It was an eventful weekend in our Premier League as Qormi easily demolished bottom placed Dingli Swallows on Friday to maintain a firm grip at the top of the standings.

On Saturday the citizens just overcame a stiff challenge from Hamrun Spartans, while Hibernians scored a come-from-behind win in the final moments against Tarxien Rainbows.

Qormi were first in action when on Friday evening, they easily overcame a feeble challenge from bottom-placed Dingli to take firm command at the top – extending their lead temporarily to five points over second placed Valletta.

Qormi dominated most of their match against the Swallows and the scoreline could have been bigger had they made the most of the chances which came their way.

Once again, it was left to their outstanding Brazilian striker Camilo Da Silva to secure another three important points – he scored twice in the second half to increase his goals tally this season to 11.

Together with Nigerian Alfred Effiong, Camilo is proving to be a deadly striker. Together they are combining perfectly and have become the twin terrors of the Premier League.

Dingli simply had no reply to Qormi’s overall strength, especially in attack. Haruna Doda could do precious little as he was left isolated in the hope that he would surprise the Qormi defence. However, he rarely, if ever, made any headway against Qormi’s strong central defenders, Wellman and Dos Santos.

On Saturday, Hibernians returned to winning form with a come-from-behind victory against their neighbours Tarxien Rainbows, who threw away the three points in the final 10 minutes.

It was a keenly contested derby in which Hibs and Malta goalie Mario Muscat was shown a red card just before the end after a second yellow card.

Earlier, Tarxien seemed to be heading towards a victory as they seemed to be firmly in command against a lethargic Hibernians side.

The Rainbows deserved to take their half-time lead, but they were made to pay dearly for missing some clear chances to increase their side’s lead in the first and second halves through Rocha dos Santos and Ribeiro before Hibernians first equalised and then scored a quick second goal which proved to be the winner.

For the champions, it meant that they had returned to just three points behind the leaders after eight matches. And that means they are still well in contention although the road till the end is still very far away.

Valletta and Birkirkara also maintained their challenge as they both won their matches against Hamrun and Msida respectively.

The citizens almost repeated their mishap of the previous match against Tarxien when they squandered a two-goal lead against Hamrun. But then came Priso’s second penalty of the afternoon to give them a narrow 3-2 win over the Spartans.

Despite all their talented and expensive signings, Valletta are still far from looking like a championship winning side. The players – and coach Ton Caanen – were even taken to task by their own fans on Saturday when even the most loyal ones booed them off the field at the interval.

Caanen and his expensively built side still has to deliver the goods promised to the fans earlier in the season. Yet, after such a fine start in the Champions League and the Premier League, the side is looking rusty and needs some adjustments to get it back on track.

The Spartans must have felt themselves unlucky to have lost all the three points after what they claimed was an inexistent or rather dubious second penalty award.

Steve D’Amato’s side had fought back admirably to level the scores at two-all after being two in arrears early in the match. But such form is most encouraging for this team in their battle to save their

status.

On Sunday, Birkirkara were dealt an early shock by Msida after a bad lapse by Spanish goalie Mora.

However, they quickly scored to get back on level terms and dominated the match so much that it was a surprise that they had to wait till the second half to secure the three points.

It was another impressive performance by Paul Zammit’s side. In fact, it is evident that the Stripes are playing the best football at present and, with their current crop of experienced and young players, they are bound to continue improving.

Msida’s Lattes made the most of a banal error by Mora just outside the area in the initial stages, but after that, they rarely were able to go close to scoring again as the Stripes took a firm grip in midfield.

This month, and probably the next, the Saints will have to work hard to secure the services of some players to give a boost to the side in the hope of avoiding the Big Drop.

The Sliema-Floriana ‘Old Firm’ derby produced a tense match, but it was far from a spectacular encounter as actions in front of goal were few and far between.

In a match in which one player was sent off and seven shown the yellow card, Sliema had taken the lead early but Floriana fought back to earn a point.

For the Greens it was their third consecutive positive result while for Sliema, it was only their fourth point from as many matches.

On such form it is evident that these two old stalwarts of Maltese football, will once again have to content themselves with a mid-table position this season.



Best player



Sylvano Comvalius (Birkirkara)



Dutch striker Sylvano Comvalius is my pick this week after his great performance against Msida on Sunday.

The Dutchman, who arrived among the Birkirkara ranks in the summer after his transfer from Hamrun Spartans, seems to be settling down nicely under Paul Zammit’s charge, after a quiet start to the season.

He has now started scoring the goals that matter and against Msida he even showed he can play for the team as well.

His main asset is his height but his mazy runs and powerful shooting must also be included in his repertoire. I am convinced he can lead the Stripes to a successful season.



The scorers



11 goals - Camilo Da Silva (Qormi)

6 goals - Joseph Okonkwo (Dingli), Anderson Mendes Ribeiro (Tarxien R)

5 goals - Terence Scerri (Valletta), Sylvano Comvalius (Birkirkara), Njongo Priso Doding (Valletta)

4 goals - Olegs Malasenoks (Hibs), JP Mifsud Triganza (Sliema W.), Marcelo Pereira (Hamrun S.)

3 goals - Trevor Cilia, Michael Galea, George Mallia (Birkirkara), Akanni Sunday Wasiu (Floriana), Gaetan Spiteri (Hamrun S.)