Senglea              5 
St Andrews        0 

Senglea: M. Farrugia, T. Marukawa, Z. Cassar, N. Mitic, L. Grech (G. Camilleri 71), G. Leyton, D. Venancio, M. Garcia (K. Cutajar 78), A. Caseres, A. Mrsulja, C. Sammut (M. Bartolo 82)

St Andrews: M. Calleja Cremona, K. Mcfarlane (L. Sciberras 59), M. Stewart (A. Friggieri 60), K. Reid, J. Farrugia, K. Magro, A. Borg, J. Walker, M. Davis, T. Blagrove, M. Woo Ling (D. Debono 75)

Referee: I. Barbara

Asst refs: E. Spiteri, M. Scerri

4^th official: AM Sant

Scorers: D. Venancio 9, 35, 52, L. Grech 62, A. Caseres 77

Yellow cards: J. Walker 55, D. Venancio 57, J. Farrugia 81

BoV Player of the Match: D. Venancio

TMI Top 3: 1. D. Venancio; 2. L. Grech; 3. J. Farrugia

Senglea Athletic moved a step closer towards safety as they beat direct relegation rivals St Andrews in yesterday evening's first match at the Centenary Stadium.

Diego Venancio scored a hat-trick to lead Senglea to this precious win which sees the Athletic overtaking the same St Andrews in the standings. The other goals were scored by Leighton Grech and Augusto Caseres.

Before the Qormi-Tarxien match later yesterday, Senglea moved up two places to 10^th on 20 points, one more than Tarxien and two more than St Andrews.

The victory was undoubtedly Senglea's best ever in the Premier League and their performance confirmed their resurgence in this second round.

For the Saints, this was a disastrous defeat and they will have to stop this negative run of four consecutive defeats if they are to keep their hopes of avoiding relegation alive.

Senglea had Nikola Mitic from Serbia making his debut, while Malik Stewart, from the US, was making his first appearance for St Andrews.

The first half was characterised by the strong wind blowing from behind the St Andrews backs.

Senglea, however, adapted themselves better to the conditions and could have scored at least two more goals had they taken the chances which came their way.

Their second goal from a controversial penalty put the Saints in difficulty as they had to play the second half facing the wind.

But during the first half, the Saints were unable to inflict any damage on Matthew Farrugia's fort.

In the second half, Senglea  continued with their domination and they went on to add three further goals for a splendid win that certainly increases their hopes of avoiding relegation.

In the first minute, St Andrews appealed for a penalty when Kemar Reid fell in the area in a challenge for the ball with a Senglea defender, but the official, close to the action, ignored their pleas.

At the other end, Venancio had a strong shot stopped by goalie Calleja Cremona. Soon after, from a Garcia freekick, Mrsulja headed just wide.

Senglea took the lead on the 9^th minute. It was Diego Venancio who beat the unsighted Calleja Cremona direct from a freekick.

St Andrews almost equalised immediately afterwards. From a Farrugia cornerkick, it was Zachary Cassar who cleared the ball from over the line.

Senglea threatened again in the 19^th minute when from a Garcia cross, Saints defender Travis Blagrove nearly headed into his own net in an effort to clear (the ball probably changed direction because of the strong wind blowing).

 On the 29^th minute, Davis crossed from the right, but Senglea defender Mrsulja managed to clear before Stewart could connect.

Senglea were awarded a controversial penalty in the 35^th minute when Kurt Magro was adjudged to have floored Augusto Caseres in the area. The Saints protested on the grounds that the foul was committed outside the area, but it was to no avail as the official stuck to his decision. From the spotkick, Venancio netted his and his side's second goal.

In the 42^nd minute, Calleja Cremona thwarted the Athletic from a third goal as he saved with his feet a Mitic shot after a fine pass by Leighton Grech.

Venencio crowned himself Man of the Match on 52 minutes as he scored Senglea's third goal for his first hat-trick in Malta. He beat Calleja Cremona with a shot from around 20 metres.

Senglea remained dominant and it was no surprise that they added a 4^th goal on 62 minutes. It was Garcia who split the Saints defence open and Leighton Grech beat Calleja Cremona with a well placed shot.

On 67 minutes, St Andrews had a chance through a Blagrove header from a Farrugia freekick, but the ball sailed harmlessly over the bar.

The fifth and final goal arrived on 77 minutes with Augusto Caseres applying the final touch after a Senglea choral move.