by Swieqi United & Mgarr United will meet at the Charles Abela Stadium at 20:30 this evening. Dorianne Theuma & Ryan Vella spoke about narrow victories, together with the impact of suspensions & lengthy injuries on the bearing of tonight’s encounter.
Getting Results Despite Scrapes & Lengthy Bruises
Swieqi United and Mgarr United carry a positive string of results into this second round of the final phase. They find themselves just three points apart in the table with tonight being another crucial encounter in the chase to the Assikura Women’s League title.
Swieqi United’s victory against Hibernians was another one where the Owls secured a late winner. Despite having ample of the ball, it was a dubious call which rendered a penalty that the side converted to secure a 1 – 0 victory.
Questioned on whether she believes her side still merited the win against the Paolites, Swieqi United coach, Dorianne Theuma replied, “Some may say the penalty was doubtful, but there were many other questionable decisions before that action, that’s football. I’m happy the team stayed focused on the target despite a frustrating ninety minutes. Overall, I believe we had more possession and controlled most of the game against a strong defence and fought hard to go home with the three points.”
Dorianne Theuma was also dismissed in the match following back-to-back bookings, meaning that she will be banned from the touchline this evening. Questioned about the dismissal and the way the technical staff and team carried themselves, Theuma hailed the unified mentality, which she believes prevailed in the situation, “The goal came after my dismissal, so it’s safe to say everyone had one target in mind, and nothing was going to get in the way. As for the dismissal, let’s just say it was another dubious call in the game!”
The Swieqi coach continued to put faith in the unity within the squad and technical staff when probed about her thoughts on the impact of the ban on tonight’s proceedings, “Thankfully, I’m surrounded by a great team of experienced coaches who all share the same mindset. Over these past seven months, one of the key things in this team has been to pull the rope in the same direction.”
Meanwhile, Mgarr United secured their first victory against Birkirkara in a bittersweet Saturday afternoon, which saw them walking away with a rare three points against the defending champions, but multiple injury woes.
Ryan Vella praised the mentality with which the team dealt with the tribulations of the match to secure the win, “I think the team handled all the situations that the game threw at us really well. After having an injury early in the game to our captain, the players could have let their heads drop, but instead the team showed great mental strength and kept going throughout the ninety minutes and got the win as a result.”
The Mgarr United coach confirmed that both Brenda Borg and Veronique Mifsud will be sidelined for a lengthy period following the confirmation of ACL tears sustained in the match against Birkirkara. This besides the already sidelined Maia Debono who has a separate injury.
Meanwhile, the Mgarr United coach hailed the depth in the squad when questioned about the absence of Giulia D’Antuono from goal, “Having two really good goalkeepers is always a headache to pick who’s going to start and who’s not. Usually it’s always a tactical decision, but unfortunately for us Giulia (D’Antuono) got injured a couple of weeks ago as well. As always, Patricia (Ebejer) was well prepared to start when the injury happened and now she’s making the most out of her opportunity.”
Something To Fight For
As noted above the two teams are separated by just three points and they both walk into the match on the back of victories. Equal in every way in points from direct encounters, the two won a game apiece in their direct confrontations, while the last encounter ended in a goalless stalemate. Yesterday’s goalless draw between Birkirkara and Hibernians stirs the pot further with Mgarr United possibly equalling both Swieqi United & Hibernians with one victory.
However, as noted above, Mgarr United are bearing the brunt of three major injury blows in their midfield unit, against a side with arguably one of the strongest midfields in the division. Swieqi United have also experienced the reality of a second place finish too many times in the last seasons, which should further stoke the fire toward a maiden league title.
Questioned on her thoughts about the midfield battle, Dorianne Theuma began by paying tribute to the midfield pairing of Brenda Borg & Veronique Mifsud, “I want to wish Brenda and Veronique a speedy recovery. I hope that they come back even stronger because the game needs players like them.”
However, continuing on the topic of the midfield battle to play out this evening, the Swieqi United coach believes the Greens are far from done from the battle, “As for their absence, the last time we lost to Mgarr these two did not start, which says a lot about the strength and depth of their squad.”
Mgarr United coach, Ryan Vella, was questioned on the impact of the multiple injuries in the midfield department and the potential advantage of playing at the Charles Abela Stadium this evening.
The Greens coach is backing his side’s depth and mentality to carry them in this match, “Even though we have a lot of injuries in the midfield department, we know that luckily we have good squad depth and we have players that can play in multiple positions well. We’ll make sure to get the team prepared in the best way possible tactically and mentally to get the win in another tough game against the current leaders.”
Both sides will have key ingredients missing this evening, but perhaps that will instigate more motivation and character. All will be in their hands as they take to the pitch under the floodlights at the Charles Abela Stadium at 20:30.
Lead Images: Lara Schembri
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