suffered the lengthy injury. So, welcoming her back is a big boost to our team. She worked very hard to come back to where she is now and we look forward to see her creativity game after game now.”
Another standout was Yulya Carella, who struggled with injuries last season, but appears to hit her stride from the off this season. This, even though deployed in a different position to her usual wide role.
Ryan Vella is expecting the youngster to keep pushing forward, “We know how much potential she has. Scoring five goals in a game is a big feat. For us, it is about seeing her improve week after week and trying to find her best position in the pitch where she can be more effective, like she was during the last game.”
The team is also yet to deploy Ann-Marie Said, as well as Elisa Xuereb and Julia Egging.
On the other hand, Hibernians’ Kenneth Costantino also picked all his four new recruits in Ileana Farrugia, Jessica Dimech, Joelma Alves Gabriel and Liz Harington, for the start against Swieqi United. There were rotations on the day too, with substitutions made toward the end of the match.
Probed about the decisions to rotate the front line, Costantino focused on the importance of a collective squad in search of having a successful season. He said, “We have a bigger squad than last year and all players are training well and responding to our instructions. We rotate players based on a number of factors such as form, opposition weaknesses or simply to keep the squad fresh and ready.”
Early Days But Neither Deny The Importance
Matches between Mgarr United and Hibernians have brewed an intense rivalry and usually yield hotly contested matches that delight any sporting fan in the stands. The two teams will want nothing more than to deal the first blow to their rival, to continue on their current trajectory.
Hibernians will also feel that taking out two of the big four scalps within the first two weeks would put them in a truly flying start to the season. A defeat would dampen spirits, for either side, but it is still also very early days in the season.
Mgarr United’s Ryan Vella may be officially a new coach, but he’s already had time to duel against Kenneth Costantino’s side. However, the new season has given both teams a new flavour to their approach, with the match tightly poised.
The two coaches were probed on whether their teams will be encouraged to earn the victory as opposed to settling for the point. Mgarr United’s coach, Ryan Vella recognised the strengths of the Paolites, “Facing Hibernians is always a tough challenge. They’re always one of the most organized teams in the league and this season they improved with new players in different departments.”
Despite it being early days, he urged his team to take to the pitch with a positive mentality, “The league is in its early stages still, so the intentions of all teams will always be to get as much points as possible to climb up the table and be in the top places of the league as quickly as possible. Saying that, our mentality will always be to win every match no matter the opponent.”
His counterpart Kenneth Costantino commented on the black-box scenario that the early stages of a season bring, “All games, especially during the first round, will be tricky.”
However, as ever, the Paolites’ coach was cagey on his approach but suggested that there will be no compromises in his game-plan, “We will play every game with the same determination and intent. Every team tries to adopt a style which allows them to reap the best results based on their objective. We are no exception.”
The battle promises to be a thrilling encounter that concludes the second weekend of the Assikura Women’s League, with the match to be played under the lights at Dingli Ground, starting at 20:30. It follows the encounter between Swieqi United and Valletta that is set to begin at 18:00.
Lead Images: Elise Bajada / Lara Schembri
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