With X-Sel and Kerygma Blues already qualified for the Ghaqda Kittieba Sports Cup final, last weekend saw three teams battle it out, in each category, for the other place in the final match to be played in the forthcoming weekend.
Paola Hibs Candy and Fleur de Lys FEB managed to overcome the resistance offered by Aloysians Lipton and Flyers, respectively, to qualify for two final matches that can go either way.
Besides the fact that these two matches should provide loads of entertainment, for Paola Hibs Candy and Fleur de Lys FEB it will be a real tour-de-force, seeing that they need to win both today and on tomorrow to make sure of the title.
On the other hand, X-Sel and Kerygma Blues need only one win today to take home the first edition of this Cup, since they are still unbeaten. This came around due to the double elimination system used, which makes sure that no team is eliminated unless it has lost twice.
After beating Fleur de Lys CFK comfortably on Saturday, Flyers had to face mighty Paola Hibs Candy for a place in the final tomorrow.
Unfortunately, Steve Farrugia’s girls found the going rather tough, with Paola immediately building a 2-0 lead in just 40 minutes, leaving only 28 points to their opponents against the 50 they had already won by that point.
The third set saw a resurgence from Flyers, taking a considerable six-point lead mid way through the set. Paola, however, increased their tempo, and with R. Scaccia, A. Borg and C. Cortis doing considerable damage at the net, the match was soon over, with Paola Hibs Candy qualifying for an interesting re-match against rivals X-Sel.
It was much the same story in the Men’s Category, with Aloysians Lipton doing all the work on Saturday, beating San Anton 3-0, with Paul Vella rallying up point after point from attacks and services.
San Anton had played much better in their first outings: however, things were rather difficult for them against Lipton, who showed a considerable improvement in cohesion and team work.
Aloysians kept playing on well even in their match against Fleur de Lys FEB on Sunday, downsizing the current champions to a 25-12 defeat in the first set. The latter, however, never threw in the towel, and started playing better from the second set onwards, with youngster Paul Tonna doing a considerable amount of work especially up front.
FEB stood steady, winning three consecutive tight sets (25-23, 25-22, 26-24), before closing the match 3-1 in their favour, opening a challenge to Kerygma Blues in the final.