HAMRUN SPARTANS 0
VALLETTA 0
Hamrun: J. Galea (S. Sultana), G. De Castro, D. Zerafa, W. Bokila, T. Caruana, C. Zaccardo, T. Souza, T. Espindola, F. Clavero (L. Micallef), D. Camilleri, A. Machado (J. Galea)
Valletta: H. Bonello, S. Borg, R. Camilleri, J. Cruz, S. Malano, M. Picciollo (M. Mifsud), K. Nwoko, J. Borg, U. Uchenna, R. Saleh, D. Dos Santos (R. Muscat)
Referee: A.M. Sant
Asst.refs: R. Vella, P. Apap
4th official: D. Agius
Yellow cards: S. Borg, G. De Castro, T. Souza, A. Machado, C. Zaccardo
Player of the match: K. Nwoko
TMI top 3: 1. T. Caruana 2. D. Zerafa 3. D. Dos Santos
Attendance: 2,521
There was nothing to celebrate about this 0-0 draw between old rivals Valletta and Hamrun Spartans although the latter may see more good in a point than their opponents.
Perhaps Valletta are not yet as clinical as they would like to be, and need to be more ruthless, having failed to score in two consecutive matches now.
In the first half you could tell Hamrun were in for a beating but Valletta failed to turn their supremacy into goals and after dropping their rhythm in the second they had to settle for a draw that leaves them on equal points with Gzira United and Balzan.
Valletta's next opponents are Floriana.
The Spartans did not set out merely to absorb pressure and avoid a of being run ragged. They were just made to look that way in the first half as Valletta controlled possession and tried to weaken a well-organised defence with the quality of their distribution and movement.
The Citizens often attack on the flanks but Denni prospered in space in central areas. He kept finding space and running past defenders at will.
Valletta lost much of their early lustre after the restart and Hamrun held their nerves, showed more resilience at the back and in midfield to earn a precious point.
Valletta, unbeaten in their previous five matches, were almost an unchanged side, with the only exception that Umeh Uchenna filled in for the suspended Joseph Zerafa.
Hamrun were boosted by the return from injury of Artur Faria Machado and gave a debut start to their new Dutch striker Wim Bokila.
Valletta were the more threatening team throughout the first 45 minutes, with Denni, Nwoko and Piciollo irrepressible.
They pressed Hamrun urgently and Nwoko had an early sighter but his close range shot was blocked by Souza.
Piciollo hit Uchenna's cross first time but keeper Galea held out his effort before he was forced to leave the pitch, after lengthy treatment, and be replaced by Steve Sultana in goal.
The latter was called to effect his first save short of the break, rushing out of his line to block Nwoko.
Despite all Valletta's flurry, it remained goalless at halftime.
Valletta remained dominant but were creating fewer clear openings in the second half.
Sensing that their momentum was also dipping, coach Popovic replaced Piciollo with Michael Mifsud on the hour and later withdrew Denni and introduced Rowen Muscat.
Hamrun changed too, putting in Lydon Micallef for Clavero, but the game did not change significantly; if anything, it regressed.
Mifsud tried to get Valletta going but he was largely alone again. There was little clarity, little imagination, little pace to the play, and not much sign of a striker - either to take chances or make them. There was little threat in the movement of the men playing up front.
Valletta seemed to lack acceleration, an extra gear and imagination, too.
Hamrun, instead grew in composure as they were having more time on the ball and could control the proceedings with far more ease to limit any danger.
On 77 minutes, from a Muscat corner, Malano headed staright on the Hamrun keeper.
That would be the only shot on target of the second half. Valletta knew that a draw was not so benefitting for them and tried to take a step forward. Three more minutes were added, hearts in mouths, but there was to be no drama as the stalemate prevailed.
FLORIANA 1
SLIEMA WANDERERS 0
Floriana: I. Akpan, J. Baldacchino (D. Grima), E. Pepe, E. Ruiz, S. Pisani, M. Vella (C. Borg), J. Cabral, A. Cini, A. Oyama, M. Fontanella, E. Marcelina
Sliema W: G. Zammit, G. Adamovic, S. Bianciardi, M. Muchardi, J. De Assis, G. Aquilina (N. Milinceanu), E. Agius, F. Queros (R. Spiteri), J. Mintoff, M. Sansone, R. Correa
Referee: M. Apap
Asst.refs: J. Spiteri, D. Petrovic
4th official: S. Pace
Scorers: G. Adamovic 20 og,
Yellow cards: S. Bianchardi, M. Muchardi, S. Pisani, J. De Assis, M. Vella
Player of the match: M. Vella (Floriana)
TMI top 3: 1. M. Vella 2. S. Bianchardi 3. S. Pisani
Floriana won this clash of the 'Old Firm' thanks to a first half own goal by Sliema's defender Goran Adamovic to skip back into the top four as they stay unbeaten in the BoV Premier League.
Tension and nervousness always threatened to spoil this game as a spectacle and so it proved.
Floriana looked good for long spells during the first half and might have deserved their lead as they looked the neatier, more confident side, but showed enough defensive resilience to thwart their opponents.
Sliema have days like this at times, when they appear unable to rouse themselves.
Muchardi was classy enough at their heart, collecting and distributing tidily, but there was a distinct lack of flair to a team fielding three defensively-minded midfielders at its core.
They were also stretched defensively, which will have troubled the coach almost as much.
Both teams went into this match in some vein of good form, locked together on the same points tally before kick-off.
Floriana were still unbetaen after 10 outings while Sliema had won all their previous four matches without conceding.
Sliema had Frank Temile suspended but coach John Buttigieg made other changes as he gave starts to Goran Adamovic, Gabriel Aquilina and Michele Sansone.
Floriana, still with coach Giovanni Tedesco banned from the sidelines, replaced Clyde Borg with James Baldacchino and Dylan Grima with Emerson Marcelina in their starting line-up.
The opening exchanges were rather sluggish. But Floriana gradually started to find their rhythm, with Pisani, Vella and Cabral very much in the thick of the action. And after a Cabral cross was headed over the bar by Fontanella, the Greens forged ahead after 20 minutes, albeit in a bizarre manner. Cabral was challenged by Adamovic inside the Sliema area and as the defender tried to block him, the ball took a deflection off his body and floated over the stranded keeper Zammit.
Floriana kept on attacking and as Vella ran inside the Sliema area with alarming ease, keeper Zammit repelled his hard drive.
The Wanderers tried to respond but their attack lacked enough cutting edge to breach Floriana's rearguard. Frustration was evident as De Assis felt aggrieved with lack of enough protection by the referee following a couple of crude tackles on the Sliema forward, who was himself booked for simulation in the first half.
Coach Buttigieg tried to shore things up after the interval by introducing their new Moldovan striker Nicolae Milinceanu for Aquilina in the second half. His debut proved ineffective.
What ensued was a tedious, ill-tempered affair, lacking in quality, with both sides throwing away all tactics.
Sliema moved possession around nicely in Floriana's half but could not find the penetration, even if the Wanderers also introduced Ryan Spiteri for Queroz for the last 15 minutes.
De Assis' cross from the right, after going past Ruiz, contained menace but nobody could reach for it. After another neat Sliema move, Sansone had his effort blocked into a corner.
Floriana elected to sit back and defend their slender lead. They offered next to nothing as an attacking threat. The Greens had also run dry of any inspiration but the Wanderers never looked capable of mounting a comeback.
Unfortunately, as the match neared its end, both sides found themselves swamped into ineffectiveness.