by Mtarfa and San Gwann will meet at the Centenary Stadium tonight at 20:30. Gaetano Papaleo and Julian Camilleri both addressed learnings from their tough openings, but appear determined to push their teams toward a positive outing tonight.
Disappointing Openings
Mtarfa and San Gwann will certainly have wished for a better start to the campaign, despite both knowing that they were up against strong opposition in their opening matches.
Mtarfa’s Gaetano Papaleo was in his first match in charge of the side and admitted that the strength of Mgarr United was too much too handle for his side, “Mgarr is a great team. l have the sporting honesty to admit that they are a spectacle and l congratulate them sincerely. We are too young and an inexperienced team.”
Despite this, the Italian is sticking by his philosophy, “You will never see my team playing with eight defenders. Otherwise young players will never learn to respect positions.”
The Greens made plenty of headlines over the summer with the number of signatures accrued, but they were not the only ones, with several others also making signatures. However, the Italian declined to elaborate on whether such investment is the only way to keep up with the top teams, “Our hands are tied. That’s all l’m saying.”
Meanwhile, San Gwann have made a few new acquisitions, but also struggled against the might of Birkirkara. Julian Camilleri addressed the performance, “You cannot allow Birkirkara to be so commanding, especially right now that they are primed in their preparations for the UEFA Women’s Champions League. Furthermore, we did not take to the pitch with the right mentality and lost our heads as soon as the first goal went in. We did not follow the game plan.”
The team took to the pitch with a young back-line and a debutant goalkeeper in Geona Muscat. Probed about whether Justyne Caruana is side-lined for long-term, Camilleri replied, “Justyne is treating a minor injury and we do not yet have a date of when she’ll be back. However, despite being young, Geona is a goalkeeper that we have full faith in, between the goalposts.”
A Thirst For Points
The second matchday brings a direct confrontation with the two teams both hungry to get off the mark. San Gwann had the upper hand in all confrontations last season and will want to keep that track record. However, Mtarfa will certainly want to reverse their fortunes after a points drought last season that they will hope to overturn.
Mtarfa’s Gaetano Papaleo refused to call it, “l respect any team. l’m not in a position to make predictions. l try to teach these girls to go out on the pitch and take risks without being afraid of making mistakes, regardless of the result. The real losers are the jealous, the weak-minded and the insecure.”
His counterpart, Julian Camilleri, was also reluctant to address the outcome but underlined the fact that both teams will be out for the hunt, “Anything can happen and we must not underestimate anyone. It’s true they suffered fourteen goals, but we suffered eleven. I’m certain that both of us will be seeking the three points tonight.”
The clash usually brings with it plenty of sparks and all things point toward a feisty situation unfolding tonight. The match will begin at 20:30 and will be played at the Centenary Stadium.
Lead Images: Lara Schembri
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